In Defining Obama, Misperceptions Stick  —  WASHINGTON — Americans need only stand in line at the grocery checkout counter to glimpse the conspiracy theories percolating about President Obama.  “Birthplace Cover-Up,” screams the current issue of the racy tabloid Globe.  “Obama's Secret Life Exposed!”

Poll: 1 in 5 Americans thinks Obama is a Muslim  —  The number of Americans who believe — wrongly — that President Obama is a Muslim has increased significantly since his inauguration and now account for nearly 20 percent of the nation's population.  —  Those results, from a new Pew …

AP Standards Center issues staff advisory on covering New York City mosque  —  Associated Press Deputy Managing Editor for Standards and Production Tom Kent sent the following note to the staff about covering the New York City mosque story:  —  Colleagues,

AP advises staff on location of Islamic center and mosque  —  The Associated Press, one of world's most powerful news organizations, issued a memo today advising staff to avoid the phrase “Ground Zero mosque.”  —  The Upshot reported Tuesday that the AP started using the phrase “Ground Zero mosque” in some headlines in late May.

TIME Poll: 61% of Americans Oppose ‘Ground Zero Mosque’  —  An opponent of the proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque near Ground Zero holds a sign during a community board meeting to debate the issue  —  Opponents of the planned Islamic community center and mosque near Ground Zero …

If only Obama had ...  See if this structure seems familiar to you: Over the past two years, Barack Obama has done X. Now, his poll numbers have slipped to 44 percent.  His party is slated to lose a lot of seats in the 2010 midterms.  Obama's decision to do X is to blame.  —  “X” can be a lot of things.