On Thursday’s PBS NewsHour, in a pre-recorded piece, correspondent Stephanie Sy included the views of three pro-abortion activists without challenging their views, but she did find a reason to press the one pro-life activist on why she supports the Texas heartbeat law which bans most abortions.
The show also cited a misleading poll which questionably claims that most Americans oppose banning abortion after an unborn baby’s heartbeat can be detected.
After spending the first several minutes of the nine-minute piece including soundbites of abortion clinic workers fretting over women in Texas having to go to other states to get abortions, Sy was then seen speaking with Rebecca Parma of Texas Right to Life and asking how she could “justify” barring rape victims getting an abortion.
Sy then brought up a recent poll conducted by Marist which suggests that 58 percent of respondents oppose banning abortion after a heartbeat can be detected. National Review astutely pointed out that the awkward wording of the question may be causing some pro-lifers to voice opposition to the law because they want a more strict law that includes the early stages of pregnancy.
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Without informing respondents of the details of current law, the question asks: “Do you support or oppose a law that allows abortions but only up to the time cardiac activity is detected about 6 to 8 weeks into pregnancy?”
Those who want abortion also made illegal within the first two months might voice opposition to such a proposed law, possibly thinking that it makes abortion more legal than it currently is. The survey even claims that 59 percent of Republicans oppose a heartbeat law.
But, in the past, polling by Marist has repeatedly suggested that more than half of respondents would support banning abortion throughout an entire pregnancy except in exceptional cases.
The PBS reporter then moved to a third pro-abortion activist, making sure to inform viewers that she does not regret her abortion and believes her life is better because of it.
ZORAIMA PELAEZ, PRO-ABORTION ACTIVIST: I was working full time, going to school part time in community college, and I learned that I was pregnant. I thought of my sisters immediately. My sister — my older sister and many of my loved ones were young mothers. And I saw how much they struggled to raise their children as single young mothers in safe, sustainable environments. And I knew that, you know, I wasn’t ready emotionally, financially to be a mom.
SY: She says she never regretted her decision. When Pelaez had her abortion, in Texas, the procedure was stigmatized, but accessible.
PELAEZ: I mean, I was past six weeks, definitely. I would not have been able to get abortion care in the state, and I don’t know if I would have been able to afford to go out of state.
Near the end of the report, the back and forth continued:
SY: Advocates for women’s right to choose are holding their breath during what may be only a temporary reprieve. How do you think things would have been different for you if you had been unable to terminate your pregnancy?
PELAEZ: I know almost for a fact that I would not have become the first person in my family to graduate from college — that I would not be in law school right now. And I would probably have not have met my husband and on the verge of starting a family of my own on my — on my own terms.
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