# AP story entitled: "Bush Twists Kerry's Words on Iraq" ... too partisan for the AP?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [September 25, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037 "2004-09-25T14:02:05Z")
**Posts on this page:** 12
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/1 "2004-09-25T14:02:05Z")
> [@](#):
>
> WACO, Texas - President Bush opened several new scathing lines of attack against Democrat John Kerry, charges that twisted his rival’s words on Iraq and made Kerry seem supportive of deposed dictator Saddam Hussein.
[http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040925/ap\_on\_el\_pr/bush&cid=694&ncid=716](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040925/ap_on_el_pr/bush&cid=694&ncid=716)
Is this article incredibly partisan for an AP story, or is it just me?
Mind you, I’m a Kerry supporter and glad to see Bush being made to take his medicine, but stil … the AP? The way the whole thing is couched just caught me off guard.
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### Author:  [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/2 "2004-09-25T15:09:28Z")
Yeah, I was surprised by that too. And I instantly thought of conservatives here making threads about it, to demonstate the “liberal media bias”. I haven’t been to the pit yet today, might already be there.
IMO, yes, it’s way too partisan for a non-editorial article. (Which has nothing to do with it being right or not, or course)
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/3 "2004-09-25T16:13:23Z")
1. Forget the headline. That was put there by Yahoo, not the AP. AP articles never have headlines; they are put there by whoever picks up the story.
2. No, it’s not partisan. It’s actually good reporting: the reporter actually dug into the charges and investigated their validity. It doesn’t favor Kerry, since it points out Kerry does the same thing (and documents it with examples). But one of the big failures of modern journalism is that they will report any charge a candidate makes and do no follow up other than to ask the other candidate if it was true. If a candidate makes a charge against another, it is good journalism, and serves the public interest, the a reporter checks out the veracity of the statement. In this case, Bush clearly misrepresented Kerry’s position. That should be mentioned in any article about it.
It’s sad that people think good reporting means you repeat any charges without proof. What the AP did was exactly what people are condemning CBS for **not** doing. CBS is being soundly criticized for accepting things at face value without investigating them thoroughly. The AP, OTOH, did investigate the claims.
We need more reporting like this.
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### Author:  [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/4 "2004-09-25T16:24:31Z")
Well, ‘Excite’ has it with the exact same headline… Coincidence? Nope, it’s also on the Associated Press front page with the same headline, as of this writing.
> **[The Associated Press](https://www.ap.org/)**
>
> Build your next story with up-to-the-minute breaking news and history's most iconic images and video directly from The Associated Press. Where stories begin.
FWIW I only meant the headline is partisan, not the article, which I only skimmed.
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### Author:  [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/5 "2004-09-25T16:46:32Z")
The GOP campaign has been distorting Kerry’s record since day one. The Smear Boat Vets were doing it long before Kerry responded by defending his war record, and for the most part, the US press has let their charges slide on through. It is not “too partisan” to point it out when a candidate lies. **It is the press’s job, its obligation.**
You did notice, didn’t you, that the story pointed out distortions by both sides?
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### Author:  [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/6 "2004-09-25T16:52:13Z")
> [@AskNott](#):
>
> You did notice, didn’t you, that the story pointed out distortions by both sides?
If you are asking me, then yes I did.
So wouldn’t a more accurate headline be something like “Bush and Kerry twist each other words?” Forget partisan or not for moment, it’s simply a better description of the article, isn’t it?
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### Author:  [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/7 "2004-09-25T17:08:43Z")
> [@Revtim](#):
>
> So wouldn’t a more accurate headline be something like “Bush and Kerry twist each other words?” Forget partisan or not for moment, it’s simply a better description of the article, isn’t it?
Yup.
Which is probably why the headline is now “Bush, Kerry Twisting Each Other’s Words.” 😃
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### Author:  [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/8 "2004-09-25T17:27:48Z")
It’s also changed on Excite and AP. Looks like the headlines do come from a central source, probably AP.
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### Author:  [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)
#### Post date: [September 25, 2004, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/9 "2004-09-25T18:36:54Z")
It’s not partisan to say someone is lying if they are demonstrably lying. This is why I’ve been so annoyed by all these media outlets which cite charges by the Swift Boat Liars For Bush without mentioning that their allegations have been demonstrated to be lies.
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### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2004, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/10 "2004-09-26T02:43:10Z")
And yet the Miami Herald has the headline: “In new attacks on Kerry, Bush twists his rival’s words.” The headline is up to the newspaper.
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### Author:  [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2004, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/11 "2004-09-26T03:22:04Z")
AP does assign headlines. They come over the wire. But the member pubs have no obligation to use them.
And I agree, using the word ‘twist’ there is wrong. Explantory or not that’s a word fraught with emotional weight that should be avoided if possible.
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### Author:  [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)
#### Post date: [September 26, 2004, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ap-story-entitled-bush-twists-kerrys-words-on-iraq-too-partisan-for-the-ap/266037/12 "2004-09-26T03:23:06Z")
A simple trip down [factcheck.org](http://factcheck.org) will show you that both candidates have twisted each others words to no end (and done various other exaggerations)…they were running pretty much neck and neck in misrepresenting each other, but I think Bush has pulled ahead lately…i.e. he’s lieing more than Kerry lately. Doesn’t change the fact though that BOTH sides do this regularly…and the various 527’s representing each candidate are even worse.
Sure, its news…but I’ll believe non-partisanship when I see a similar article run next week describing one of Kerry’s ‘twists’ of Bush’s words or positions. Perhaps I missed a similar ad about Kerry twists…but I doubt it.
-XT