Media

ABC News Goes to Bat for Planned Parenthood, Attacks Live Action

Last night, a report surfaced suggesting that Live Action was behind a recent undercover “sting” targeting four ‘advocacy groups’: Planned Parenthood Action, NARAL Pro-Choice America, Emily’s List, and Priorities USA.

The reports were met by media inquiries to the Live Action office and questions about our alleged involvement in the “sting.”

In order to address the media’s questions, Live Action released the following Media Advisory:

MEDIA ADVISORY

LIVE ACTION’S LILA ROSE ON PLANNED PARENTHOOD UNDERCOVER DEVELOPMENTS

Contact: Kate Bryan, media@liveaction.org, 323-454-3304

WASHINGTON, D.C., Oct 16–Lila Rose, president of the pro-life new media group Live Action, released the following statement this morning in response to rumors about a new undercover operation at Planned Parenthood and allied pro-abortion organizations:

As the nation’s biggest abortion business, Planned Parenthood kills more than 320,000 pre-born children every year in America. Women deserve better than Planned Parenthood’s radical abortion-first ideology that puts abortion before protecting sex-trafficking victims, rape survivors, and other women in vulnerable situations. Planned Parenthood fights to remove every abortion limitation and regulation, and now receives nearly half of its billion-dollar budget from the government.

Live Action’s investigative work exposes this violent agenda which kills the most defenseless among us, hurts women and girls, and undermine human dignity.  If Planned Parenthood was suspicious of Live Action as they claim and stand by everything they said in recent encounters, they should have filmed the encounters themselves and release them publicly. The truth is, the leader of the abortion industry repeatedly reveals their radical abortion-first mentality in Live Action investigations, putting vulnerable women and children at risk.

In addition, Planned Parenthood is deeply embedded in the political system for the purpose of getting even more taxpayer dollars and squelching legitimate federal and state investigations and defunding efforts. Will Planned Parenthood have a list of demands for President

Obama if he is re-elected? What is Planned Parenthood’s lobbying relationship with the Obama White House? Is one of Planned Parenthood’s goals to mandate taxpayer funding of abortion, repealing the bi-partisan Hyde Amendment? Does the President, like Planned Parenthood, oppose all limits and regulations on abortion? The public deserves to know. Fundamental human rights are at stake.

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To learn more about Live Action, visit liveaction.org

Following our Media Advisory, ABC News continued to press with further questions and inquiries. Throughout an e-mail thread of back-and-forth questions and comments, Live Action sent them the following two further statements from Live Action President Lila Rose:

“Live Action’s mission is to expose practices that endanger the most vulnerable among us. Just like investigative reporters at ABC, NBC and CBS who often go undercover to expose fraud, abuse, and other unethical practices, Live Action often uses undercover methods toexpose harmful practices. We value the freedom of the press and reporters, and our right to speak out against these harmful practices. Live Action has been investigating Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion group, for over five years and has exposed sexual abuse cover up, the facilitation of sex trafficking, medical misinformation, false statements made by executives, and now extreme abortion-first political strategies at their clinics and offices.” - Live Action President Lila Rose

“As the nation’s largest abortion group, Planned Parenthood facilitates the killing of more than 320,000 pre-born children every year in America. Women deserve better than the radical pro-abortion ideology that puts abortion above the protection of sexually trafficked victims, rape survivors and other women in very vulnerable situations. Planned Parenthood fights to remove every abortion limitation and regulation, and has pushed for President Obama to cover tax-payer abortions under his health care plan.  Live Action’s work exposes these violent practices which kill the most defenseless among us, hurt women and girls and undermine human dignity.  If Planned Parenthood was suspicious of Live Action as they claim and stand by everything they say, the group should have filmed the encounters themselves and release it publicly. The sad truth is, the abortion leader repeatedly reveals their radical abortion-first ideology and practices in Live Action investigations.” – Live Action President Lila Rose

The article that ABC News published following our statements and their “research” are shocking. The ABC News article lashed attack after attack against Live Action and painted Planned Parenthood as the apparent victim, while refusing to discuss the actual facts at hand or what might be exposed about these four radical abortion groups if these apparent tapes were to be released. In the article, ABC News spouts off the abortion-giant Planned Parenthood’s talking points and launches serious attacks against us and our work.

Live Action’s Communications Director Kate Bryan set the record straight in the comment section of the ABC News article, stating:

“Planned Parenthood is once again trying to frighten and divide women with lies. Live Action has never collected confidential medical information in the course of any investigation. In fact, Live Action investigations have documented Planned Parenthood’s routine willingness to keep the sexual abuse and commercial exploitation of minor girls “confidential” from law enforcement.
Live Action uses the same undercover techniques as CBS’ 60 Minutes, Dateline, NBC’s To Catch a Predator, and ABC’s 20/20, in order to reveal the abuse, unethical practices, lawlessness, and true abortion-first agenda of Planned Parenthood. The First Amendment does not state that freedom of speech and freedom of the press apply to these networks only.
Live Action exercises our first amendment rights to protect the right to life and the liberty of the most vulnerable among us–pre-born children, threatened by abortion–and to expose Planned Parenthood’s long-term plans to expand their abortion empire.  Planned Parenthood receives nearly half of their billion-dollar budget in taxpayer funded money every year and is now the nation’s top abortion provider, committing over 320,000 abortions each year while the taxpayer’s dime keeps their lights on.”

We need to expose the truth about abortion and protect women and their children from the violence of abortion. Women deserve better than abortion, and America deserves better than the “spin” that ABC News and these four abortion groups are purporting.

ACTION ITEM: Go to ABC News’ article and post a comment to take a stand against this behavior and stand up for women and their unborn children. We must protect women and their children from the violent practice of abortion!

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  • Sue Jurski

    Planned Parenthood takes tax payer money to do the evil of suggesting abortion to young woman who find themselves in with an unplanned pregnancy. No counseling, no smile, no help, except the help to kill the child inside of them/. They need to be shut down everything they do for woman cant be done at woman’s clinics and hospitals for FREE!~

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Daniel-Sheahan/100000409587106 Daniel Sheahan

    Ok… and what were you doing with the information? This doesn’t answer their criticisms at all.

    • Sharon

      Criticism of what? Investigative reporting? Or criticism of investigative reporting of a group that ABC does not want investigated?

  • ProTruth2

    Just like investigative reporters at ABC, NBC and CBS who often go undercover to expose fraud, abuse, and other unethical practices

    If someone goes to LiveAction’s home page, s/he sees a headline “Video Shows Planned Parenthood Offering Sex-Selective Abortion” above a still frame of a clinic worker linked to a video. But if you click on the video below the caption, you will see that the the clinic worker is not a Planned Parenthood employee. Neither of the clinics in that video are Planned Parenthood clinics. An actual investigative reporter would know why that is a problem. Not so with LiveAction, which also features an “Operations Director” of purported non-profit organization who
    apparently does not understand conflict-of-interest regulations governing nonprofits, and a pair of reporters who are unable to grasp the fact that court decisions handed down in 2008 are superseded by decisions issued in 2011

  • Jim Giatas

    ABC – Your propaganda is quite ineffective. I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes on judgment day.

    • Timmehh

      Throwing “judgment day” around like that just to make a point, or get back at people is terrible. It is not something to throw around or take lightly.

  • LadyJustice

    Those who have nothing to hide should have nothing to fear when people get to the bottom of things. Why were you not investigating them yourself? Too big of a story? Too much controversy? Please listen! I am a woman. My rights are not under attack. They are not trying to take away the right for me to vote, drive a car, or to marry who I choose. They are looking into an institution that, like every other institution, needs accountability. What is so wrong with looking into facts? Without accountability anything can happen. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq0kBkUZbvQ

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJGFPdspOrY&feature=plcp

  • Katalina

    Live Action is doing the investigative journalism that the media should do. Network news basically supports the liberal agenda. So weak. Where are your ethics?

  • HeavenWaits72

    C’mon ABC, this article (so called report) is a joke! Lila Rose and Live Action have given us REAL concrete FACTS! Instead of attacking them why don’t you do some investigative reporting and go undercover to the one of the Planned Parenthood clinics and see for yourselves??!! PP does not offer mammograms and could care less about women and their health! As a billion dollar industry, the only thing they care about it the almighty dollar! CHECK THE FACTS first!!

  • http://twitter.com/ConservThoughts Conservative Mom

    Apparently the media only supports whistle blowers when they expose people the Left loves to hate (oil companies, Wall Street, Republicans, etc.). Try to expose fraud and corruption in a Left-wing pet organization like Planned Parenthood, and they’ll do everything they can to bury you. So much for “objective” journalism.

  • ed

    Live action has courage to tell the truth unlike ABC news.

  • SandyJean7

    Planned Parenthood destroys human lives, destroys women’s self-esteem, destroys relationships, destroys reproductive systems and destroys families! I know, as I am one of the 43% of American women who have experienced abortion and deeply regret my poor choice, which was coerced by others in the abortion industry, through fear and ignorance. I have seen what abortion has done in the lives of many women I’ve helped through abortion recovery groups. See http://www.abortionrecovery.org or http://www.saveone.org for help where you live!

  • http://www.facebook.com/jaylo115 Jodee Swi

    Alas, Planned Parenthood is lying to us again. Why should we be surprised? The only thing that matters to them is getting their murderous hands on their blood money.

  • Sarah Robinson

    Planned Parenthood vigorously fights to expand a movement of genocide on a larger scale than any war criminal in history. They target the poor and needy, they target ethnic groups, and the fact is that rape and sex trafficking are good for their pocket-book. The more women are raped and abuse, the more money they make. They know what they are doing–they don’t have any illusions about the nature of their actions. Abortionists know what they are doing–these are men and women (notably, mostly men) who have medical degrees. They know the truth.

    But worst of all, the women who become their victims know exactly what they have done.

    • Sarah Robinson

      And of course, those women are not the criminals. Just to be clear.

  • deborah

    Planned Parenthood is the number 1 abortion provider in the nation. Millions of unborn women never have the chance to take a breath, have no chance to live. Planned parenthood has been shown to support pimps and break state abortion laws regarding underage girls and parental notification. For those of us who are pro-life we should not be forced to pay our tax money to Planned Parenthood against our conscience. and there is no real benefit to the women who abort, not physical, nor emotional. Abortions have two victims, the mother who increases her chance of miscarriage and breast cancer and more immediately infection, sterility, or even death, and the baby who loses their life. Abortion is a lose/lose proposition.

  • KEVIN

    Killing babies in the womb is a modern day Genocide! What have we become as a society when a mother can take the life pf her baby & call it choice??? What about the war on the unborn child I ask? I accuse Planned Parenthood, and all its co-conspirators in the abortion industry of deliberately keeping women in the dark as to the true nature of abortion!

  • Andrew

    Last night, Barak Obama listed a few things that Planned Parenthood offers… But he didn’t say “Abortions”. Why not?! PP doesn’t offer mamograms to woman, which he said they do… Obama’s administration is screwed up, and their values and morals are wrong on so many levels. I don’t wish to have my tax dollars go towards the killing of innocent unborn babies.

  • Maria K

    Planned Parenthood got caught. No one complains when the police catch predators or drug dealers in this manner. Someone who is pro-woman should be delighted that Live Action is revealing dangerous, unethical practices.

  • SusanBon

    There is no war on women. There is however, a culture of death seeping into society which puts all of us in danger, not just the small people. You, ABC, are part of the problem siding with an agency that proves over and over that they lie, deceive, and tell our children to circumvent their parents by going to a judge if they need an abortion. http://www.teenwire.org is PP’s own website that teaches our children deviant sexual behavior. They are not good for our society in any way. PP gives millions (of our tax dollars) to the Obama campaign.

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