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Mark Halperin (born 1965, Bethesda, Maryland) is the ABC News Political Director.
In 1988, Halperin started out as a desk assistant for ABC News and a researcher for World News Tonight. He then worked in the investigative unit of World News Tonight and as a general assignment reporter in Washington. In 1992, he worked full-time as an off-air covering Bill Clinton. In 1994, Halperin became a producer with ABC's Special Events unit in New York and later an editorial producer. In 1997, he was named the Political Director for ABC News.
Aside from his editorial duties, Halperin also appears frequently as a correspondent and political analyst for ABC News television and radio programs. He is also the founder and editor of The Note, which appears daily on ABCNews.com.
Halperin is a graduate of Harvard University. He is the son of Morton Halperin and brother of David Halperin.
Bias Controversy
In October 2004, in the midst of the U.S. presidential election, Halperin sent a memo to ABC News staff -- made public by Matt Drudge -- directing them not to "reflexively and artificially hold both sides 'equally' accountable." He justified this stance by claiming that both John Kerry and George W. Bush used "distortion" in their campaign, but that Kerry's distortions were not "central to his efforts to win." This was interpreted by many conservatives as an instruction to favor Kerry in ABC News coverage while many liberals felt it was an accurate assessment of the campaign. [http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2004_10_03.php#003635
The entire contents of the memo read: *
Halperin Memo Dated Friday October 8, 2004
It goes without saying that the stakes are getting very high for the country and the campaigns - and our responsibilities become quite grave
I do not want to set off (sp?) and endless colloquy that none of us have time for today - nor do I want to stifle one. Please respond if you feel you can advance the discussion.
The New York Times (Nagourney/Stevenson) and Howard Fineman on the web both make the same point today: the current Bush attacks on Kerry involve distortions and taking things out of context in a way that goes beyond what Kerry has done.
Kerry distorts, takes out of context, and mistakes all the time, but these are not central to his efforts to win.
We have a responsibility to hold both sides accountable to the public interest, but that doesn't mean we reflexively and artificially hold both sides "equally" accountable when the facts don't warrant that.
I'm sure many of you have this week felt the stepped up Bush efforts to complain about our coverage. This is all part of their efforts to get away with as much as possible with the stepped up, renewed efforts to win the election by destroying Senator Kerry at least partly through distortions.
It's up to Kerry to defend himself, of course. But as one of the few news organizations with the skill and strength to help voters evaluate what the candidates are saying to serve the public interest. Now is the time for all of us to step up and do that right.
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