Alterman (media columnist for The Nation ) debunks the right-wing myth of the "liberal media," taking on the allegations of liberal slant proffered in such books as Ann Coulter's Slander and Bernard Goldberg's Bias . After describing the contrary evidence to many of the assertions contained in those and similar books, he describes the network of corporate funded conservative think tanks and their ability to influence the message of the "punditocracy," taking on such figures as the Washington Post's David Broder, conservative media critic Howard Kurtz, radio host Rush Limbaugh. He then turns to media treatment of the Clinton administration, the 2000 elections, George W. Bush, and a range of social and political issues, arguing that their presentation to the public was skewed in a distinctly rightward direction. A new afterword examines media treatment of George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)