Many of us on the right like to claim that the Old Media is just an arm of the Democrat Party. Of course some of that on our part is bombast, but incidents such as the following tend to make conservative’s complaints seem more like right-on-target truth than over-the-top complaining.

On February 23, ABC TV Channel 7, WTRF News (Wheeling, West Virginia/ Steubenville, Ohio), posted on its website what was originally credited as a story “written by” reporter Bob Westfall. Unfortunately, though, this posting was nothing but a word-for-word re-posting of Democrat Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s latest press release. There was little to no difference between Brown’s press release and the “story” as posted on the ABC 7 news site.

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Newspapers have been recycling press releases for eons, of course, although rarely did they publish them under the byline of a staff reporter.  This story was up for most of the day, but was taken down in the early evening of February 23.  One can only assume that WTRF got a bit embarrassed at its shilling for a Democrat Senator.

Here is a screen shot of the Google search page that showed WTRF’s original posting:

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To show that there was really no difference between Senator Brown’s press release and the ABC 7 “story,” here is the story as supposedly written by reporter Bob Westfall as it appeared on the ABC 7, WTRF website:

Ohio Senator Urging Extension of Unemployment Benefits

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is asking for an extension of federal unemployment insurance.

Story by Bob Westfall

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Tuesday urged the extension of unemployment insurance to support Ohio’s dislocated workers and their families through Dec. 31, 2010.

Nearly 200,000 Ohioans will lose these emergency benefits if unemployment insurance is not extended by the end of the month.

“Too many middle class families are struggling to get by,” Brown said. “This legislation will help Ohioans and all Americans who worked hard and played by the rules but are still struggling to find jobs. We must extend unemployment insurance while passing critical jobs legislation that will give incentives to businesses that hire unemployed workers.”

In a letter to Senate Leadership, Brown called for full federal funding of the Extended Benefit program, increasing state and federal benefits by $25 per week, and the suspension of the federal income tax on an individual’s first $2,400 of unemployment benefits. Brown is also seeking an additional six months of extended benefits.

As of mid-February, more than 432,000 Ohioans were receiving unemployment compensation. Almost half of these Ohioans, nearly 200,000, will lose these benefits if unemployment insurance is not extended by the end of the month. In addition, more than 232,000 Ohioans receiving extended benefits will be ineligible for the next phase of benefits if no extension is passed.

Eligible workers may receive up to 26 weeks of unemployment insurance benefits. Previous extensions created two tiers of additional coverage: Tier 1, which provides up to 20 additional weeks of benefits, and Tier 2, which provides up to 13 additional weeks of benefits. The latest extension, passed in Nov. 2009, added one additional week to the Tier 2 benefits and created two new tiers: Tier 3 (up to 13 additional weeks of benefits) and Tier 4 (up to 6 additional weeks of benefits for workers in hard-hit states like Ohio).

Earlier this month, Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., sought to temporarily extend benefits. However, Reid’s bill was blocked by Minority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

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Now here is Brown’s press release from his U.S. Senate website.

Brown Urges Extension of Unemployment Insurance through 2010

Nearly 200,000 Ohioans Will Lose Coverage if Unemployment Insurance is Not Extended

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today urged the extension of unemployment insurance to support Ohio’s dislocated workers and their families through December 31, 2010. Nearly 200,000 Ohioans will lose these emergency benefits if unemployment insurance is not extended by the end of the month.

“Too many middle class families are struggling to get by,” Brown said. “This legislation will help Ohioans and all Americans who worked hard and played by the rules but are still struggling to find jobs. We must extend unemployment insurance while passing critical jobs legislation that will give incentives to businesses that hire unemployed workers.”

In a letter to Senate Leadership, Senator Brown called for full federal funding of the Extended Benefit program, increasing state and federal benefits by $25 per week, and the suspension of the federal income tax on an individual’s first $2,400 of unemployment benefits. Brown is also seeking an additional six months of extended benefits.

As of mid-February, more than 432,000 Ohioans were receiving unemployment compensation. Almost half of these Ohioans, nearly 200,000, will lose these benefits if unemployment insurance is not extended by the end of the month. In addition, more than 232,000 Ohioans receiving extended benefits will be ineligible for the next phase of benefits if no extension is passed.

Eligible workers may receive up to 26 weeks of unemployment insurance benefits. Previous extensions created two tiers of additional coverage: Tier 1, which provides up to 20 additional weeks of benefits, and Tier 2, which provides up to 13 additional weeks of benefits. The latest extension, passed in Nov. 2009, added one additional week to the Tier 2 benefits and created two new tiers: Tier 3 (up to 13 additional weeks of benefits) and Tier 4 (up to 6 additional weeks of benefits for workers in hard-hit states like Ohio).

Earlier this month, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) sought to temporarily extend benefits. However, Reid’s bill was blocked by Minority Leader Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

If you can find any material difference you have a sharper eye than I do! What we have here is a TV news site simply regurgitating a Democrat’s press release and acting as if it is reporting a “story.”

And the Old Media protests when conservatives claim that they are just an arm of the Democrat Party? With examples like this it sure is hard to refute the accusation, isn’t it?