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CNN Admits It Should Have Vetted Guest Expert Better

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Houston Chronicle:

CNN said it shouldn't have used a former U.S. attorney who quit his job after allegedly biting a stripper as an analyst about New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's prostitution scandal.

No mention of Kendall Coffey's past was made when anchor Tony Harris interviewed him Tuesday on the legal questions surrounding Spitzer's case. Coffey quit his job in May 1996 after being accused of biting a topless dancer on the arm during a visit to an adult club after losing a big drug case.

Coffey talked on CNN about what kind of charges the New York governor could face. Spitzer is accused of having a high-priced call girl visit his hotel room during a visit to Washington last month.

While Coffey's past is known to CNN's booking department, it wasn't to the person who set up Harris' segment. CNN spokesman Nigel Pritchard blamed a "miscommunication."

"Coffey has been a guest on CNN in the past but was probably not the right one for this story," Pritchard said.

Oopsie! It's a little like having Bill "Phone sex with a loofah" O'Reilly lecture you about moral rectitude.

About Nicole Belle
Nicole Belle's picture
Mom, Wife, Media Critic/Political Analyst, Blogger, Austen Fanatic, Unapologetic Liberal NicoleBelle@crooksandliars.com
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45 Comments
jebus.love.me's picture

frist

DR-TV's picture

Second!

Oh... and I've got nothing to say this time. Whoop-de-doo.

Liberal AND Proud's picture

That guy bit a stripper?

Heh...more like he gummed her.

Lollimom's picture

She-looked-good-enough-to-eat Kendall Coffey lecturing the world on morality...

The sickness that is gripping Corporate Media is killing all of us.

One of the first priorities of the next president should be to break up the Corporate Media monopoly, to usher in the new era of enlightenment for the citizens of the United States, and to do away with crap like CNN.

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce's picture

Bill-o the Loofah Boy has moral rectumtude? Really? That asshole!

anneyhussein's picture

He bit a stripper? Sounds like a rabid dog who oughta' be shot! Or a teething toddler.

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce's picture

It was all just a minor misunderstanding. CNN Vittered when they should have vetted.

jebus.love.me's picture

Well at least he didn't pay $4300 for a lap dance....

Also, I don't know if it's just me, but I thought that Spitzer's Hooker didn't look like she would be worth $4300 an hour. I mean when I heard that he paid that much, I expected someone out of the Victoria Secrets catalog. I mean she's cute, but not worth destroying your career over.

Albatross's picture

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce @ 7:

It was all just a minor misunderstanding. CNN Vittered when they should have vetted.

Ya-hey! Flavin!

Bringing this guy in to talk about Spitzer was as foolish as... well, as expecting journalism out of CNN...

Samson-'s picture

"CNN Admits It Should Have Vetted Guest Expert Better"

well, it is a step, albeit a miniscule, quantum step.

now, maybe they will feel more confident in admitting that their hosts and their entire channel is a pathetic joke. but, of course, next to the god-awful-bad cnn headline news, they are somewhat respectable. vomit doesn't smell that bad when compared to shit.

scarlet p.'s picture

You say Faloofah
And I say Falafel!

Let's call the whole thing awful!

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce's picture

jebus.love.me @ 8:

Well at least he didn't pay $4300 for a lap dance....

Also, I don't know if it's just me, but I thought that Spitzer's Hooker didn't look like she would be worth $4300 an hour. I mean when I heard that he paid that much, I expected someone out of the Victoria Secrets catalog. I mean she's cute, but not worth destroying your career over.

That's the difference between the priviledged and the common man. $4300 an hour? For that price, her coochie had better come with a solid gold cover and a diamond stickpin that I can keep. Hell, I want something for my money.

Larry David's picture

I love the HBO add in the middle of the page to bad it doesn't make sounds.

ChrisM70's picture

Remember when the media vowed that "everything has changed" after Katrina?
That they would be better journalists and fight for the common man, hold the powerful accountable, and be less preocupied with the celebrity-obsessed vapid-ness, and essentially be more "serious"?

Newsflash: It didn't take.

Jack Lewis's picture

he had perfect credentials for being on TV, he bash democrats, that's all that's needed now a days.!!

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce's picture

Albatross @ 9:

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce @ 7:

It was all just a minor misunderstanding. CNN Vittered when they should have vetted.

Ya-hey! Flavin!

Bringing this guy in to talk about Spitzer was as foolish as... well, as expecting journalism out of CNN...

I'll expect journalism out of CNN when my left-handed grandma gets right with herself or when Quasimodo straightens up. Whichever comes first.

Ron's picture

Remember when the media actually published news. Now they compete for the infotainment readers and watchers. Don't they know that if they actually published the National and world news they would kill Faux Snooze in ratings.

L.A. Confidential's picture

ChrisM70 @ 14:

Remember when the media vowed that "everything has changed" after Katrina?
That they would be better journalists and fight for the common man, hold the powerful accountable, and be less preocupied with the celebrity-obsessed vapid-ness, and essentially be more "serious"?

Newsflash: It didn't take.

Oh yeah Katrina whatever happened to that.

L.A. Confidential's picture

Ron @ 17:

Remember when the media actually published news. Now they compete for the infotainment readers and watchers. Don't they know that if they actually published the National and world news they would kill Faux Snooze in ratings.

Have to have something "new" 24 times per day. That's why we're bombarded by meaningless trivia and gossip masquerading as information.

L.A. Whosaneillary Confidential's picture

Democratic rivals agree to play nicer
AP - 24 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - On this presidential rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton can agree: They sometimes disagree with their trash-talking supporters and will try to cool it.

Okay there we go everything's swinging now!

ChrisM70's picture

L.A. Confidential @ 19:

Ron @ 17:

Remember when the media actually published news. Now they compete for the infotainment readers and watchers. Don't they know that if they actually published the National and world news they would kill Faux Snooze in ratings.

Have to have something "new" 24 times per day. That's why we're bombarded by meaningless trivia and gossip masquerading as information.

You know that would make sense if the stations didn't have enough news stories to cover - but there are a TON of stories they never tell the public. It's about ratings and $$$.
They get better ratings by spoon feeding us trivia that doesn't take any investigation, so it doesnt' cost much to put on the air.

Imagine if they had more reporters - ones who could investigate the FISA issue and then give us REAL information? How about if they investigated Abu Ghraib? Dick Cheney's secret energy meetings? This stuff takes reporting, and they don't have the staff and resources. Plus, why bother with real news when salacious details of hookers and governors will fill the screen for the next 72 hours?

Jack Lewis's picture

Remember when cnn was good? They would just run a half hour news program, every hour, back then they actually had journalists, now they have political pundits, commentators and "personalities". I really wish they would just go back to having journalists.

Kahn's picture

A guy who bite a stipper and got into legal trouble for it. Sounds like an expert to me.
Only he should have started every sentence with: "When I ended up in court because..." and "When it happened to me..."

hazmaq's picture

Come on!
Who cares about CNN's silly bullsh**. They've been a dysfunctional collection of idiots for a while now

But NBC/MSNBC/GE play a much more dangerous gameI of pure political propoganda against Obama -verging on libel.

I ask, no I beg and warn all bloggers of what NBC/MSNBC is doing. And to demand that it stop . SNL was only a taste of what this network's organization will do to keep a pro-warmonger in the White House.
They've got tape of the Chicago reverend again and have been airing it almost nonstop as a breaking story with every other sentence interspersed with Obama's name and about Obamas ties to him. None of the other networks are commenting on it at all, not even Fox. This is a New York based special interest PAC base targeted attack on Obama.
-What we all feared would happen with Military suppliers also owning our airwaves.

They are going to do what Hillary can't get away with; push the race issue to the hilt: push other provocative and subliminal messages - Matthews used photos of Obama interspersed with photos of Osama -when Hillary made the 'words matter' charge of plagiarism and; Matthews used two of the most provocative nude covers Rolling Stone Magazine ever made to demean and underplay their endorsement of Obama , by using and comparing RS's new cover photo of Obama this way: Matthews words.." the magazine that brought you this [insert two nude photos here] now brings you 'this' [insert cover of Obama here]."
Now what possible motivation would a 'host' have to report a simple story of an endorsement -in such a despicable light? For what reason?

Come On C&L and you other bloggers. Partisanship is one thing -but dirty media tactics are something else.

ysbaddaden's picture

Wait for it, it comes on at 2:04

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RexQLrcqwc

slippy hussein toad's picture

DR-TV @ 2:

Second!

Oh... and I've got nothing to say this time. Whoop-de-doo.

Then shut up. This "first post" crap is getting old. Second post is just goddamn lame.

On topic, I am wondering if CNN has started to figure out that viewers are pissed off and not paying attention anymore. I'm one. I won't even let page hits to cnn originate from any of my computers. The last time I viewed CNN on a regular basis was around 2004-time, but I've completely shut them out as their coverage has gotten increasingly sloppy, sycophantic, and propagandistic. Fuck them.

slippy hussein toad's picture

ChrisM70 @ 21:

L.A. Confidential @ 19:

Ron @ 17:

Remember when the media actually published news. Now they compete for the infotainment readers and watchers. Don't they know that if they actually published the National and world news they would kill Faux Snooze in ratings.

Have to have something "new" 24 times per day. That's why we're bombarded by meaningless trivia and gossip masquerading as information.

You know that would make sense if the stations didn't have enough news stories to cover - but there are a TON of stories they never tell the public. It's about ratings and $$$.
They get better ratings by spoon feeding us trivia that doesn't take any investigation, so it doesnt' cost much to put on the air.

Imagine if they had more reporters - ones who could investigate the FISA issue and then give us REAL information? How about if they investigated Abu Ghraib? Dick Cheney's secret energy meetings? This stuff takes reporting, and they don't have the staff and resources. Plus, why bother with real news when salacious details of hookers and governors will fill the screen for the next 72 hours?

It's that they're terrified of offending people with power. The natural consequence of letting a handful of wealthy jackholes own all the media outlets in our country.

CoIntelPro - against Divisive Democrats's picture

Cacamaymee Nitwit-Noise

danny's picture

biting strippers - hiring hookers - what's the difference?

bajasteve's picture

Albatross @ 9:

Pol Pot-O-Cheesesauce @ 7:

It was all just a minor misunderstanding. CNN Vittered when they should have vetted.

Ya-hey! Flavin!

Bringing this guy in to talk about Spitzer was as foolish as... well, as expecting journalism out of CNN...

Well, obviously they didn't expect any real journalism in the bit - they had Tony Harris interviewing. That guys about as much of a serious journalist as Britney Spears is.

Peter G's picture

You'd think they'd have all their talking heads client numbers in the rolodex by now. Sheesh.

ysbaddaden's picture
mosiealong's picture

Murdock sez...

I didn't really mean to stick Bush's pr*ck in your ear like that.

(I just bet)

euthyfro's picture
JaneaneTheAcerbicGoblin's picture

What CNN really meant to say was...

"We're pissed off again that the bloggosphere has caught us deliberately pandering to the right wing by putting on a Republican critic of Democrats without questioning the Republican's past at all. Here at CNN we have a narrative. Democrats evil, liberal, sinful, and communistic. Republicans are absolutely perfect in every way and never do anything wrong ever. We were trying to adhere to this narrative. We would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for you damn bloggers!"

Charlotte Corday's picture

OFF TOPIC: Money for Democrats tryin ta beat repugs fir senate and congressional seats! A $10. donation, a $5. donation, any kind is better than none. Rick Noriega over in Texas is struggling to keep up with Cornin, who gets campaign funding from big Republican sources, including BUSHCO. Hillary and Obama need you, but so do THESE GUYS, and we NEED THEM!

Help, Popeye, help!

Got a dollah? Throw it to a struggling Democrat. VoteVets.org keeps a list of the seats at stake and who needs help. Thank you!

(Sorry about the OT, hope it is okay with my kindly hosts to intrude and make noise briefly. Especially as I know this isn't news to anyone.)

Mr. Hussein Pelicano's picture

Biting the stripper made him eminently qualified to comment on the topic. He was simply putting his mouth where his money was.

I also want to object to the person who said that Ms. Dupre wasn't worth $4,300 a night. What Spitzer - and those like him - are paying for is D-I-S-C-R-E-T-I-O-N. That's why nobody pays a penny to someone like Linda Tripp.

earl's picture

slippy hussein toad @ 26:

DR-TV @ 2:

Second!

Oh... and I've got nothing to say this time. Whoop-de-doo.

Then shut up. This "first post" crap is getting old. Second post is just goddamn lame.

On topic, I am wondering if CNN has started to figure out that viewers are pissed off and not paying attention anymore. I'm one. I won't even let page hits to cnn originate from any of my computers. The last time I viewed CNN on a regular basis was around 2004-time, but I've completely shut them out as their coverage has gotten increasingly sloppy, sycophantic, and propagandistic. Fuck them.

Agreed I cancelled my cable b/c I coulndt tell CNN from FOX.
"CNN.com.International" is horrible ....

[CFK] Tender Vittles's picture

The fact that he bit a stripper gives him a rare degree of authority on the subject. It's nice to see CNN making an effort to find analysts who have a first-hand understanding of the issues.

Powkat's picture

Still not up to Heidi Fleiss on Nightline, asked to give the whores' perspective (acctually what he said was 'since you've been in the business.')

Heidi said she was "glad he was getting laid." He attorney looked like he wished he was invisible.

galmud's picture

LOL who needs comedy writers when in the real world of US MSM comedy just writes itself

Robin's picture

Alleged? Accused? I thought you were supposed to presume innocence until proven guilty. If he assaulted someone, he should be arrested and tried. If he's found guilty, he should go to jail. If not found guilty, he should be treated as if he had NOT committed a crime.

Numinous's picture

I don't get it. G. W. Bush was known to get regular 'private visits' from known male prostitute Jeff Gannon. Why isn't he being convicted of a crime.... in addition to all the others he's committed?

Eliot Spitzer did something wrong... but this is getting way out of hand, especially considering what other's have done and gotten away with.

The right winger's are so desperate for some evidence of Democrat wrong doing that they are trying to elevate Eliot's mistake to the levels of a Republican.

Fact Check's picture

and there's more to Coffey:

http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0108,ridgeway2,22582,6.html

Linked to Hugh Rodham's bonanza in PardonGate AND connected to Elian Gonzalez.

hunkmania's picture

Remember when the media actually published news. Now they compete for the infotainment dealing with strippers readers and watchers. Don't they know that if they actually published the National and world news they would kill Faux Snooze in ratings.

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