Power Line shines a spotlight on obviously malicious reporting by the Associated Press. (Via TAM)

The AP reported this heartwarming story:

WEST ALLIS, Wis. – President Bush (news – web sites) on Friday wished Bill Clinton (news – web sites) "best wishes for a swift and speedy recovery."

"He’s is in our thoughts and prayers," Bush said at a campaign rally.

Bush’s audience of thousands in West Allis, Wis., booed. Bush did nothing to stop them.

Bush offered his wishes while campaigning one day after accepting the presidential nomination at the Republican National Convention in New York. Clinton was hospitalized in New York after complaining of mild chest pain and shortness of breath.

Bush recently praised Clinton when the former president went to the White House for the unveiling of his official portrait. He lauded Clinton for his knowledge, compassion and "the forward-looking spirit that Americans like in a president."

The problem is, people who were attending the rally heard no boos, or anything of the sort.

There’s really no excuse for this kind of reporting. Quite frankly, it’s even worse than the sloppy reporting of Paul Bremer’s farewell speech by the Washington Post and L.A. Times, if only because it mischaracterizes thousands of people, including President Bush, rather than just one. This egregious lie has been picked up by media all too willing to run to the aid of Sen. Kerry’s flagging polls. Again, from Power Line:

The AP’s lie is spreading rapidly around the globe. Salon says: “Audience boos as Bush offers best wishes for Clinton’s recovery.” WSTM television in New York has a slightly different version of the story, with an AP copyright, which says: “Many in Bush’s audience booed when Clinton’s name was mentioned. The president made no comment on that and continued with his rally speech.” WRIC television in northern Virginia has the same “many booed” story. In Iowa, KWWL television reports that “Many in Bush’s audience booed when Clinton’s name was mentioned. The president made no comment on that and continued with his rally speech.”

The original AP story has been revised at least twice, first removing the two sentences in bold, then rewriting the audience’s reaction. It’s likely that the damage has been done, though.

Hindrocket puts it well: “This, folks, is a scandal. The blogosphere should not rest until the AP is brought to account.”

UPDATE: More at Swimming Through the Spin. Particularly, note the audio clip in update #4.

FINALLY: It looks like the AP issued a retraction this morning, but not everybody is convinced. Check your local media outlets to see if they ran the original story, and if so, if they also ran the retraction. (Via Power Line)