Special Report | The 2012 Campaign Lying Machine: Week of September 9

• Every campaign is guilty of exaggerations, embellishments, distortions, and half-truths. But lying is another thing altogether.  Why do they do it, and how can they get away with it?
• 9 New Items including:
  • Matt Taibbi's Killer Takedown of Mitt Romney
  • Paul Ryan brings back the welfare lie
  • The Week of Living Dangerously
  • Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine
  • Greed and Debt: The True Story of Mitt Romney and Bain Capital
  • The Real Ryan Record: 2 Minor Bills, Lots of High-Profile Talk, Gridlock
  • Who Exactly is Mitt Romney Lying to?
  • Mainstream media: Report the facts and call out candidates when they lie
  • Use polls to monitor the effectiveness of campaign lies

David Culver, Ed., Evergreene Digest

Tony Auth

Matt Taibbi's Killer Takedown of Mitt Romney, Laura Gottesdiener, AlterNet

• According to Rolling Stone's Taibbi, either we wise up to Romney’s game, or we succumb to “a prairie fire of debt.”
• Greed and Debt: The True Story of Mitt Romney and Bain Capital

Paul Ryan brings back the welfare lie, Joan McCarter, Daily Kos

• It couldn't be clearer that Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan will say or do anything to win. What's really scary is thinking about what they'd be capable of doing if they did win.
• Mainstream media: Report the facts and call out candidates when they lie
• Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine
• The Real Ryan Record: 2 Minor Bills, Lots of High-Profile Talk, Gridlock

The Week of Living Dangerously, William Rivers Pitt, Truthout

• Lying is done with words, and also with silence. --Adrienne Rich
• Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine,
• Paul Ryan brings back the welfare lie

Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine, Robert Reich, Robert Reich's Blog
Every campaign is guilty of exaggerations, embellishments, distortions, and half-truths. But this is another thing altogether. I’ve been directly involved in seven presidential campaigns, and I don’t recall a presidential candidate lying with such audacity, over and over again. Why does he do it, and how can he get away with it?

Greed and Debt: The True Story of Mitt Romney and Bain Capital, Matt Taibbi, Rolling Stone
How the GOP presidential candidate and his private equity firm staged an epic wealth grab, destroyed jobs – and stuck others with the bill
Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine
Who Exactly is Mitt Romney Lying to?

The Real Ryan Record: 2 Minor Bills, Lots of High-Profile Talk, Gridlock, Garance Franke-Ruta, Atlantic

• Ryan's legislative record shows him renaming post offices, honoring Ronald Reagan and Wisconsin, approving commemorative coins, and increasing the deficit.
• He's handsome, a nice guy, and misguided.
• Robert Reich | Romney's Lying Machine

Who Exactly is Mitt Romney Lying to? Progress Report, ThinkProgress

• Mitt Romney has either been lying to the public about his role at Bain Capital or filing false documents with the SEC.
• It’s Time for Mitt Romney to Come Clean
• Mitt’s real insult to the NAACP

Mainstream media: Report the facts and call out candidates when they lie, Brenda Witt, signon.org

Here is a list of five lies that Ryan told when he gave his speech at the Republican National Convention last night. Every single news outlet should report on these lies.

Use polls to monitor the effectiveness of campaign lies, Steven Brill, Columbia Journalism Review
It’s great that many media organizations have been fact-checking the claims of the presidential candidates and holding them accountable for blatant distortions. But with all the money they are spending on polls, why can’t they poll whether the lies are working?