Mark Belling Rips TMJ4's Health Care Coverage

On his radio program yesterday, Mark Belling absolutely ripped TMJ4's July 22 coverage of Obama's health plan. In particular, Belling went after anchor Mike Jacobs and a story done by Shelley Walcott.

I saw TMJ4's 10:00 newscast and had the same reaction that Belling did. It was awful. It was a disservice to the community. At worst, it was deceptive.

Belling was disturbed about what Mike Jacobs said when introducing an Obama sound bite. Jacobs said Obama vowed to enact health care reforms without raising taxes. The quote from Obama that followed didn't say that. Belling points out that Obama promises not to raise taxes on what he calls the middle class. However, Obama makes no promises about not raising taxes on the rich to fund his socialized medicine plan.

Belling said, "So Jacobs' story either lied, or Mike Jacobs was so lazy he didn't even bother listening to the audio cut, or some useless, liberal person in the newsroom wrote the copy for him. One of the three."

Then Belling launched into his attack on Shelley Walcott and her story.

Women Speak Out For Health Care Reform

A group of Milwaukee area women say the current health care system has failed them. They spoke out Wednesday night at a event designed to highlight the need for health care reform.

Mary Kay Wagner's husband died of brain cancer, but not before his insurance plan ruined their financial health.

Wagner was one of several women speaking out at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts Wednesday evening, an event sponsored by the Wisconsin Alliance for Women's Health.

She told the group how her husband's insurance plan refused to pay for many of his treatments and how the bills just piled up: "I was getting bills and EOB's and statements, sometimes up to five a day during the worst of his treatments."

And it isn't always major illnesses that sparks financial fear.

Single mom Lashawndra Vernon says anything past a routine doctor visit puts her close to the edge: "Even though my insurance covers most of it, what's left is astronomical. Especially in these times."

Vernon worries about what she would do if one of her kids got sick: "And I don't want to have to start thinking, 'OK, do I feed them, or do I get them medication.'"

These two women - like many others struggling with health care - say President Barack Obama's health care reform plan can't come soon enough.

"One of our basic rights is life," said Wagner. "And you can't have life if you're not healthy."

One of the speakers said many of us who think we have good plans could change our minds quickly, if we ever got really sick.

Belling said, "Shelley Walcott, who I guarantee you from the way she reported this story, I guarantee you is a liberal. Nobody else but a liberal could report a story so ridiculously without challenging these women on a couple of statements, and also pointing out the obvious -- BOTH OF THESE WOMEN HAD INSURANCE!

"How does Obama's plan help them? Both women that were yakking about the cost of health care have health insurance. There is nothing in Obama's plan, nothing in Obama's plan, that would make things better for them. If anything, it will make it worse."

I understand why Belling went nuts over this. Jacobs made an outright false statement and Walcott's story was pure propaganda.

Walcott reported, "These two women - like many others struggling with health care - say President Barack Obama's health care reform plan can't come soon enough."

Fine. To balance this, why not offer viewers the other side of the story? There is another side. Find two women who believe that Obama's health care reform plan will prove disastrous to them. TMJ4 chose not to cover that angle at all.

TMJ4's coverage was terribly slanted, not to mention downright sloppy. It failed to adequately inform viewers. TMJ4 apparently isn't concerned with its credibility, preferring to push Obama's agenda instead. A news outlet that can't be trusted is one that's not worth watching.

While Belling was very harsh in his criticism of TMJ4 and used derogatory terms to describe the women in Walcott's story, calling them "dingbats," I agree with the basic charges he makes. I would have used different language, but his points are valid.
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Video of the segment by Shelley Walcott.