[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 89 (Friday, May 26, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7607-S7608]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         MEDIA DOUBLE STANDARD

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I address the Senate today with respect to 
the May 22, 1995, Washington Post style section story by Howard Kurtz. 
The substance of the article was to highlight the double standard 
adopted by columnist George Will in criticizing the Clinton 
administration's decision to add tariffs to Japanese luxury cars.
  In lampooning the Clinton White House for taking the tough trade 
stand with Japan, Mr. Will failed to mention his wife's relationship as 
a lobbyist for the Japanese automobile industry. According to the 
article, Mr. Will was quite indignant to think that anyone would 
suspect his motives. If a Member of Congress or an administration 
official in a similar situation had taken such a position, you can be 
sure that the press, including Mr. Will, would have taken him or her to 
task. Tomes would have been written about the abuse of power and 
corruption of the system. Efforts would have been made to discredit and 
to embarrass the individual. This railing would have gone on until 
either an apology was forthcoming or, in some cases, until a 
resignation was tendered.
  It is exactly this type of lack of an ethical barometer on the part 
of the media that tips the scales of fairness in reporting. Members of 
the legislative, executive, and judicial branches must file regular 
financial reports and must abide by stringent rules of ethics. This is 
only proper in matters involving the public's trust.
  My argument rests with the total lack of parity in the communications 
industry. There are no comparable ethical standards or rules which 
govern the media. This is true despite the fact that the levels of 
power and persuasion are as great or greater with the press than they 
are with those in public service. Until some effort is made to level 
the playing field and throw out the bias, the rampant cynicism and 
distrust on the part of the people will continue. Nothing points more 
dramatically to the need for change than Mr. Will's arrogance and lack 
of candor in this instance.
  I thank Mr. Kurtz for bringing this matter to the attention of the 
American public, and I ask unanimous consent that the Washington Post 
article be printed in the Record. I suggest that all Senators who have 
not read it, do so.
  I yield the floor.
  There being no objection, the article was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:
[[Page S7608]]

                [From the Washington Post, May 23, 1995]

 A Conflict of Will's?--Pundit Kept Quiet About Wife's Role as Lobbyist

                           (By Howard Kurtz)

       In his syndicated column Friday, George F. Will assailed 
     the Clinton administration's proposed tariffs on Japanese 
     luxury cars, calling them ``trade-annihilating tariffs to 
     coerce another government into coercing its automobile 
     industry.''
       He repeated his criticism Sunday on ABC's ``This Week With 
     David Brinkley,'' calling the 100 percent tariffs ``illegal'' 
     and ``a subsidy for Mercedes dealerships.''
       What Will did not mention is that his wife, Mari Maseng 
     Will, is a registered foreign agent for the Japan Automobile 
     Manufacturers Association. Her firm, Maseng Communications, 
     was paid $198,721 last year to lobby for the industry.
       Will dismissed any suggestion of a conflict. ``I was for 
     free trade long before I met my wife. End of discussion,'' he 
     said yesterday. ``There are people in Washington whose entire 
     life consists of raising questions. To me, it's beyond 
     boring. I don't understand the whole mentality.
       ``What's to disclose? What would I say? That one of my 
     wife's clients agrees with my long-standing views on free 
     trade? Good God,'' he said.
       But several newspaper editors said Will should have 
     disclosed his wife's paid lobbying. ``I'm very distressed,'' 
     said Dennis A. Britton, editor of the Chicago Sun-Times. 
     ``That's one of those material facts an editor should know 
     before placing a story in the paper. That's like a financial 
     writer having a stake in a company he's writing about.''
       Will did disclose on the Brinkley show last month that his 
     wife was advising Sen. Robert J. Dole (R-Kan.) in his 
     presidential campaign and would become the campaign's 
     communications director. Will, who mentioned this before 
     questioning Dole, said he did so only ``because ABC asked me 
     to.'' He said his wife's role would not inhibit him in 
     commenting on the Dole campaign.
       Will is probably the nation's most prominent conservative 
     writer. He appears on the Brinkley show, opines in Newsweek 
     and writes a newspaper column that is syndicated to 475 
     papers by The Washington Post Writers Group. Maseng served as 
     White House communications director and assistant secretary 
     of transportation during the Reagan administration. The two 
     were married in 1991.
       The Washington Post was initially told of Maseng's lobbying 
     by a Clinton administration staffer. The administration has 
     been trying to deflect criticism that the tariffs would hurt 
     American consumers and some car dealers. Will wrote that the 
     13 models of Japanese cars would be ``unsalable in the land 
     of the free and the home of the brave.''
       According to Maseng's Justice Department filings, her firm 
     is paid $200 an hour to deal with reporters, follow 
     legislation, place advertising, issue press releases and 
     draft op-ed pieces with such titles as ``Selling Cars in 
     Japan: It Isn't About Access'' and ``Fixing the Outcome of 
     Trade With Japan Is a Dangerous Way to Do Business.'' The 
     firm also sought to arrange for the industry's top Washington 
     lobbyist to meet the Chicago Tribune editorial board, tried 
     to place an opinion piece in the Washington Times and drafted 
     letters to the New York Times and Detroit Free Press.
       Maseng Communications began representing the Japanese in 
     1992 and was paid $47,422 the following year. Maseng did not 
     respond to a request for comment.
       ``What Maseng provides is the strategic public affairs 
     direction for the communications program,'' said Charles 
     Powers, a senior vice president at Porter/Novelli, another 
     Washington public relations firm that works for the 
     automakers in partnership with Maseng's company.
       Stephen Isaacs, associate dean of Columbia University's 
     journalism school, said a spouse's employment ``does matter. 
     The same kind of conflict questions that apply to us also 
     apply to our extended families. He made a mistake. . . . The 
     fact that he doesn't see a problem shows he just doesn't get 
     it.''
       Isaacs also cited a 1980 incident in which Will helped 
     Ronald Reagan prepare for a presidential campaign debate and 
     then praised Reagan's performance on television without 
     disclosing his own role.
       As for last week's column, some editorial page editors also 
     expressed concern. ``I would have preferred to have known in 
     advance,'' said Brent Larkin, editorial director of the 
     Cleveland Plain Dealer.
       Dorrance Smith, executive producer of ``This Week With 
     David Brinkley,'' said he was not aware of the connection. He 
     said he had urged Will to disclose his wife's employment with 
     Dole, but that a round-table discussion is ``a different 
     context'' from interviewing a senator.
       ``I'm not sure where you draw the line,'' Smith said. ``I 
     don't know who Cokie Roberts's brother's clients are.'' 
     Roberts, another Brinkley panelist, is the sister of 
     Washington lobbyist Tommy Boggs.
       Alan Shearer, general manager of The Washington Post 
     Writers Group, said he saw no evidence that Maseng's 
     employment ``has affected George's judgment. . . . A lot of 
     us have spouses who have careers of their own, and whether 
     that requires us to disclose everything they do is a 
     difficult question. It doesn't bother me.''
       Will, for his part, doesn't see what the fuss is about. He 
     says he has never discussed the issue with his wife.
       ``My views on free trade are well known and antecedent to 
     Mari's involvement with whatever the client is,'' Will said. 
     ``It's just too silly.''
  Mr. DOLE addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

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