Liberal Media- NBC's Brian Williams is NOW under fire

[Pogo]

Ah yes, the old Hasty Generalization/Composition Double Fallacy.

HEY YOU! Leave the fallacies to Edgetho (Ed get ho?)

They're HIS!

He only said he brought them to this website. I'm sure he's getting heap big royalty checks.

 

[boedicca]

And here he is REPORTING from Iraq:

 

[boedicca]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

 

[Synthaholic]

And no part of anything Brian Williams has ever said about his work as a reporter has ANYTHING to do with his alleged "credibility."

No idea what that means. But I'll use it as a segue anyway.

As I noted waaaaay back in this thread, Brian Williams isn't a "reporter" or "journalist", regardless what he or his employer or his competitors call it. These aren't "reporters"-- they're actors. Their job is to look pretty, look credible, and deliver the script in a clear cadence in perfect sync with the broadcast clock. The actual journalists, we never even get to see them. They're the workers, not the Queen.

The TV news talking head no more represents the work of reporting than the CEO of EnormoCorp represents the piecework his 11-year old Vietnamese girl does making his clothes products. You can see that as soon as he takes the screen -- he's in a SUIT. Why is he wearing a suit? You don't need a suit to tell a story...

This is exactly why: because they're not selling "news"; they're selling illusion. That is after all what TV is entirely made of: illusion. And part of that illusion -- a BIG part -- is credibility, the second element mentioned above. That's why Brian Williams is a liability for NBC right now-- not because he made up or embellished some anecdotes (those are after all not part of the news) but because his illusion of credibility is in question. And when you're selling illusion, that means money.

CLEARLY the issue here isn't ethical journalism. These stories after all didn't come from journalism but from personal anecdotes, one or both of which was self-inflated. The issue is illusion. If the issue was actual ethics in journalism, I wouldn't be the only one taking the Advocate to task for trying to sell the bullshit that "the French Quarter never flooded". That actually IS falsifying the news. Where's the outrage?

Not important. Because it's all about illusion.

Pfft. You know EXACTLY what it means.

When it suits you and your ilk to DENY that Brian Williams has been considered a "reporter," you blithely deny it.

When it suits you to label him a "reporter," he gets bestowed with that honorific title even if that term has become largely meaningless.

The political slant of almost every major main stream media news outlet in this Republic is decidedly left of center.

And when the "reporter" known as Brian Williams was discussing this stolen valor stuff, he was DISCUSSING what happened to him in his role as a reporter. So it doesn't matter if he said it on Letterman or repeated it later in a news broadcast designed to honor actual servicemen and women.

It does undercut any hope of his to laying a claim to integrity.

The big question, really, is: given what we already know, why hasn't that lummox been summarily dismissed from NBC?

Gee. I wonder.

The other Big Question is "how many people in positions of power at NBC knew he was lying, but covered it up"?

If one of the suits knew, wouldn't they take him aside and tell him to stop telling that story? Especially since they have so much money invested in him?

I would tell you to use your brain, but...

Clearly your brain operates only at the lower brain stem level. Williams changed his version of his helicopter story over the years. If you think that nobody at NBC noticed, you're incredibly gullible.

Yet they didn't warn him or call attention to the potential problem, even though they have millions tied up in him?

Even you are not that dumb.

 

[Synthaholic]

When Will Fox News Fire Bill O Reilly For Lying About Combat Duty

^ stolen directly from the DailyKos.

'Nuff said.

Did O'Lielly indeed lie about combat duty? Pretty simple question - will you punt?

We know he lied about growing up in Levittown. What else has he lied about?

O'Reilly never said he served in the military. He said he was exposed to combat fire when in South America. The latter may have been a lie, but it isn't one about serving in the military.

Williams didn't claim to serve in the military, either.

 

[boedicca]

When Will Fox News Fire Bill O Reilly For Lying About Combat Duty

^ stolen directly from the DailyKos.

'Nuff said.

Did O'Lielly indeed lie about combat duty? Pretty simple question - will you punt?

We know he lied about growing up in Levittown. What else has he lied about?

O'Reilly never said he served in the military. He said he was exposed to combat fire when in South America. The latter may have been a lie, but it isn't one about serving in the military.

Williams didn't claim to serve in the military, either.

That's correct. He just lied about his helicopter being shot.

 

[Synthaholic]

* * * *

Pfft. You know EXACTLY what it means.

No actually I don't. It made no grammatical sense.

Of course it did. Damn. You can't even be honest.

It was a bit convoluted, Liability.

Actually I said logical sense.
Whatever it was it didn't look important so I ignored it. I'll bet he's chapped at that.

Oops, did I say bet? Sorry, poor choice of words.

 

[boedicca]

No idea what that means. But I'll use it as a segue anyway.

As I noted waaaaay back in this thread, Brian Williams isn't a "reporter" or "journalist", regardless what he or his employer or his competitors call it. These aren't "reporters"-- they're actors. Their job is to look pretty, look credible, and deliver the script in a clear cadence in perfect sync with the broadcast clock. The actual journalists, we never even get to see them. They're the workers, not the Queen.

The TV news talking head no more represents the work of reporting than the CEO of EnormoCorp represents the piecework his 11-year old Vietnamese girl does making his clothes products. You can see that as soon as he takes the screen -- he's in a SUIT. Why is he wearing a suit? You don't need a suit to tell a story...

This is exactly why: because they're not selling "news"; they're selling illusion. That is after all what TV is entirely made of: illusion. And part of that illusion -- a BIG part -- is credibility, the second element mentioned above. That's why Brian Williams is a liability for NBC right now-- not because he made up or embellished some anecdotes (those are after all not part of the news) but because his illusion of credibility is in question. And when you're selling illusion, that means money.

CLEARLY the issue here isn't ethical journalism. These stories after all didn't come from journalism but from personal anecdotes, one or both of which was self-inflated. The issue is illusion. If the issue was actual ethics in journalism, I wouldn't be the only one taking the Advocate to task for trying to sell the bullshit that "the French Quarter never flooded". That actually IS falsifying the news. Where's the outrage?

Not important. Because it's all about illusion.

Pfft. You know EXACTLY what it means.

When it suits you and your ilk to DENY that Brian Williams has been considered a "reporter," you blithely deny it.

When it suits you to label him a "reporter," he gets bestowed with that honorific title even if that term has become largely meaningless.

The political slant of almost every major main stream media news outlet in this Republic is decidedly left of center.

And when the "reporter" known as Brian Williams was discussing this stolen valor stuff, he was DISCUSSING what happened to him in his role as a reporter. So it doesn't matter if he said it on Letterman or repeated it later in a news broadcast designed to honor actual servicemen and women.

It does undercut any hope of his to laying a claim to integrity.

The big question, really, is: given what we already know, why hasn't that lummox been summarily dismissed from NBC?

Gee. I wonder.

The other Big Question is "how many people in positions of power at NBC knew he was lying, but covered it up"?

If one of the suits knew, wouldn't they take him aside and tell him to stop telling that story? Especially since they have so much money invested in him?

I would tell you to use your brain, but...

Clearly your brain operates only at the lower brain stem level. Williams changed his version of his helicopter story over the years. If you think that nobody at NBC noticed, you're incredibly gullible.

Yet they didn't warn him or call attention to the potential problem, even though they have millions tied up in him?

Even you are not that dumb.

What a dupe you are. The media-political-academic class live in a reinforced bubble. They think if they control "the narrative", that all those Stupid American Knuckle Draggers will lap it.

 

[Synthaholic]

No, you are wrong. This is the link I posted-
Media bias is real finds UCLA political scientist UCLA

and here is a link to the full study rather than just the synopsis
http://www.college.ucla.edu/report/vol6_media-bias.pdf

How am I wrong? I posted the first paragraph from your link.

And it's not a UCLA study, it's a study by a political scientist at UCLA.

 

[Pogo]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

 

[boedicca]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

 

[depotoo]

If I'd had my way, he would have been gone long ago. His research assistants suck, and he leaves most of it to them.
By the way, your shouting when you post certain things, all it does is piss people off, rather than their becoming more interested in what it is. Want people to ignore you, even when you may have a legitimate post, keep it up.

When Will Fox News Fire Bill O Reilly For Lying About Combat Duty

^ stolen directly from the DailyKos.

'Nuff said.

Did O'Lielly indeed lie about combat duty? Pretty simple question - will you punt?

We know he lied about growing up in Levittown. We also know he lied about not being a registered Republican. What else has he lied about?

 

[Pogo]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

"Managing editor" was covered earlier. Empty suit. I agree with Grape Juice that "reporter" is honorific. He's hired to be a Face. They don't need him to be a reporter. They have stringers out the yinyang. And they don't pay those stringers anywhere near what they pay a Face.

That said though, it's still moot since neither of these anecdotes were part of the news. They're personal anecdotes. Y'all keep trying to conflate the two.

Now, when the Advocate misrepresents actual history saying there was no flooding in the Quarter -- that IS part of the news. And yet I hear nary a peep about that.

Interesting, innit?

 

[boedicca]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

"Managing editor" was covered earlier. Empty suit. I agree with Grape Juice -- "reporter" is honorific. He's hired to be a Face.

That said though, it's still moot since neither of these anecdotes were part of the news. They're personal anecdotes.

Thanks for the additional proof that your ideology is bankrupt.

 

[depotoo]

Then he lied that his was with the chinook shot at and it wasn't

When Will Fox News Fire Bill O Reilly For Lying About Combat Duty

^ stolen directly from the DailyKos.

'Nuff said.

Did O'Lielly indeed lie about combat duty? Pretty simple question - will you punt?

We know he lied about growing up in Levittown. What else has he lied about?

O'Reilly never said he served in the military. He said he was exposed to combat fire when in South America. The latter may have been a lie, but it isn't one about serving in the military.

Williams didn't claim to serve in the military, either.

That's correct. He just lied about his helicopter being shot.

 

[Pogo]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

"Managing editor" was covered earlier. Empty suit. I agree with Grape Juice -- "reporter" is honorific. He's hired to be a Face.

That said though, it's still moot since neither of these anecdotes were part of the news. They're personal anecdotes.

Thanks for the additional proof that your ideology is bankrupt.

Am I wrong about it? I have yet to see any story that says it came from the newscast.

And speaking of ideological bankruptcies, how come you cut out the part of my post about the Advocate? Is it .... inconvenient?

 

[Roadrunner]

Brian Williams, Anchor and Managing Editor, "NBC Nightly News":

Brian Williams is seen by more U.S. television viewers on a daily basis than any other individual. Since taking over as anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News in 2004, he has strengthened the broadcast's position as the most-watched newscast in all of television and has become the most highly decorated evening news anchor of the modern era. He has received eleven Edward R. Murrow Awards, twelve Emmy Awards, the duPont-Columbia University Award, the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism and the industry’s highest honor, the George Foster Peabody Award....

Brian Williams - NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - About Us NBC News


This sure looks like they think he's a News Guy, not a Commentator or Entertainer.

Nah. He's a Face. Whether he's a commentator or entertainer, like Hannity et al mentioned above, would depend on the content. But if he was just a "news guy" they wouldn't need a Face. They'd just plunk down whatever (real) news guy was available. There's a reason they package it as "NBC News With Brian Williams" (or whoever, plug in name). They're selling Illusion. If they were selling straight news they could put text up.

Shit, he's not even important at all.

A nobody.

Whole thing don't mean shit.

 

[boedicca]

And here he is doing more REPORTING!

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

"Managing editor" was covered earlier. Empty suit. I agree with Grape Juice -- "reporter" is honorific. He's hired to be a Face.

That said though, it's still moot since neither of these anecdotes were part of the news. They're personal anecdotes.

Thanks for the additional proof that your ideology is bankrupt.

Am I wrong about it? I have yet to see any story that says it came from the newscast.

He reported on the original incident in 2003. It's noteworthy that he later changed his story and NBC did nothing about it.

 

[Roadrunner]

That's definitely reporting. But that's also ten years old. If they send him out occasionally to be onsite somewhere that's one thing. But his regular day job is to be The Face.

Again if that's now what he's hired for, they'd just stick anybody in there. For whatever reason, commercial TV news operations, both national and local, feel like they need to establish and sell a "brand". And it kind of makes sense-- everything around us is some kind of brand. We don't even vote for candidates; we vote for a brand.

This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic. You loons are trying to minimize Williams LIES by saying he's not really a reporter, or he hasn't done reporting for a long time.

He's the MANAGING EDITOR for NBC Nightly News. If you think that gives him an exemption from telling the truth, then you really need to get a grip.

"Managing editor" was covered earlier. Empty suit. I agree with Grape Juice -- "reporter" is honorific. He's hired to be a Face.

That said though, it's still moot since neither of these anecdotes were part of the news. They're personal anecdotes.

Thanks for the additional proof that your ideology is bankrupt.

Am I wrong about it? I have yet to see any story that says it came from the newscast.

He reported on the original incident in 2003. It's noteworthy that he later changed his story and NBC did nothing about it.

Move on, nothing to see here.

Brian Who???


; - )

 

[boedicca]

Brian Williams, Anchor and Managing Editor, "NBC Nightly News":

Brian Williams is seen by more U.S. television viewers on a daily basis than any other individual. Since taking over as anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News in 2004, he has strengthened the broadcast's position as the most-watched newscast in all of television and has become the most highly decorated evening news anchor of the modern era. He has received eleven Edward R. Murrow Awards, twelve Emmy Awards, the duPont-Columbia University Award, the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism and the industry’s highest honor, the George Foster Peabody Award....

Brian Williams - NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - About Us NBC News


This sure looks like they think he's a News Guy, not a Commentator or Entertainer.

Nah. He's a Face. Whether he's a commentator or entertainer, like Hannity et al mentioned above, would depend on the content. But if he was just a "news guy" they wouldn't need a Face. They'd just plunk down whatever (real) news guy was available. There's a reason they package it as "NBC News With Brian Williams" (or whoever, plug in name). They're selling Illusion. If they were selling straight news they could put text up.

Shit, he's not even important at all.

A nobody.

Whole thing don't mean shit.

A nobody who is paid $10M per year to be MANAGING EDITOR and Anchor of NBC's flagship Nightly News.