A Joke, You Would Hope

I honestly just laughed out loud when reading this "news story" from Politico. This has to be a joke, but its not. I tracked the article down after reading about it on HuffPo and MediaMatters.
Summarizing it for you would not even do it justice, take a look.

This is like reporting for middle-schoolers.

Party in the WH

With nearly 8,000 noncareer political jobs to fill, President-elect Obama says, he doesn't care about party affiliation.
Well, according to Politico, the online applciation is complete with the question, what party are you affiliated with?
Seems suspect, huh.
The site where the application is hosted reads,

“We ask this for reporting purposes and because some appointments require bipartisan representation,”

Perhaps...
So far there have been over 300,000 applicants, but experts say they will probably get passed over:

“Recommendations are coming from state party chairs and county party chairs and the truth of the matter is: they pick people out of those who supported them, who worked for them,” he said. Obama “was the Democratic candidate for president, so most of the people he appoints are going to be Democrats.”

It's only the beginning....

This pretty much sum's it up, from Politico:

Picking the people was the easy part.

President-elect Obama and his new national security team will now turn to a world full of vexing, linked problems on every continent, and tricky, early choices. From the speed of withdrawal from Iraq to the speed of investment in Afghanistan, from Kashmir to Moscow, Obama will make some of his most important choices early.

Obama chooses Body over Soul....

Politico's Jonathan Martin, is reporting on the unimaginable.....Gasp, Obama has not been to church, in not 1, not 2 but 3 weeks!

Why? He has been busy going to the gym instead. Is pumping Iron his new form of worship? Hmm, according to Politico the reason they have not attended church is...

Because they have a great deal of respect for places of worship, they do not want to draw unwelcome or inappropriate attention to a church not used to the attention their attendance would draw

08' Election: Radio Smears Not Solely Reserved for Obama

Media Matters is reporting on the nation's conservative radio hosts (aka Rush Limbaugh inc.. ) and their coverage during the 2008 election. From their study it appears they were equal opportunity smear spreaders going after groups such as women, minorities and even children with disabilities. MM says the "smear ran the gamut." Check out the full list of smears they have compiled.

Attacking politicians is one thing, but groups with little access to defend themselves or are unwillingly attacked (such as children with autism) provides little to intelligent public debate. Conservative radio hosts have a huge influence on millions of Americans and they should remember this as journalists and as public commentators.

Some Excerpts, as per MM :

Michael Savage:

[Y]ou turn on the cable news, they're covering again a missing child. Not a missing country but a missing child. ... We hear about the rape of a woman, but not about the rape of the Statue of Liberty. The Statue of Liberty is crying, she's been raped and disheveled -- raped and disheveled by illegal aliens.

Chris Baker:

While discussing Palin's assertion that Obama was "palling around with terrorists" on the October 6 broadcast of his radio show, Baker called Obama a "little bitch" who "won't even stand up to a smoking-hot chick from Alaska.

Is Axelrod the New Rove?

Politico's Kenneth Vogel takes a look at the prospect of Axelrod joining the Obama White House and what that will mean for his wallet. Axelrod's consulting firms are estimated to generate millions anually. A job for him in the White House would be a paltry $200k.

However buried half way through the article, RNC chairman Mike Duncan raises a curious question:

“People need to be looking at Axelrod the same way that they looked at Karl Rove,” Duncan said, a comparison likely to sound like fingernails on a chalkboard for many Democrats, for whom Rove was a favorite boogeyman. “The same kinds of questions that were asked about Rove need to be asked about Mr. Axelrod.”

I concur with Duncan, we must ask questions of Axelrod...but if they are asked in the same fashion they were with Rove, it looks like he will have a long political career.

Hey, and if all else fails you can always become a pundit

When Your to Blame...Blame Someone Else

Doing what he does best, fear mongering, here is what Limbaugh had to say about the current economic crisis and Obama:

"The Obama recession is in full swing, ladies and gentlemen," Limbaugh told his radio audience of 15 million to 20 million on Thursday. "Stocks are dying, which is a precursor of things to come. This is an Obama recession. Might turn into a depression."

Thats right Rush, President Bush, his endless war and woeful economic policies are not to blame.
He goes on to talk about how under Obama there will be greater government control including the takeover of 401(k) retirement plans.

I smell a sore loser.......

And a lier....

"So the Fox-man simply created a new persona for Emanuel as, you guessed it, "one of the hardest left-wing radicals on the left."

Eh, interesting because Rahm Emanuel is known to veer towards the center.

McCain Already Back on the Campaign Trail

It has been a little over a week since Sen. John McCain lost the presidency and yes it is true, he is already back to campaigning.
But not for himself.

McCain is heading to Georgia tomorrow to campaign for Sen. Saxby Chambliss, who is in a runoff election against Democrat Jim Martin.

Meanwhile, two other senate races remain hotly contested, Arizona and Minnesota.

Mitt Romney has reportedly donated $5k to Rep. Norm Coleman's recount fund against Dem. Al Franken, in a race that has narrowed to a 204 voter disparity.

Center-Right May Not be Right After All

In the past two weeks we have been bombarded by the overwhleming claim, which as bordered on a statement of fact, by the media that we are a center-right country. News media types have even gone as far as claiming that Obama himself is a conservative.

Media Matters is citing a poll that says otherwise:

Democracy Corps polled 2,000 voters November 4-5 and posed several questions as direct contrasts between a conservative approach and a progressive approach, some of which were directly drawn from the arguments made by Obama and McCain.

The results of the poll showed strong support from the public on the not-so-conservative politcies articulated by Obama.

Palin On Obama

Politico is reporting that in a new interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Sarah Palin had the following kind words to say about President-elect Obama:

And I do have faith in this new administration that they are going to
look out for America's finest, those in uniform, who are protecting us and our
freedoms.

CNN Obsessed with Technology

Has anyone else noticed that the anchors of CNN are borderline obsessed with talking about all the new technology being used during the broadcasts.

First it was the hologram, Wolf Blitzers love affair numero uno. Then this morning after a rather bland and uninformative medical report with Dr. Gupta, John Roberts kept gushing over the cool "magical board" he used to fill viewers in. I have never seen so much excitement over a touch-screen monitor before......

The tech stuff seems to be more important then the news they cover while using it...

Back to Blogging

I took a little post-election break from blogging......needed a blogosphere vacay from all the madness...but now I am back.

Arianna Huff...Declares a Winner?

Who is the winner of the 2008 election?
And the drum-roll please....
Uh, the Internet?

HuffPost's co-founder and editor-in-chief Arianna Huffington is declaring that the winner of the 2008 election may not be a partisan politician after all. But rather, the Internet. In many ways she successfully argues that the main battlefield for the election and dissemination of information has largely taken place on the Internet.

This blog, like millions of others have started up in reaction and as a forum to express opinions on a race whose importance is undisputed.

Huff's prediction for the election: How we will follow the election results...

For real time results, however, the Internet will be the go-to destination. A host of websites, starting with HuffPost, will make it possible for you to choose how and when you want to follow the results -- whether you want to follow them state-by-state and county-by-county or jump between the presidential race and hotly contested Senate and House showdowns. And do it interactively.

Morning News Shows

On Morning Joe: The entire cast and guests talk about how much Obama supporters really love him, as opposed to just like him. {Insert Regan comparisons here}

On FOX:

They talk about voter Fraud, calling ACORN one of the biggest scandals of the election. Not true, but it is their favorite topic.
Also they introduce Karl Rove as a guy who knows a lot about elections. And of course how to win an election in your favor {cough, 2000 and 2004}, how about those voter frauds?

Political Humor from Iraq

Say hello to my little friend. (Illustrated by Qassem H.J.)

This political cartoon is published on NYT from a newspaper artist working in Iraq. The picture corresponds with the paper 's week long look at Iraqi's feelings towards the continued (and drawn-out) presence of U.S. troops in Iraq.

I thought I'd take a break to blog about something other then the election for a moment...

Uncle Sam has never looked so patriotic.

Obama v. McCain: Web Presence 2.0

A study by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism takes a look at McCain and Obama's web presence. The Study found that the candidates official campaign sites are" quite advanced beyond anything" seen in any other elections. Some interesting data they recovered is quite revealing, beyond face value.

• Obama’s site links to mainstream media news stories about his candidacy more frequently than does McCain’s, which tends to bypass the mainstream media and link in its “news” section instead to campaign-generated press releases. That has ebbed somewhat recently, as the site has begun linking to news stories about Palin.

• The word “change”—the motto of the Obama campaign—is now less prominent on the information pages of the Obama site than on McCain’s. On the Republican’s site “change” is among the top 20 most frequently used words.

• The Obama Web site provides far more text than McCain’s, by virtue of the extensive archive of Obama’s speeches (in August alone, 50,676 words on Obama’s Web site versus 21,021 on McCain’s). If you take speeches by both candidates out of the mix, Obama’s site still features more words than McCain’s, but they are closer.

• The McCain campaign has fully integrated his vice presidential pick, Sarah Palin—both textually and visually—into the Web site’s home page, while the Obama home page denotes his vice presidential pick, Joe Biden, much less prominently.

Palin in 2012?

Politico's Roger Simon speculates whether Sarah Palin will win in 2012. That is of course pending McCain losing, or wining and not wanting to run for a second term.

Greg Mueller, a senior presidential aide to Pat Buchanan and Steve Forbes says he can see how

Sarah Palin as the economic populist and traditional American values candidates will be very appealing by the time we get to 2012.

Why is she thinking so far ahead of her VP Slot, the article pointedly remarks on some problems between Palin and McCain:

The discomfort between the two can be palpable. Chuck Todd, the NBC News political director, was in the room when Brian Williams interviewed Palin and McCain recently. “There was a tenseness,” Todd said later. “When you see the two of them together, the chemistry is just not there. You do wonder, is John McCain starting to blame her for things? Blaming himself? Is she blaming him?

I am guessing one and three. John McCain is blaming Palin for demonstrating her inexperience and lack of knowledge. And Palin is blaming McCain for running what she views as a bad campaign — a campaign that did not go after Barack Obama over the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and did not exploit Obama’s statement about how small-town people “cling” to guns and religion — and for never picking a clear message that had any traction with voters.

With exactly one week until the election, speculation over four years from now has already begun.....

Say It Aint So: Narratives Do Not Dominate This Week's News Stories

According to The Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, For the Week of October 20-26, talk of the likes of 'Joe the Plumber' and 'Lipstick on a Pig' were virtually absent from media coverage. Even Biden's gaffe about Obama being tested by an international crisis was all but absent from the dialogue. The report goes on to say:

Indeed, no single narrative dominated last week’s coverage. The top storyline, the fight over battleground states, accounted for 10% of the campaign newshole from Oct. 20-26, according to the Campaign Coverage Index from the Pew Research Center’s Project For Excellence in Journalism. That’s the lowest level of coverage for any leading weekly narrative since the general election campaign began in early June.

	Percent of Campaign Newshole
Swing State Strategy	9.6%
Economy as an Issue	8.2
McCain v. Obama Polls	6.1
Colin Powell Endorses Obama	5.9
Campaign Fundraising	4.6
Obama Visits his Grandmother	4.1
Foreign Policy	3.8
Total Number of Campaign Stories = 649

Smear Creator Given Platform to Spread More on FOX

Politico's Michael Calderone reports on lasts Tuesdays debate on FOX where Sean Hannity and and Robert Gibbs battled over Obama's associations to 'radicals.' Gibbs fired back at Hannity for having Andy Martin on the show to slander the Dem on his anti-Obama special, "Obama & Friends: The History of Radicalism."

Well after appearing on the show NYT reporter Jim Rutenburg did some digging and his findings about Andy Martin were revealed on the front page of the paper in article entitled "The Man Behind the Whispers":

An examination of legal documents and election filings, along with interviews with his acquaintances, revealed Mr. Martin, 62, to be a man with a history of scintillating if not always factual claims. He has left a trail of animosity — some of it provoked by anti-Jewish comments — among political leaders, lawyers and judges in three states over more than 30 years.

Well as it happens to be, he is also the man who has been one of the leaders in spreading smears and lies about Obama.

Politico ran an update yesterday that Fox's VP Bill Shine spoke to Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post, and is no longer defending the usage of "journalist" Andy Martin on the Hannity Special:

Shine told Kurtz. "We obviously didn't do enough research on who the guest was.

This is stunning, FOX news is apologizing and admitting they were wrong for having a fear mongering guest on....imagine if they did that more often..they would have no more guests.

Memo from the Editor: No Political Commentary Until Nov. 5th

The editor at the Minneapolis Star Tribune sent out an office Memo to staff requesting that all columnists stay away from Political Commentary until after the November 5th election. According to Media Matters, editor Nancy Barnes felt it would be best if journalists
"refrain[ed] from partisan political commentary in their columns ... at least until after the election." And that columnists would "'stand down' on the kind of column that's an overtly partisan take."

The office-wide memo came a day after newspaper columnist Katherine Kersten wrote a highly critical article about Al Franken, who is running for US Senate. Kersten's article claimed that Franken was anti-Christian, specifically anti-Catholic. This is Questionable considering Franken is Jewish, and less then 1% of the state shares his faith. In addition he has been married to a Catholic for over 30 years.

Even lower is the way Kresten tried to prove that he is anti-Catholic, by pulling bits and pieces from his decades long career as a comedian and a satirist. In fact the article itself was titled, "Vulgar mockery of Christians: Is this what we want in a U.S. senator?"

Kresten took his comedy out of context and the results were not very funny, essentially accusing him of hatred and intolerance.

What Media Matters is apt to point out is that dailies like the Star Tribune have a huge influence on the electorate, and words such as these could effect the election and the way people perceive the candidate.

Even more interesting is that in the past the paper has been accused of bias, according to Media Matters:

Like lots of major dailies, the Strib has been buffeted in recent years by staff cutbacks and accusations of a liberal bias. It seems that the effects of both are on display in the Franken/Coleman campaign.

Newsroom cutbacks make it more difficult to provide smart, in-depth election coverage. Perhaps more telling at the Strib, though, has been the long-running war conservatives have waged against the paper, led by bloggers such as Ed Morrissey, Hugh Hewitt, and those at Power Line.

Even more questionable is the ban of more editorials, according to Media Matters:

Adding to the irony (or the double standard; take your pick) was the fact that Please, people, no partisanship memo was distributed the very same day the Star Tribune printed a front-page article about GOP operative Jeff Larson, who found himself at the center of the Sarah Palin shopping spree scandal. (It was Larson's credit card that got burned up by Neiman Marcus to the tune of $75,000, courtesy of the Palin camp.)

Larson just happens to be one of the closest and most-connected Minnesota political allies of Franken's Republican opponent, Sen. Norm Coleman. But rather than present the story as an embarrassment to Coleman, the Strib's article about Larson was a valentine, complete with "Clark Kent" in the headline.

While this may have been the editor's decision to make, I think there are some questionable journalistic practices going on at this paper. How can you possibly say, no more editorials on the election, in such an important election cycle?

Joe McCain Does Not Like Traffic

An irate Joe McCain, brother of John was very very annoyed about Traffic.
So annoyed he called 9-1-1.

Media Self-Censorship at McCain Rally

Politico's The Crypt Blog is following up on Rep. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.) remarks at a McCain rally in Concord, N.C., this past weekend:

Liberals hate real Americans that work and accomplish and achieve and believe in God.

The quote was published in the New York Observer in an article by Jason Horowitz, who said he stands firmly behind his reporting, after reports from the Hayes camp said these words were never uttered.
Well, it turns out local reporters did not reference Hayes remarks nor did the MSM, who Horowitz said arrived at the event after the Hayes statement was made.
Well, after some good ol' reporting on behalf of Politico it turns out the remarks were in fact made:

"I can guarantee that he said that," local reporter Josh Lanier, who was at the event, tells The Crypt. "I didn’t get the 100 percent exact quote but it was something along the lines of 'liberals hate America — people who work hard, achieve, love God.' That’s pretty much exactly what he said, but I didn’t get it exactly, which is why I didn’t use it."

Christopher Schuler, who also said he attended the event, sent this e-mail into the The Crypt: "I was at the arena Saturday morning in Concord and heard Rep. Hayes say it. It was around 10:30 a.m. Taken back by it at first, but the entire crowd was loving it."

We suppose that means Sara Gregory of the Daily Tar Heel gets the scoop, though she ended up not mentioning it in her write-up of the event.

Is Drudge's Influence Waning?

Earlier this year, an article from Politico announced "What nobody who follows the daily cut and thrust of American politics questions is Drudge's continuing power to drive the stories and shape the narratives that define presidential politics," Ecohing these sentiments was WashingtonPost.com's Chris Cillizza who labeled him the "single most influential source for how the presidential campaign is covered in the country."

Someone who thinks differently is Media Matter's Eric Boehlert who says Drudge has undeniably lost his influence in this part of the election cycle:

...it's obvious that since Wall Street's meltdown commenced five weeks ago, and since America's economic crisis became a tsunami of a news story that's not only dominated the media landscape, but also irrevocably altered the course of the campaign, the Drudge Report has become largely irrelevant in terms of the setting the news agenda for the White House run.

That's because a story like the unfolding credit crisis -- sober and complicated -- knocks Drudge completely out of his element of frivolous, partisan gotcha links.

Bohlert's commentary that Drudge is losing his influence is mimicking voters, who are now more concerned about issues, especially those that effect their wallet, then sex, lies and scandal. Drudge is failing to drive the dialogue because his stories now seem irrelevant to the issues facing the nation. But how long will this last?

Green Party Candidate Talks to Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera's Riz Khan talks to Green Party presidential candidate Cynthia McKinney about third parties, race and capitalism.

McKinney, an African American female herself, speaks about the racial disparity, discriminatory practices and the social injustice gap that exists today. McKinney says "this is a story played out in city after city and no one really knows about it accept those that are living it." She goes on to say that not only has the mainstream media not addressed the issue, but neither has the democratic party.

This interview is quite insightful, its so telling that Al Jazeera picked this up, when was the last time you saw McKinney interviewed my the MSM?

Late Night Gets It Right

Maybe its not such a bad thing that many people get there news from comic shows and late night shows. According to Media Matters, a recent example shows, "that might be a good thing."
With Obama being hounded by the Media and McCain over his ties to Bill Ayers, for the first time this year McCain was asked about his questionable and close relationship to G. Gordon Liddy, someone you rarely hear about in the media.

So who asked question no one else dared to ask....David Letterman.
According to Media Matters:

The lack of media attention to the Liddy-McCain relationship is one of the clearest double standards in recent political history....... until last night, McCain hadn't been asked a single question* about his ties to Liddy, a convicted felon who has instructed his listeners on how best to shoot law-enforcement agents. Liddy has held a fundraiser for McCain at his home and describes the Arizona senator as an "old friend"; McCain has said he is "proud" of Liddy.

Network Scramble

An article by Politico's Mike Allen highlights what media executives will do in the event that election night is an Obama blowout. People, this is serious. If there is no horserace to call, what will the media do? Actually talk about the issues, instead of pandering back and forth over who will win, who is inching ahead in what swing state, and all the other trivial things they talk about.

According to the Article:

But executives are already mulling how clearly they would want their anchors and analysts to state the obvious, since networks have been criticized for depressing turnout by calling elections while polls are still open for several more hours. But they must also decide how they are going to fill air time, since networks are planning to be on the air until 2 a.m. on the East Coast.

Very Interesting.....Rating's wise networks benefit from 2000-like voting catastrophe. They usually need the boost from election night because after the election is over what will they get viewers to turn in for? Car chases, Hurricanes or Paris Hilton?

More on ACORN

The media, including the AP are continuing to mismanage and get the facts wrong on the ACORN story. Either they do not get it, or they are choosing to ignore the facts. A new report put out by MediaMatters found that of 54 reports on ACORN ran by CNN between October 6 and 15th, they left out vital information about states where there had been voter-fraud in registration applications. Only three of these reports included details of one or the other, but never both important facts.
They failed to mention that:

1) that the statutes of most of those states require third parties registering prospective voters to submit all registration forms they receive; and 2) that actual instances of illegal votes being cast as a result of registration fraud are extremely rare.

Bad reporting by the MSM on an important topic, help propagate the lies told by politicans, allowing McCain to get the facts wrong about alleged voter-registration fraud at ACORN.

FBI Set to Probe ACORN

ACORN has become the latest Republican obsession over the past couple of weeks, as was evinced by John McCain's attack of it during Wednesday night's debate only . It is no suprise that the GOP feels alarm towards any voter registtration group at a time where they are losing countless voters to the Democratic party, who has registered an unprecedented amount of voters.

The AP has sources that are 'leaking' that the FBI has begun an investigation into voter-registration fraud at ACORN only weeks before the election.
Fromer US Attorney David Iglesias, spoke to TPM, and said he is shocked by this AP article saying:

"Based on what I saw in 2004 and 2006, it's a scare tactic." In 2006, Iglesias was fired as U.S. attorney thanks partly to his reluctance to pursue voter-fraud cases as aggressively as DOJ wanted -- one of several U.S. attorneys fired for inappropriate political reasons, according to a recently released report by DOJ's Office of the Inspector General

The Final Debate

After watching the final Presidential debate last night, my blood was boiling. Several times I wanted to jump out of my seat, and go over to Hofstra University which is only 5 miles from my house, and call both presidential candidates bluffs. Covering the prolific election season endlessly through reading the paper to watching more TV news then I would like to admit, I am exhausted, frusturated, sick of the lies, the blase media coverage and lack of anything substantial being said.

I am feeling jaded perhaps. I could not even watch any media election coverage or commentary afterwards, I knew what I thought of the debate and I did not want to be told what to think or how to think.

This morning I of course could not escape the browsing over op-ed opinions, which I would rahter not quote because they all basically read the same.

I am feeling election burn-out and need to vent. I just filled out my absentee ballot...and I am happy to cast my vote and be done with. I wish that everyone could feel the relief I am feeling now. Now that my ballot is cast, I am no longer hanging on the words of the candidates and their spin and all the pundits out there. The only day left for me is election day.....

I say this now....I am sure I will be back to covering all the media and political banter within 24 hours...but for now I feel some peace.

Worst Debate Ever....?

While I have not seen them all, I admittingly must say Tuesday nights debate was pretty darn Vanilla. I have to say Politco's Harris and Vandehei may have got it right today when they said:

The day after leaves behind a puzzle: How the hell did candidates
manage to be so timid and uninspiring at a time when American troops are in two
problematic wars, the world financial markets are in scary free fall and the Dow
has lost 1,400 points since Oct. 1? This is a moment history rarely sees — and
both men blew it.

Last Night's Debate

Last nights second presidential debate held at Belmont University in Tennessee, was supposed to be a different kind of debate, a town-hall style debate whose format is not supposed to lend it self well to talking points.

Unfortunately, to anyone who has been following this election, it is evident that the talking points of both candidates were as evident as ever. Both McCain and Obama answered questions in the manner they liked irregardless of the question, each time falling back on the same talking points that have become central to their campaigns. It is not fair to say the debate was boring, rather it was tired, there were no revelations, no moments of truth and clarification from either side.

While Elbows were thrown, particularly about the others associations with the now disgraced Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, both candidates kept the debate relatively bloodless, neither bringing up William Ayers or Charles Keating.

The real star of the debate was of course the economy, absorbing over 60minutes have questioning and answers leaving ownly a paltry 30 minutes to foreign affairs and other domestic issues, which in turn kept coming back to the economy.

Now, obviously the economy is the numero uno issue on voters minds, and likewise it should be, but it is also important to address other issues afflicting this nation. I think Obama tied in the issues of the economy with another monumental issues eloquently when he said:

Now, if we get our tax policies right so that they're good for the middle class, if we reverse the policies of the last eight years that got us into this fix in the first place, and that Senator McCain supported, then we are going to be in a position to deal with Social Security and deal with Medicare because we will have a health care plan that actually works for you, reduces spending and costs over the long term, and Social Security that is stable and solvent for all Americans and not just some.

Even FOX News in there post-election coverage asserted that, McCain lead until healthcare, the anchor said it himself.

McCain in one of his opening remarks said

Americans are angry, they’re upset, and they’re a little fearful. It’s our job to fix the problem.

But from there are on we heard very little in the way of how he would fix it.

And the Winner is...

On MSNBC, Hardball host Christ Matthews just opened the 7pm edition of his pre-debate show in Tennessee with this:

"The democrats have won the debates 3-1, can Obama make it 3 to zil?"

Gotta love the horserace....

Speaking of "Palling Around......" McCain is Not Doing Much These Days

According to Politico's Mike Allen, there has been a lot of "grumpy McCain" going around lately, like when a Politico reporter tried asking him a question and responded"

"Excuse me, you’re bothering me," McCain said.
It was a surprising rebuke from a politician who once was famous for palling around with reporters, and who was so media-friendly that he was sometimes known as “the senator from ‘Meet the Press.’”

In another example of McCain's crabbiness Allen writes:

McCain sat down with Time magazine, a reporter asked him to define honor, and he snarled, “Read it in my books.” The magazine headlined its prickly McCain interview, “McCain’s prickly Time interview.

Other examples in the article show Politico's and other news organizations perturbed with McCains recent unfriendliness. For the MSM this is like losing a good friend. McCain has often been a darling of the media but has fallen to much criticism as of late, shutting out the media more then they would like. It is clear from this article there is a peevishness being felt in the media.

But beyond what this means to the media....what does this say about McCain.....

The article muses whether McCain's unhappy, crabbiness is the result of not running a "campaign that’s antithetical to his persona." McCain pledged to run a platform in which there would be no smears no 'politics as usual.' But as of late the campaign has become a model for 'politics as usual.' If McCain wanted to run a campaign free of smears, he can. If McCain is unhappy because he has become a slave of the conservative right and is no longer a maverick, only he can change that. By not running on platforms that he truly believes in and serving the conservative agenda, he is choosing to be just another 'grumpy old man.'

Radio Host Has Choice Words for Obama

The viral video of Sarah Palin accusing Obama of "palling around with terrorists," after she botched and distorted the NYT article she was referring to....It seems some people do not get that what she said was a complete twisting of the facts, and just another smear.

In response to Palin's comments Minneapolis Radio Host Chris Baker went off on a rant directed at Obama's response to what he obviously sees a truthful accusations asserted by Palin.

You really need to this to understand the full extent of the comments made by Minneapolis Radio Host Chris Baker.

During yesterday's broadcast Baker was discussing Palin's assertion that Obama was "palling around with terrorists," a reference to former Weather Underground member William Ayers. Bakerhe then went on to call Obama a "little bitch" who won't even stand up to a smoking-hot chick from Alaska.

As Mediamatters.org points out he obviously forgot to read or look into last weeks NYT article about Obama's relations with Ayers. In the second paragraph of the NYT article it says:

"Twenty-six years later, at a lunchtime meeting about school reform in a Chicago skyscraper, Barack Obama met Mr. Ayers, by then an education professor. Their paths have crossed sporadically since then, at a coffee Mr. Ayers hosted for Mr. Obama’s first run for office, on the schools project and a charitable board, and in casual encounters as Hyde Park neighbors."

After the publication of this article, Palin, used the article as fodder to call Obama anti-American, once again.

You Say Tomato Sarah Palin Says Tomato

You can't make this stuff up. Politico, is featuring an article entirely devoted to none other then Governor Sarah Palin's accent:

Not since John F. Kennedy’s Boston brogue took the stage at the 1960 presidential debates has a national politician’s tongue stood out in such a way.....

Palin, who was born in Idaho and whisked away to Alaska in her infancy, somehow developed a voice well-suited for a character on “The Prairie Home Companion.”

“It’s very Fargo,” said former McCain campaign strategist Mark McKinnon. “Ton of personality."

At a time of economic uncertainty, a dual war aboard and perhaps the most important presidential election in 40 years....these character driven articles continue to take center stage. This narrative further fuels the shoddy election coverage based on personality and quirks that has been dominating the political atmosphere.

The article goes on to talk about who likes are accent and who doesn't and why. Ahh the media doing what it does best, educating the voters on the issues.

Appearences Trump Policy

Yesterday when I was watching the cable news morning news coverage. It was no surprise that they continued to talk about the debates and their ensuing narratives....

On MSNBC's Morning Joe, Host Joe Scarborough tried to talk about McCain's "temperament" at every possible point he could, going on to say "he looked like that angry grandfather at dinner."
It was truly absurd how many comments he made about his age.
Joe Scarborough t was about temperament.."he looked like that angry grandfather at dinner."

Pat Buchanan, co-host of Morning Joe (and GOPer who ran an unsuccessful bid for president) went on to discuss how it really came down to "atmospherics." And in the end, Buchanan said Obama came across as a much nicer guy, "like Bush was in 2000." Whew, I don't know if Obama would see that as much of a compliment being compared to Bush, although the man did win two elections.

Later discussion summed up the event as "dull" and having very few "memorable moments."

Um...policy discussion..anyone?

FOX Text-Message Poll Declares McCain Winner... Ten Minutes Into Debate?

According to Media Matters, a poll conducted by FOX News on Friday was not exactly, as Fox would say, "fair and balanced." Following the presidential debate on Friday, Hannity & Colmes co-host Hannity declared McCain the winner of the debate with 82% of votes in his favor (Or in his own words "82% are correct").

But here is what Hannity forgot to mention:

But during Fox News' broadcast of the presidential debate, an on-screen graphic invited viewers to vote on "who [they] thought won" the debate as early as 9:12 p.m. ET, 10 minutes after the candidates began responding to the moderator's questions.

Interestingly in 2007, Hannity dismissed text message polls as being silly. Apparently they are only valid when they work in his favor. Thank heavens FOX is "fair and balanced."

Bailout Rejected..Stocks plunge...

The house rejected the $700 billion bailout by just 23 votes. Republicans said no to the vote at a 2-1 ration, with 100 democrats joining them.With a month and a half to election day, its no suprise that republicans did not want their name on a bailout plan that would have been the single largest bailout in government history. House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio), a major proponent of the bill, urged the public and financial markets to "calm down" because there is no obvious "path forward." Not exactly words of comfort for a nation in the middle of economic uncertainty.

David Rogers of Politco Writes:

Calm was nowhere to be found on Wall Street or on Capitol Hall. The Dow Jones Industrials Average was down more than 600 points at one point, and the House chamber turned into a scene of chaos and confusion after a tumultuous and emotional vote.

It appeared that politics were ever present during this vote, apparently politicians are unable to put aside political ambitions in a time of public nee.

Rogers continues:


“We delivered our votes,” Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) said.

"I guess the Republican leadership is so weak John Boehner couldn't deliver 50 percent of the votes,” sneered Rep. David Obey (D-Wis.) “I thought these were big boys."

Republicans said Pelosi may have lost votes with a floor speech they considered too partisan. "We could have gotten it if it were not for this partisan speech that Speaker Pelosi gave,” Boehner said.

Added Rep. Chris Shays, a Connecticut Republican who also voted for the bill: “Nancy blew it.”

"That is an absurd accusation at a time when our country is in deep economic distress," a Pelosi spokesman fired back."You don't vote on a speech, you vote on a bill."

UPDATE: DOW falls over 700 points

Market Overview

Dow10,365.45-777.68

Nasdaq1,983.73-199.61

S&P 5001,106.42-106.85

DEBATE: Obama Accuses McCain of Corporate Ties

In the debate the other night I was struck by Obama's comment about how McCain has supported policies that support corporate interests. Obviously, this is the democratic party platform, but what is ironic to me is that both Obama and Biden have been either assisted by or supported corporate interests. This is what Obama said in the Friday debate:

"Now, we also have to recognize that this is a final verdict on eight years of failed economic policies promoted by George Bush, supported by Senator McCain, a theory that basically says that we can shred regulations and consumer protections and give more and more to the most, and somehow prosperity will trickle down."

Joe Biden, is known for being very cozy with the Credit Card companies, since Delaware is home to many of them. Biden, was a driving force and one of the few democrats who supported with credit-card companies efforts to make it harder for people to declare bankruptcy.
was one of the few Democrats who sided with credit-card companies that were trying to make it harder for people to declare bankruptcy. It was also revealed several months ago that his son was a consultant for MBNA, a Delaware-based credit-card company. So I ask, is it possible that Biden is also a supporter of "trickle down" prosperity, supporting big business at the expense of the people? In this time of financial uncertainty, why is no one talking about Biden's support of credit-card companies and anti-bankruptcy laws?

Barack Obama's corporate interests are directly linked to his walled... check out this headline from the NYT's from July 16, 2007:
"Obama Donations Show Strong Wall Street Support"

Among those supporters are Richard S. Fuld Jr., the chief executive of the now disgraced Lehman Brothers, (who some are speculating is largely to blame in the scheme of the economic crisis), Employees of Lehman Brothers, Merill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and J.P Morgan Chase.
Also donating heavily, Former Merill Lynch CEO, Stanley O 'Neal.

I smell Hypocrisy

Reporters Left in the Dark?

So, over tha past couple of day the media has been rampant about the medias overuse of representing presidential candidates in narratives, letting personality take center stage of the political stage. Now, a Politico article is saying that Obama and Biden's campaign has sidelined more journalists "in the 2008 campaign than any [other] in generations," sealing them off from "any meaningful access." It seems both Obama and McCain are guilty of being un-chummy with the reporters as of late. I guess this means no more jokes and casual beers, no wonder journalists are so unhappy:

Politico says:

"Not only do the reporters have little interaction with the candidates, but increasingly they are having little impact on the broad campaign narratives and daily story lines that supply most voters with their impressions of the candidates."

"McCain has not spoken to the press corps that follows him in five weeks, or invited national reporters onto his bus in more than two months"

An Ode to Cariatures

A 2007 piece from Vanity Fair on Al Gore turned up an interesting tidbit from Dan Rather:

"Particularly in presidential elections … we in the press tend to deal in caricatures," says Dan Rather, who was then anchoring for CBS. "Someone draws a caricature, and it's funny and at least whimsical. And at first you sort of say, 'Aw shucks, that's too simple.' In the course of the campaign, that becomes accepted wisdom." He notes, "I do not except myself from this criticism."

Hmm...lets think of some examples...

The Howard Dean Scream
HRC's Cleavage, Crying, Laugh
Palin's lipstick
Bush the beer drinking chummy frat guy

Even the Style Guy Gets IT

In April, Tom Shales, the WaPo's Style Editor, wrote an editorial on the debacle that was the ABC Democratic debate. Over fifty minutes of the two-hour debate resorted to "specious and gossipy trivia" dished out Ad nauseam by Stephanopoulos and Gibson.

The below quote sure sounds a lot like the past couple of days of September 2008:

"But candor is dangerous in a national campaign, what with network newsniks waiting for mistakes or foul-ups like dogs panting for treats after performing a trick. The networks' trick is covering an election with as little emphasis on issues as possible, then blaming everyone else for failing to focus on "the issues."

Google Controversy

Do not know if this makes me laugh makes me nauseous but when I googled "controversy" the first 'related search' term that came up was "Lipstick Controversy."

Try It.

Controversy v. Falsehood

Exceptional Article from the Atlantic's James Fallows from nearly a week ago, catching on to the obvious before the Mainstream Media:

"Twice in the last six months we've had the spectacle of a candidate clinging to a provably false personal narrative........
One, of course, was Hillary Clinton's "hail of bullets" account of her arrival at the airport in Bosnia. The other is Sarah Palin's "thanks but no thanks" claim to have opposed funding for the "bridge to nowhere." In Senator Clinton's case, the more often she repeated the story, the more relentlessly the press said the story was not true. All parts of the press did this: right, left, middle. They didn't say that there was a "controversy" about her story. They said it was false. And eventually she bowed to the inevitable and stopped telling the story any more. In Governor Palin's case, the more often she has repeated the story, the more abashed the press has seemed about pointing out its falsity."

Remember Folks, Politics is a Game

Lowry of RealClearPolitics.com writes:

The media have made it gospel that McCain is attacking Obama dishonestly. Of course, campaign advertisements are the last place to look for a dispassionate rendition of the facts. McCain's ads are no different. But they are no worse than Obama's spots.

When Obama distorted a McCain remark about staying in Iraq for 100 years -- if we were taking no casualties -- into an endorsement of endless war, the media generally tsk-tsked that McCain should be more careful about what he says.

McCain has been getting a lot of slack from the Media about misconstruing remarks and facts about Obama's stance on taxes amongst other things. What this article is a good reminder of is that this is politics, this is a game, and one that both Obama and McCain both know that a little cheating may mean a big win come November.

The Uncritical Media

Today six of the nine stories appearing on the main page of MediaMatters.org talk about how the media was either "uncritical" or has failed to refute political claims made by both parties.

I've been noticing the same things. Yesterday on CNN at around 7:30am one of Anchors did not question McCain on claims that Palin was against the bridge to nowhere and that she has always been against pork barrel and earmarks. The claims went unchecked because it was time to go to commercial break.

McCain on 'Exceptional' America

Also, during the National Presidential Forum at Columbia University on Public Service...

Moderator Judy Woodruff asked McCain point blank, "Are Americans better than people in some of these other countries? " McCain, answered 'yes' without having to actually say the three-letter word:

McCain: "We're the only nation I know in the world that really is deeply concerned about adhering to the principle that all of us are created equal and endowed by our creators with certain rights. And those we have tried to bring to the world. And we have not so much militarily, but through example, through leadership, through economic assistance."

I admire McCain's ability to answer the question so democratically, trying not to offend the billions of non-Americans and the millions of ethinc Americans (many dual identities and loyalties) while still letting Americans know his deep sense of pride, honor and of course, patriotism.

But, does McCain relly believe we are the only nation in which all of "us are created equal"? (or rather, treated equally?) How about the Mexican immigrants in his very own Arizona? Or the countless African Americans whose votes were disenfranchised during the 2000 election?

The real zinger is that McCain thinks we have helped spread equality to other nations "not so much military, but through example" First of all, is it just me or does this sound like a throwback to imperialism? Beyond that, this statement sounds like something George W. would say that would end of on "The Daily Show." The point being, the military and use of force is the main way the United States has tried to impose its beliefs of equality and democracy to other countries. And look how well we have done in Korea, Vietnam, the former USSR Countries and today in Iraq. If you take McCain's words out of context, I'd have to agree that military we have not accomplished much....

Three cheers for Judy Woodruff for asking the question.

McCain at Columbia Forum

This McCain line truly irked me the other night while I was watching the Presidential National Forum at Columbia University at Columbia University on Sept. 11th (see bold):

MCCAIN: I think a small-town mayor has very great responsibilities. They have a responsibility for the budget. They have hiring and firing of people. They have great responsibilities. They have to stand for election. I admire mayors.

I'm -- listen, mayors have the toughest job, I think, in America. It's easy for me to go to Washington and, frankly, be somewhat divorced from the day-to-day challenges people have.

Understandably, McCain is sticking up for his VP choice Sarah Palin. However what struck me about this line, is it almost McCain admitting he is detached from his constituiency and wrapped up in his Washington bubble--presumably the same Washington he is running a campaign -in vain- to distance himself from. This line lends itself more to video, when he was saying it I was struck by the shear truth of it.

Here is the Link to Part 1 of McCain at the Forum

Fey Does Palin

This SNL skit could not be funnier.....Tiny Fey is a dead-wringer for Sarah Palin.

The Politics of Pringles..Once You Start You Just Can't Stop

A common theme in the political horserace is how journalists like to blame the rest of the media for the proliferation of commentary they deem unjounralistic...when in fact by commenting on it (okay, I am guilty of this too) they just spread the story even further. Here is Mark Halperin of TIME's The Page, talking about his distate for the Palin lipstick coverage while unknowingly spreading the McCain message even more.


From MediaMatters.org:

On the September 9 edition of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360, Time magazine senior political analyst Mark Halperin characterized the recent media attention to Sen. Barack Obama's comment that "[y]ou can put lipstick on a pig; it's still a pig" as "a low point in the day ... and one of the low days of our collective coverage of this campaign."
Halperin also asserted: "Stop the madness. I mean, this is, I think -- with all due respect to the program's focus on this and to what [CNN senior political analyst] David [Gergen] just said -- I think this is the press just absolutely playing into the McCain campaign's crocodile tears."
http://mediamatters.org/items/200809100007?f=h_top



Flashback to 2007 and the Edwards/Haircut story that was like a bad haircut, no matter how you tried to fix it and cover it was gonna take weeks to go away. Here is an article from Eric Alterman on the medias coverage of the Hair Debacle:

"Then there are the haircuts. You won't be surprised to hear that the fact that John Edwards got a couple of expensive haircuts has generated, according to Lexis/Nexis, about a thousand "news" stories. I can't say I've read many of them, but I'd be amazed if any proved more ridiculous than the 1,220-word "investigation" by the Post's John Solomon, who notes, "It is some kind of commentary on the state of American politics that as Edwards has campaigned for president, vice president and now president again, his hair seems to have attracted as much attention as, say, his position on health care." "
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20071001/alterman

Wasilla Resident Speaks Out

Interesting letter being circulated by Anne Kilkenny, a Wasilla, Alaska resident

Interesting that Palin ran for Mayor of Wasilla and Governor of Alaska as a'fiscal conservative.' And boy did she ever, she fit the model perfectly: wasting and spending money under the cloak of cutting taxes and saving the common people money!

The Following Quotes are from a letter being circulated by Anne Kilkenny, a Wasilla, Alaska resident who has claims to have known Palin since 1992:
http://www.andrys.com/palin-kilkenny.html

"The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administrationweren’t enough to fund everything on her wish list though, borrowedmoney was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left itwith indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encouragethe voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she saidshe supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? or anew library? No. $1m for a park. $15m-plus for construction of amulti-use sports complex which she rushed through to build on a pieceof property that the City didn’t even have clear title to. "

And in case you were wondering....

"While Mayor, City Hall was extensively remodeled and her officeredecorated more than once."

According to TheNation:
She is, as well, someone who has clashed with Palin. More than a decade ago, when Palin was campaigning to ban books, Kilkenny says, "I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the City Librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship."
http://www.thenation.com/blogs/campaignmatters/354444/the_word_from_wasilla

What a Tease

"The campaigns are going hogwhile lets get inside the bellies of these political beasts," Wolf Blitzer teasing a story on Palin, lipstick and pitbulls on CNN.
Really, Wolf?
Enough already.

So is it the Media or the Politicians

Today on MSNBC, conflicting POV's from D.C. Bureau Chief Mark Whitaker and Political Director Chuck Todd as they try and figure out who is driving all the McCain-Palin driven hype.

On Lipstick, Obama and Palin:

Whitaker: .... how good the McCain campaign is at hand-to-hand combat, at basically driving the news cycle day after day.

Todd: Said the story was "a faux controversy" and that the media had "taken the bait on this lipstick thing" which he called "a joke" and "laughable."

To read the story: http://mediamatters.org/items/200809100029?f=h_top#

Rachel Maddow in Ithaca!

Policy lady extraordinaire and newest MSNBC prime time host is coming to Ithaca's State Street Theatre this Friday to host her radio show live. Could Maddow have picked a better crowd for her lefty ways then Ithaca? Probably not.

Oh, and the event is free!

INFO
The Rachel Maddow Radio Show
Live from the State Theatre, Ithaca
Friday, Sept. 12, 2008
6:00-9:00pm

First Blog....Ever

Just set up the blog....
Took me a while to think about the name but I thought "Media Political Love Affair" was quite appropriate in the case of this blog (Pun's obviously are intended..). I will be using this blog to take a look at the symbiotic and often codependent relationship between the media and the politicians they cover. I will be blogging analysis, thoughts and some funny things of course with the eventual goal of you and I coming to a better understanding of politics, the media and how they work together during in an election season!

Spoiler Alert: Who won the 2008 election! http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3773535410295454636&ei=kd7GSMzhJ4GUrwLb29TlDg&q=election&vt=lf