press for his own mistakes? new hampshire's biggest paper backs newt gingrich and conservative blogger enkwur rubinsays the track record of the right-leaning media has been embarrassing bad, really? plus, espn and the "syracuse" newspaper sit in on an incriminating tape for a decade until bernie fine is fired over accusations that he was molesting boys. on that tape, fine's wife consoles an alleged victim. >> you know, he needs that male companionship that i can't give him. nor is he interested in me and vice-versa. >> he wanted to do me -- he wanted to me to touch him, too. >> did the news outlets make the right call? an exclusive interview with espn's top news executive. i'm howard kurtz, and this is "reliable sources." it was only last monday when wolf bill clintoner was interviewing herman cain on "the situation room," and cnbc producers saw on wirt that the fox affiliate was about to broadcast an interview with a woman who claimed to be the candidate's mistress. blitzer asked cain during the commercial whether he would address the explosive allegations, and he did, even though her account had not yet aired. >> you say friend, i'm asking -- these are awkward questions, but i'll ask you the questions you're going to be asked. was this an affair? >> no, it was not. >> there was no sex? >> no. >> none? >> no. >> and if this woman says there is, she's lying, is that what you're -- >> wolf, let's see what the story's going to be. >> next up, atlanta station waga broadcast the sit down with ginger white. >> it wasn't complicated. and i was aware that he was married, and i was aware that i was involved in a very inappropriate situation, relationship. >> and yesterday, cain kept scolding the news business as he pulled the plug on his improbable candidacy. >> these thoughts and unproved allegations continue to be spinspin ed ed in the media and the court of public opinion so as to create a cloud of doubt over me and this campaign. the pundits would like for me to shut up, drop out, and go away. >> joining us to examine the coverage of the blowup and the iraqi presidential campaign, jennifer rubin, from the "washington post." bill press, syndicated radio talk show host. and steve roberts, syndicated columnist and professor of media and public affairs at the george washington university. steve roberts, did the pundits try to shut him up? did the media want cain out this race? >> no. i think the -- the focus on his private life was totally justifiable. i was not a big fan of the original politico story which i felt had holes in it and didn't have on the record sources. >> it led to -- >> but led to other women coming forward. it led to ginger white, and the fact is this is -- what we're in now, howie, is the media primary. this before any vote is cast in iowa or new hampshire. the press has not only the right, the obligation, the responsibility to vet these people, see how they stand up under fire, and in fact, part of what did cain in was not just the allegations, it's how he handled them and his total enability to react under pressure. >> jennifer rubin, i thought he was skating, he stayed up in the polls even though there was a drumbeat if the press. >> i thought the conservative media were worse. they were more accepting i think of his ridiculous excuses. >> was that? >> i think they did a circle around the wagons routine. which i didn't find appropriate. and i didn't do. but i think there was a sense that somehow this was some, you know, liberal media scam that had been cooked up. and so they felt some obligation in their contrarian way to stick up for him. after a while, it became impossible to sustain that narrative as more and more women came forward. >> interesting that the liberal conspiracyists found five different women -- >> sneak three. >> it was this week that herman cain's attorney lynnwood said that the latest case, ginger white, 13-year extramarital affair she says, an accusation of private alleged consensual conduct, not a proper subject, he says, of inquiry by the media. in a presidential campaign? >> well, first of all, i warned you all against accepting a talk show host as a presidential candidate. you see what happens here? look, sure, it's a -- an appropriate subject in a presidential candidate. they didn't have that hesitancy when we were talking about consensual sex with bill clinton, for example. i have a different take. i don't think herman cain should be complaining about the media. i think he should be thanking the media. they took him -- we all took him seriously as a presidential candidate for a lot longer, i believe, than he deserved to. i mean, 9-9-9 didn't add up to 1-2-3. we all said, oh, he's got a great economic plan. it wasn't, it was a scam. >> that wasn't -- i think actually what began to erode his support even on the conservative side was his absolute ignorance. and we saw this in a whole series of guests, primarily on fo foreign policy. he couldn't answers about his own economic plan. >> the single most important moment between cain and the media had information to did with sex at all. had to do with the "milwaukee journal sentinel" asking a legitimate question which she could not answer. that was the moment when his candidacy dissolved. >> the other day, cain, whose candidacy does d seem to consist largely of giving tv interviews and going on a book tour, not exactly spending a lot of time in iowa. he went on a talk show and talk good -- keeps using the phrase "character assassination." people going after him. ginger white, "i have no idea, unless the people i believe are putting her up to this, "maybe we believe ginger white, maybe we don't. but cain later did acknowledge that he paid her money, didn't tell his wife. so where is the conspiracy? >> yeah. there's been this whole pattern of a lot of conservatives have attacked the media for their problems. and gingrich does it, everybody does it. but one of the reasons why i think this is so important and so justifiable, we don't know many of the issues any president is going to face. in 2000, george bush got exactly one question on the taliban in the entire campaign. yet his presidency was consumed by it -- >> how they react -- >> how we react under pressure. what judgment they've shown in the past. and this is absolutely central to understanding -- >> i want to turn the cameras around to the accuser. when any woman steps forward and says i was sexually harassed, he grabbed me in the car, the media scrutiny turns on them. here's ginger white speaking with george stephanopoulos on "good morning america." >> he calls you a troubled atlanta businesswoman and says your story is completely false. your response? >> it's very disappointing that he would call me troubled. and, you know, it's unfortunate. i'm not here to say anything negative about mr. cain. >> when cain makes charges like that, of course the media pick up on them. fair or unfair? >> well, i think they cover both sides. they cover his response, they cover her. and i think -- >> but is it relevant that she had a history of financial problems and evictions and things like that when she is saying, look, i had this long affair. and she had the text messages at 4:00 in the morning and all the phone calls and all that. >> cain is going to bring up this, whoever is accused, will bring this up as a motive. that these people are gold diggers, looking for a book deal. i think it does come out in the wash. i think the public evaluates the credibility, the number of these people. one or two, you might understand. but after a while, we lost track. and i think they can make an evaluation about credibility and the way he reacts. we saw in that segment with wolf, how uncomfortable he was, how nervous he was. and how really -- uncredible he was in his initial response. >> this is to say, howie, i understand why any woman would hesitate or think twice about coming forward. >> that was the point i was trying to get to. >> with any of these accusations. they know they're going to be vilified. he called all five of them lawyers -- liars -- >> lawyers and liars, close, yes. >> what a slip. and troubled women. then the media went out after -- boy, if they ever had any financial difficulty in their life and who hasn't, and so they become, you know, the target unfairly i believe. i understand why -- >> and by the way, the reason that ginger white came forward, i don't believe she's looking for a book deal. she said the reporters started calling her. in other words, she was going to be outed it. >> someone leaked it. look, even as strongly as i feel it is totally legitimate and even necessary that the press scrutinize the private lives, they have to be fair. they -- and that's why i was a little uneasy with the original "politico" story. i think that you have to play -- the press has to play by rules of accountability and verification and not just print rumor. you've got to do it right. >> well, here's an issue that came up this week before the cain campaign imploded. i'll save this for you, steve. that is we learned that john kohl, washington lawyer, has been an unpaid adviser to herman cain's campaign, particularly after the allegations surfaced. he happens to be married to greta van us susteren, fox news anchor. he sat down once with cain's wife gloria. let's look at her most recent interview with herman cain. >> well, i grilled her, too, on the recent stuff that's come out. she believes you, she's behind you. >> yes, yes. 1 -- 200%. >> 200%? >> absolutely, no doubt in my mind. >> greta with both of them. now greta van susteren disclosed her husband's role on her blog but not her show that has two million problems. is that a -- >> it's an ethical mistake. look at george will's column write being rick perry. he says as he always does in every one of his times of mentioning rick perry, his wife is an adviser to rick perry. that's the way you operate with transparency. >> his wife is a full-time paid staffer. and greta wrote, these are simply his friends, referring to her husband. many in the media have spouses, unlike my husband, what actually work for politicians or in government. so is this a legitimate issue or not? >> well, i think it is a legitimate issue. and disclosure is the key here. it's very hard not to run into ourselves coming and going in washington. george will and the rest. everybody is a journalist or media person or a consultant or a lawyer. i think these conflicts happen. and you should be credible -- >> special people have normal jobs. >> very few, yes. right. i'm married to an accountant. but most people aren't. so i think this comes up a lot. and i think they should err on the side of disclosure, and i also think there are times when you don't want a reporter or someone writing or covering about a person who is intimately involved with that individual. >> full disclosure, greta's a friend of mine, okay. still, she should have -- she should have revealed this on her tv show. here's a problem, i think. she's got a great show, she get great ratings. she could have gotten herman cain, she didn't know john kohl's help getting cain. by not disclosing it she gives the impression that the only way she got the interview is because john's a friend of herman's, that's not the way it works. >> i wasn't suggesting that. i spoke to john kohl. i asked why greta had not disclosesed this on the program, and he said, she's used to me being friends with all of these people, it probably didn't occur to her. he was an informal adviser to sarah palin and the democrats. before this, i want to give a special -- i want to shine the spotlight of "reliable sources" on wgcl, an atlanta cbs affiliate, which did the following with the herman cain tape, played a lie detector test. take a brief look. >> we sat down with investigator t. jfmt ward, one speech by herman cain yesterday -- >> ain't going to happen -- >> reporter: the other by sharon bialik from monday -- >> i was very surprised and shocked -- >> a lie detector test and you don't have the person in the chair with the thing strapped around -- give me a break. we'll get a break. coming up, jennifer rubin says the conservative meadera i can't are being downright daft whien t comes to newt. does she have a point? ♪ medicine that can't wait legal briefs there by eight, that's logistics. ♪ ♪ freight for you, box for me box that keeps you healthy, that's logistics. ♪ ♪ saving time, cutting stress, when you use ups that's logistics. ♪ paper endorsing newt gingrich, a very big paper. and prompting you to write, "the track record of the right-leaning media including talk shows and blogs, embarrassingly bad this election cycle, and amounts to circling the wagons rather than reporting accurately the serious missteps of people atop the polls. idea idea can would that be? >> i think part of the conservative media operates in opposition to what they see as the liberal media. that's their cause, the way they gather an audience. that's entertainment for many viewers. i think sometimes that overrides their other function or role which is news coverage, news analysts, and the rest. i think we've had a lot of sort of defensive media from the right. i feel that's changing somewhat over the last few weeks. and the last few days, rather. and i think you see a more critical vein now that he is rising in the polls, now that there is a lot of questions about his past. now his past representation of freddie mac, now that his position's on global warming, the individual mandate are coming out, you're seeing a much more critical voice beginning to emerge -- >> among some. but say in the original piece there were some exceptions. but bill press, this indictment indicates that parts of the conservative media are corrupt, more interested in protecting or promoting certain republican politicians than they are in being candid. >> i wouldn't use the word corrupt, but i do think they have an agenda. they have a mission. you know, i mean, so mitt romney today got the endorsement of the sioux city paper, whatever it is, that's significant in iowa. he got the joan doerendorsement dover, new hampshire, paper. mainstream media even played "the manchester union" as such a big deal for newt which, in fact, they've only been right twice since 1972. >> i have a theory. it was on a sunday of thanksgiving weekend. there was nothing else to write about. it was a dirth of news that weekend. >> jennifer is right. when you look at newt, face, it he's got more baggage than a fedex cargo jet. ethically challenged, morally challenged, all the -- he's got more flip-flops than mitt romney -- >> you can defend him and say he's grown, he's moved on, whatever. but not to grapple with that stuff. but i want to ask you, is it any different than what a lot of people would call the liberal media for barack obama? we don't see criticism on the msnbc talk shows for obama except perhaps from the left. >> that's a fair point except i think the coverage from the left on obama's changed, too. i think that was a much fairer point in the campaign where he got far -- far more favorable coverage. but if you look at the recent pew study about all the candidates and the busytive versus negative coverage, the person in public life who got by far the most negative coverage in the study was barack obama. because the republicans are attacking him and he's got a lot of bad news to defend. >> one more point. you also said that you believe that the -- to the extent that some in the conservative media are protecting whether it's cain or newt is driven by a general antipathy toward mitt romney. you've interviewed him, you don't like newt or rick perry. are you fillering this conclusion to your own political opinions? >> i try to -- i is attacked him on his individual mandate. i have attacked him during the budget standoff for the summer for taking sorts of a timid view of things. so i think i try to dish it out to most candidates. i think most candidates would agree that i've said nasty things about all of them. but i also think it's a question of some balance. there are other candidates in the race, for example, who have been entirely ignored by the conservative media. even though they espouse consistent conservative views that you think they would enjoy. and so i have gone -- rick san dorm. and to a certain extent michele bachmann. i have -- and i will admit to this, i have gone out of my way in some instances to provide coverage with i think it's been lacking on the right. >> you set me up for the next segment. when we return next, mitt romney gets rather testy in an interview with fox news. was bret baier really badgering him? 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[ professor ] good morning students. today, we're gonna... mitt romney doesn't do many interviews. in fact, he's on the cover of "time" this week, "why don't they like me," cover story. didn't give an interview, no cooperation to "time" magazine. he did sit down this week with fox newschannel's bret baier, and thing got a little bit heated. take a look. >> how can voters trust what they hear from you today is what you will believe if you win the white house? >> well, your list is just not accurate. >> do you think a mandate mandating people to buy insurance is the right tool? >> i don't know how many hundreds of times i've said this, too, this is an unusual interview. all right, let's do it again. >> as we were walking in the walk and talk and after we finished, he went to his holding room. and then came back and said he -- he didn't like the interview and thought it was uncalled for. >> bill press, was bret baier overly aggressive in asking "uncalled for" questions? >> i love that. this is an unusual interview for fox is really what mitt romney was saying. no, he was not over the line. i thought it was excellent journalism. he asked good questions. he was very persistent but low key. he wasn't offensive at all. and the one that mitt romney really got hung up on was a question about, okay, you said one time that 11 million americans who are here illegally, members of the communities, whatever, should all go back to mexico. now are you -- you stick with that or not? that's a yes or no answer. >> what do you make -- >> not a gotcha. >> what do you make of bret baier going on o'reilly and making public romney's private comments of dissatisfaction with the interview? >> that probably was not a good idea. bret baier i admire, i thought he did a very good job. fox before 7:00 is a first rate news organization. and if you want to maintain your credibility, you shouldn't blur the lines by going on o'reilly. all he did was throw romney's own words back at him. reminds me of one of my favorite political stories, used to be told about barry goldwater rally, old "new york times" report, used to tell the story. woman comes running out of the rally, tears streaming down her face, saying stop them! stop those reporters! they're writing down every word he's saying. throw his words back at him -- >> mitt romney and his wife on the cover of "parade" magazine, soft focus interview. you've talked around it. he hasn't been on a sunday show in a year and a half. why isn't the press calling him out on his lack of accessibility? >> i think they have, but it's interesting why he hasn't done it. if he did it more he probably would get used to it. he's been good in the debates. he can state his views with clarity and with flewensy. i think it's mistake as we saw in 2008 to shield them from the media. i think it's better to get them out, get them to be accessible and to defend themselves. when he speaks for himself, he can articulate his views and has given speeches explaining incon consist