Media FAIL on Social Security and the Deficit

Fourth estate "chronically wrong" says report by Media Matters

If you find yourself among those of us who are frustrated to no end by irresponsible reporting in the press, on television, and even on public radio linking Social Security and the deficit, you have good reason to be.  According to a new report by media watchdog Media Matters (mediamatters.org), the media is "chronically wrong" in its reporting on Social Security and our country's budget deficits - creating a false impression of crisis where the facts suggest no such thing:

The national debate on the future of Social Security is surrounded by falsehoods and misconceptions regarding the program's finances and its relationship to the federal budget -- misconceptions that are repeatedly reinforced by major media outlets. In fact, as it's currently constructed, Social Security cannot add to the deficit in the long run, does not present a major threat to America's fiscal future, and is backed by some of the safest financial assets in the world.

Click any one of the links below get a reality check about the false claims being advanced in the press about Social Security and the federal budget deficit:

• Claim: Social Security Trust Funds Are Nothing More Than "An Accounting Device" And "IOUs
  Reality: Securities In Trust Funds Are "Just As Safe As U.S. Savings Bonds" And Depend On "Solvency Of The Federal Government"
• Claim: Social Security Is In Deficit And Needs Reform In Near Term
  Reality: Social Security Is Projected To Have Run $82 Billion Surplus In 2010; Law Bars It From Borrowing
• Claim: Social Security Is A "Primary Driver" Of The Long-Term Debt -- On Par With Medicare
  Reality: Social Security And Medicare Projected To Affect The Budget In Fundamentally Different Ways

Where does Social Security funding come from?  NOT ONE DIME comes from the federal budget:

Not one dime of money from federal budget funds Social Security.

Read the full report "Media Chronically Wrong On Social Security And The Deficit" at http://mediamatters.org/research/201104140020.