Obama hits same points in five interviews

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama didn't deviate from the messages he delivered on five Sunday television talk shows, an analysis Monday indicated.

Interviewers from ABC, NBC, CNN, CBS and Univision taped interviews with Obama last week for airing on their networks' Sunday public affairs shows. Notably absent was an interview with Fox, The New York Times reported Monday.

"Fox and Friends" moderator Chris Wallace wondered aloud, "Whatever happened to reaching out to all Americans?" while calling White House officials "crybabies."

One White House aide told ABC that Fox is "an ideological outlet where the president has been interviewed before and will likely be interviewed again; not that the whining particularly strengthens their case for participation any time soon."

Obama stayed on message in each interview, pushing for healthcare reform, touting the improving economy, and adding he wouldn't send more troops to Afghanistan immediately. The president denied racism was at the base for the sometimes raucous debate on the issues.

"I do think part of what's different today is that the 24-hour news cycle and cable television and blogs and all this, they focus on the most extreme elements on both sides," he told CBS. "They can't get enough of conflict. It's catnip to the media right now."