Internet Journal TomPaine.com Challenges Ann Coulter and Bernard Goldberg to Debate Eric Alterman on Bias in the Media

3/5/2003

From: John Moyers, 202-332-2881, ext. 16 Ellen Miller, 202-332-2881, ext. 10 both of TomPaine.com

WASHINGTON, March 5 -- The Internet journal TomPaine.com issued a challenge to conservative media commentators, Ann Coulter and Bernard Goldberg today, asking them to debate their nemesis Eric Alterman, author of the new book "What Liberal Media?"

In his new and widely discussed book Alterman shreds the "liberal media" myth perpetuated by those conservatives. He says that Ann Coulter's book Slander contains errors that "are even more egregious than the insults, and her footnotes are ... a sham ... The sheer weight of these, coupled with their audacity, demonstrates the moral and intellectual bankruptcy of a journalistic culture that allows her near a microphone, much less a printing press."

As for Bernard Goldberg, author of Bias, Alterman says "his many undocumented, exaggerated assertions have the flavor of self-parody rather than reasoned argument.... (He) appears to have done little research...."

TomPaine.com's ad with the public debate challenge appears today on the op-ed page of The New York Times. It notes that Alterman has accepted, and challenges Coulter and Goldberg to do the same.

To view the ad, visit http://www.TomPaine.com/op(UNDERSCORE)ad.

TomPaine.com is a nonprofit, nonpartisan Internet journal. Since 1999, its online content and ads have been praised by Rolling Stone, Forbes.com, the Columbia Journalism Review, Chicago Tribune, PC Magazine and many others.