Conservatives Howl Over Veep Debate Moderator

Martha Raddatz Image by getty images
Conservatives are inflamed over a report that the moderator of the upcoming vice presidential debate is the former wife of a high-level Obama appointee.
The moderator is ABC senior foreign correspondent Martha Raddatz, who is scheduled to moderate an Oct. 11 debate between Paul Ryan and Joe Biden.
Her ex-husband is FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, whom the Forward profiled as a “Talmud ace” two years ago.
Genachowski and Raddatz divorced in 1997, according to right-leaning news site The Daily Caller.
“How could it be? How could it be a conflict of interest?” Rush Limbaugh asked facetiously on his show today. Slightly misrepresenting the report, Limbaugh continued: “If you are in the dominant liberal culture of Washington, and you have a former top Obama official married to a debate moderator, where could there be a conflict?”
The dispute mirrors a recent criticism of former CNN host Campbell Brown, who was accused of not sufficiently disclosing her marriage to Romney advisor Dan Senor.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
