Twitter users force NPR to correct claim that sequester is a GOP invention
http://twitter.com/#!/NPR_Not_Neutral/status/304627805889642496
Score one for the good guys! As Twitchy reported on Feb. 11, impartial and nonpartisan NPR absurdly called the looming sequestration cuts a “Republican invention.”
Though A Republican Invention, Obama Could Get Blamed For Sequester n.pr/12obkEt
— NPR Politics (@nprpolitics) February 11, 2013
Even PolitiFact admits that “sequestration was an idea that came out of Obama’s White House.”
Psst @nprpolitics,@tamarakeithnpr,@kenrudin |PolitiFact | Obama says Congress owns sequestration cuts politifact.com/truth-o-meter/… via @politifact
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 12, 2013
After conservative Twitter users cried foul over the false and biased claim, NPR quietly changed the headline to “Republicans Push To Rebrand Automatic Spending Cuts As Deadline Nears.”
NPR has yet to correct its blatantly false claim that the sequestr is a “Republican invention,”opting instead to just quietly “fix” headline
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 12, 2013
@tamarakeithnpr btw, the headline was quietly changed without any notice in the piece–after criticism from others poured in to @nprpolitics
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 13, 2013
Not good enough.
You may want to let @kenrudin know how you feel about his @nprpolitics reckless tweet blaming GOP for sequester. I would, but he blocked me.
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 12, 2013
.@nprpolitics Still no correction to your blatantly false tweet yesterday? Does @kenrudin approve these tweets?
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 12, 2013
No word yet either abt the sequestration story from NPR political director @kenrudin, or his @nprpolitics account, or ombud @schumachermatos
— NatlProgressiveRadio (@NPR_Not_Neutral) February 12, 2013
Twitter user @NPR_Not_Neutral kept the pressure on and received a promise from NPR social media staffer Kate Myers.
@npr_not_neutral I don’t have a hard and fast rule, but inspired by your question, I’m taking it to our standards & practice editor.
— Kate Myers (@NPRKate) February 14, 2013
Today, NPR finally tweeted a correction.
RT @nprkate: NPR has issued a correction on the headline change for this story npr.org/2013/02/11/171… Thanks to all (esp. @npr_not_neutr …
— NPR Politics (@nprpolitics) February 21, 2013
Here’s the complete correction, dated Feb. 20:
The original headline for this story inaccurately suggested Republicans were primarily responsible for devising the across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration.
Well done, @NPR_Not_Neutral and everyone who used Twitter to hold the lapdogs’ paws to the fire!
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