The other thing worth noting about this story is that it's not just a matter of the difference between Abramoff and Associates giving money, there's also the issue of how the money was divied out. My understanding is that the organizations Abramoff worked with were already giving money to Democrats before, but gave less when Abramoff got involved.

Gee, wouldn't a good reporter have "dug a little deeper" BEFORE the interview?

Thank you, Mr Grieve, for posting this and the link to that stupendously unprofessional attack by Katie Couric. What an unprepared, unprofessional excuse for a "journalist."

I found the phone numbers and email for the Today Show and NBC News and immediately phoned and sent emails. I spoke to Katie Couric's assistant and left a message on NBC News President Steve Capus's phonemail. I did not use "hate speech" as Jim Brady at the Washington Post characterized the angry emails Deborah Howell received after her second deliberate falsification of information in her ombudsman column. I did not want NBC to dodge the issue by placing the blame on angry viewers instead of on the poor journalism exhibited by Ms Couric. I very calmly stated that I was horrified by Ms Couric's uninformed and false remarks (why hadn't she prepared better for her interview and sought confirmation of "Democrats receiving money from Abramoff" from more than one source?) and I said she behaved rudely to Dr Dean by repeatedly interrupting him and repeating her false information instead of saying "maybe we should check this again" the first time Dr Dean told her she was wrong. When she finally huffed "WELL, we'll have to check this out and get back to our viewers at a later date!", I asked why would it have to take so long to confirm or repudiate her information? She has a staff, they have access to the internet; government agencies post this information on the internet. Her staff should have been online IMMEDIATELY checking this information as soon as Dr Dean repudiated it.

I asked when could I expect Katie Couric to retract and correct her misstatement and when I could expect an apology from Ms Couric to Dr Dean, to Democratic candidates and to Democratic Party members. I assured them I would be waiting to see this.

Here are the contacts

The Today Show - 1-212-664-4602

NBC Nightly News 1-212-664-4971

Pres. NBC News 1-212-664-3228

steve.capus@nbc.com

You know, news organizations get away with portraying Dean as a wild-eyed maniac because people don't go after them when they do this. I don't always agree with Dr Dean -- I disagree with him a lot, as a matter of fact - but you don't see them characterizing Ken Mehlman as a lying, immoral political operative. Oh no-- THAT would be "opinion." Well, I'm going to hit back at the news organizations for their false statements and their mischaracterizations from now on. It's what the vast rightwing conspracy did for years, and look where it's gotten them. We need to do the same. Stand up and say "OUCH! Stop that!" each time they stamp on our foot instead of keeping quiet.

The Bin Laden family were business associates of George W Bush. What does that say about GW Bush and his associates and their involvement in 9/11? I mean, come on. This adding "and associates" crap can let people get away with all kinds of assertions.

You see this is why I love salon, and especially this forum...thanks and kudos to "username" for digging and calling/emailing Couric. I am about to do the same.

Thanks for covering what matters, and thanks, Username, for calling things as they are.

Katie Couric is no journalist. She's a GE multimillionaire, 20-something-wannebeagain prima donna who does no homework, no real interviewing. But she's not alone. The networks are full of plastic clowns like her--male and female--who play fast and loose with the facts (as they are fed them), stomp all over their interviewees or tell them how to answer the question, and don't really give a damn about covering the issues.

As that old Barbie doll was programmed to say, "Math class is hard." So is being a good journalist. Too hard, apparently.

It might be good to discover and boycott all Couric's advertisers too, until Couric retracts. And let those advertisers know.

In the wider scope, it might be good to find out which

Corporate Behemoth owns NBC and find out what else that same

Behemoth owns. And find out if there is some other supplier

of whatever all that Behemoth's other subsidiaries makes or

sells. And tell that Behemoth we'll keep doing that too,

until Couric retracts.

Today, (Friday, Jan 27) Matt Lauer tried to clarify the conversation between Katie Couric and Howard Dean. To paraphrase, he restated that although Jack Abramoff didn't give money to the Democrats himself, Abramoff's associates did give money to Democrats. The thing that bothers me about it is that there was no clarification that those associates are not necessarily a part of the scandal, thus perpetuating the belief of a democratic connection that isn't there.

I've repeatedly been disappointed in the propaganda that the Today Show calls journalism and I'm getting pretty ashamed of the profession.

Mr. Grieve himself is actually helping to perpetuate this nonsense by even allowing for the "associates of" crap to stick. What does "associates" mean? I usually think of it as meaning someone who works directly with the principals involved, such as the associates at a law firm. If anyone who actually works with Abramoff directly gave to Democrats, I'd like to hear about it.

If by "associates" people mean clients of Abramoff, well - that's a load of crap. Contributions to Democrats by Indian tribes represented by Abramoff actually DECLINED after Abramoff took them on as clients. Abramoff tried to get them to stop giving to Democrats, actually.