Not going to go too deep into my personal life (probably), but I'll let you know that I am an overeducated, underpaid, married, pet owner from Seattle who works for a major software (and hardware) manufacturer.
Here's what's on my mind today:
The Stolen Election (not the one in Ukraine): Bev Harris v. Keith Olbermann
I'm a bit mad a Keith Olbermann these days. For those of you who are not familiar with the ongoing investigations of voting "irregualities" on Nov 2nd, Keith Olbermann, the host of MSNBC's Countdown, is pretty much the only mainstream journalist covering the story that the presidental election was "rigged" in favor of President Bush. First, let me say that I love Keith Olbermann. He was great on ESPN when I was in college, and Countdown is pretty much the only cable news show I can watch without gagging. Here's my beef with him now, though:
Bev Harris is the co-founder of BlackBoxVoting.org which is a non-profit organization dedicated to making our elections fair and vote counting transparent. She is disturbed by the trend of states replacing paper ballots (which can be recounted and examined) with touch screen voting machines that produce no paper trail and count votes using proprietary software developed by one of three major manufacturers (Deibold is perhaps the most well known). Sounds good, no? Why would anyone, in any political party, with any sense, with two brain cells to rub together, ADVOCATE for a voting system that is proprietary, and which produces no verifiable paper trail. (If you would like to advocate for it, there may be $1,000 in it for you).
Anyway, Bev Harris has been shaking things up since election day, filing lawsuits and Freedom of Information Act requests in Florida and other states, trying to find out if there was fraud on Nov 2. Keith Olbermann has been on a parallel track since election day, covering statistical anomalies, undercounted ballots, provisional ballots, and recounts in Ohio, New Hampshire and Florida. They should be fast friends, right?
This week there has been a blog war between the two, stemming from some statements Keith Olbermann made about her on Countdown and in his Blog. To summarize, he said that she was hurting her cause with some guerilla tactics ("public confrontations with public officials involving crashing meetings and videotaping their reactions, etc."), he intimated that she might be in it for the money (proving election fraud--the next big moneymaker!), and said that she has refused to appear on Countdown (Olbermann admits that he scheduled her once and bumped her for another more "mainstream" guest) or to let them air her video tapes.
Harris responded on her Web site (the post has since been removed) that this last charge was patently false, and that she had been asked to appear on Countdown twice in early November and then not again. She also said that she had already shared her videos with other media outlets and would gladly have done so with Countdown, if asked.
She demanded that Mr. Olbermann retract his allegations (and apparently called his staff--more on that later).
I don't ususally do this because I don't expect anyone to read it (kind of like blogging), but I emailed Olbermann to get to the bottom of this. Here's the email I sent to Keith:
___________________Email begins____
Keith,
I’m sure you’ve seen the posting from Bev Harris (or her associates) on http://www.blackboxvoting.org/ where she asks you to retract your statements on Countdown last night (I’m sure she would have asked for a retraction of your blog comments from last night as well if she had read them). I’m a big fan of yours from the old ESPN days, and I love the current Countdown show. I appreciate your coverage of the voting irregularities in this election, but I’m a little confused about a few things. I REALLY think that you should have Ms. Harris on ASAP to clear these questions up:
- Did you cancel her appearances on the show twice (not once as you claimed in your blog)?
- Is it true that your staff has not asked her back since, and has never asked to broadcast her footage? From what she says on her Web site, she has shown her footage to CNN, and promptly provided tapes to a local affiliate in Florida.
- Does “making a documentary” disqualify people from having pure motives?
On the last point . . . Anyone who has even taken a 15 second glance at her Web site would see that she is working with a team of documentary filmmakers making a film called “Votergate.” She even links to their Web site where the project is clearly explained. Your blog makes it sound like she has a secret plan to cash in on her cause, and that this somehow disqualifies her as a good spokesperson for fair and transparent voting. She is working with filmmakers—so what. Got any cameras in the Countdown studio, Keith? Get any ratings boost from this story? Maybe MSNBC has a secret plan to cash in on it. People who live in glass houses . . .
Also, I found it more than a little disingenuous to hear you complain that Ms. Harris wouldn’t provide you with her footage (If that is indeed the case). Maybe she’s deferring to her documentary film crew—making sure that they can release the footage first. Maybe she’s waiting for a bigger news show (no offense) to break the story. Maybe she wants to finish her investigation. None of this makes her any less credible in my book. She wants to use her footage her way—so what? Keith, can I have footage of every Countdown show to use in my blog as I see fit? What’s that you say? Copyright? Intellectual property? Lawyers? Again, glass houses.
In Bev’s account of the LePore incident, she recounts that she went to the podium and said, “Since we can't get your attention any other way, I'm serving you with a courtesy copy of the lawsuit we served on your office this morning." In the blog, you made it sound like an out and out ambush—If you tried to contact a public official though multiple means and got no response, wouldn’t you resort to extraordinary (and possibly theatrical) measures? All I’m saying is that LePore should have known that a reckoning with Harris was coming.
Your characterization of the LePore meeting, while accurate: “She burst into LePore’s retirement ceremony,” leaves out a few important points
Ms. Harris explains (on her site): “Black Box Voting went to the meeting because it was on the official schedule as a speech by LePore on retention of election records. LePore seems to have been retaining records too aggressively, by failing to provide public records to the public. Unfortunately, it seems that the agenda was changed, unbeknownst to Black Box Voting, and instead of a speech it was to be an event honoring LePore prior to her retirement (she was voted out of office by Palm Beach County residents), and congratulating her on surviving so many lawsuits.”
These accounts are a little different, no?
Have her on the show. Sort this out. A lot of us who are following this story have lost a little faith in the accuracy of your reporting and any biases you might have. Clear this up for us.
___________________________________Email_Ends_____
I must not have been the only one emailing him, because the next night he addressed his comments about Bev Harris in his blog, becoming even more annoying if possible (it's the Dec 2nd entry--the last few paragraphs). I guess Bev Harris contacted Countdown, and was, understandably, a bit miffed. She apparently "threatened" Keith and his staff, and Keith announced that he was retracting his invitation for Harris to appear on the show (if he had ever indeed offered it), and that she was "belligerent, threatening, and demanding."
Now, I don't know Bev Harris, but I have seen her on video. She is a housewife and mother from Seattle. She seems very determined and unafraid of confrontation in a Michael-Moore-kind-of-way, but I can't imagine that her "threats" were of the "I'll breaka you kneecaps" variety. She probably threatened them with a lawsuit unless they stopped talking uncorroborated smack about her on a national news show.
This made me a little mad. Olbermann has been on a high horse during this whole election fraud investigation: calling other media outlets "whimps," and dismissing a lot of Internet evidence as "Saran Wrap Hat" or "Tin Foil Hat" (nice name!) thinking. Now, he was announcing that he wasn't going to allow key source in the investigation to come on because, in my view:
He made shit up about her
She got mad
I felt compelled to write another email:
________________________________Email_Begins___
Keith,
I think it’s time for you to get a tinfoil hat . . .
From your Blog: “Only today did she (Bev Harris) even get back in touch with us, and was so belligerent, threatening, and demanding, that we have chosen to withdraw our invitation to her to appear, or to have videotape of her efforts played, on Countdown. Threats against myself or my staff will not be tolerated.”
Let me get this straight . . . a middle aged woman “threatened” you and your staff? Was Bev going to send goons to beat you up in the parking lot? Come on Keith, this is the kind of thing that you would make fun of if the shoe was on the other foot.
If she “threatened” you with a lawsuit for defamation of character for what you said about her and wrote in your blog—I think she might have a case. She has already filed two this week—what’s one more? In the future, maybe you’ll want to watch what you say, check the accuracy of your sources, and stop complaining about being understaffed (do you think Dan Rather should have tried that one?). You are a journalist, when you make false statements about people on national television, they will complain, and, yes, occasionally threaten you with lawsuits. Put aside any petty silliness, retract your statements about Bev Harris, apologize, and HAVE HER ON THE SHOW. SHOW US HER FOOTAGE. This is a vital story, and I appreciate your work on it, but you’re leaving out a major player and key evidence.
And now for your tinfoil hat moment:
“These are my people — they are running professional risks I can’t begin to describe — and I will stand up for them, first, last, and always.”
First, I appreciate your loyalty to your staff. That’s a good way to run a business. But Keith, if you think that your “firing” caused people to put on tinfoil hats, statements like: “professional risks I can’t begin to describe” ought to inspire calm, don’t you think?
God help you if you ever get a chance to interview the President, or Osama Bin Laden—someone really dangerous—If one little middle aged housewife-turned activist can put the fear of God into you and your staff. Grow up and cover the story.
___________________________End_Email__________
We'll see what's going to happen next, as I mentioned, Bev Harris took down her posting that Olbermann retract his statements--Maybe they're working it out. Let's hope so.
To Bev and Keith: Now, girls, you're both pretty. Stop fighting and work together.
That's all for now.
Tinfoil Out.
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