DISCLOSURE IS A VIRTUE…. On her show Tuesday night, Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren devoted an entire segment to criticizing David Letterman. His offense? He’d made jokes about Sarah Palin and her family.
There seems to be a pattern here. In fact, it’s hard not to notice that Van Susteren seems to enjoy closer ties to Palin than most media professionals. Matt Corley explained, for example, “In September, she hosted a one-hour ‘documentary’ on the GOP vice presidential candidate, titled ‘Governor Sarah Palin — An American Woman.’ She also scored an exclusive interview with Todd Palin, in which she grilled him ‘on everything from the story behind the name ‘First Dude’ to how he feels about the name ‘First Dude.” After the election ended, Palin chose Van Susteren for her first national television interview. Since then, Greta has consistently covered Palin, keeping an eye out for any potential sleights of the governor and gushing over her popularity.”
As it turns out, there’s a reason that helps explain why Fox News’ Van Susteren has taken on the role of media publicist for the Alaska governor — Van Susteren’s husband helps guide Palin’s political image.
[John] Coale, a well-known Washington lawyer and the husband of Fox News Channel’s Greta Van Susteren, drew national media attention when he endorsed Sen. John McCain’s presidential bid in protest of the way in which Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who he backed in the primary, was treated. Coale, in an interview with the Fix, described himself simply as a “friend” of the Alaska governor but acknowledged that he suggested she start a leadership PAC and helped her navigate through some of the questions surrounding her family that lingered after the campaign. Others familiar with Palin’s political team insist that Coale has far more power than he is letting on — essentially helping to run Sarah PAC.
Doesn’t this seem like the kind of thing Van Susteren might want to disclose to her viewers?
