Media Took Sides in 2008

[Sinatra]

Interesting commentary from Carl Cannon regarding the media's inherent and at times, over the top bias during the 2008 elections - particularly in regards to Sarah Palin.

"In the 2008 election, we took sides, straight and simple, particularly with regard to the vice presidential race...we simply didn't hold Joe Biden to the same standards as Sarah Palin, and for me, the real loser in this sordid tale is my chosen profession."


Sarah 'Barracuda' Palin and the Piranhas of the Press -- Politics Daily

 

[Oddball]

Wow...There's a news flash!!

 

[Bfgrn]

Just like the media took sides in 2000, FOR George W. Bush...



Al Gore v. the Media
At one early Democratic debate, a gathering of about 300 reporters in a nearby press room hissed and hooted at Gore's answers. Meanwhile, every perceived Gore misstep, including his choice of clothing, is treated as a new excuse to put him on a psychiatrist's couch and find him wanting.

Going After Gore
Al Gore couldn't believe his eyes: as the 2000 election heated up, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other top news outlets kept going after him, with misquotes ("I invented the Internet"), distortions (that he lied about being the inspiration for Love Story), and strangely off-the-mark needling, while pundits such as Maureen Dowd appeared to be charmed by his rival, George W. Bush. For the first time, Gore and his family talk about the effect of the press attacks on his campaign—and about his future plans—to the author, who finds that many in the media are re-assessing their 2000 coverage.

The Press vs. Al Gore
Last year, a review conducted by two nonpartisan groups, Project for Excellence in Journalism and the Pew Research Center, found that a stunning seventy-six percent of the Gore campaign coverage in early 2000 centered around two negative themes: that he lies and exaggerates, and that he's tarred by scandal. "We call it the metanarrative," says Tom Rosenstiel, director of Project for Excellence in Journalism. "Journalists are looking for a story line, a narrative device, that plays out over weeks and months, and there's nothing wrong with that. The problem is if they let the narrative overwhelm the facts, then it becomes a distorting lens. It can lead journalists to ignore and mischaracterize facts as they try to fit them into the story."

The press responds to critics on the right by bending over backward not to look liberal," says Geneva Overholser, a professor at the University of Missouri School of Journalism and former ombudsman for the Washington Post, referring to the common conservative criticism of the so-called liberal media. "The cumulative effect is the opposite: They're tougher on Democrats." She, too, is convinced there was "something fundamentally wrong" with the 2000 election press coverage.

 

[Modbert]

I'm not really sure why Carl Cannon's opinion is being treated like as it's the golden truth now. Especially since if he felt so strongly about this that he waited until AFTER the election was well over.

 

[Oddball]

Only three posts before a non sequitur deflection!!

That has to be some kind of record!!

 

[HUGGY]

It was just bad luck for the eskimo.

She had the bad fortune to look like a complete moron in front of Katie Couric and THEN...of all the damn bad luck in the world she was a dead ringer for Tina Fay. Some things are just not meant to be. What makes you think that Tina won't be playin Sara next time around?

 

[Xenophon]

Very interesting article, with many things I had forgotten, so I cut and pasted a few of them:

From the beginning, and for the ensuing 10 months, the coverage of this governor consisted of a steamy stew of cultural elitism and partisanship. The overt sexism of some male commentators wasn't countered, as one might have expected, by their female counterparts. Women columnists turned on Sarah Palin rather quickly. A plain-speaking, moose-hunting, Bible-thumping, pro-life, self-described "hockey mom" with five children and movie star looks with only a passing interest in foreign policy -- that wasn't the woman journalism's reigning feminists had envisioned for the glass ceiling-breaking role of First Female President (or Vice President). Hillary Rodham Clinton was more like what they had in mind – and Sarah, well, she was the un-Hillary.

This is still going on, the mysogist attacks on her and the many unfair comments.

The first thing reporters and commentators seemed to have noticed about Gov. Palin was her physical beauty. The second was that she had a bunch of kids, the last one born with Down's syndrome in spring 2008. For some reason, these two facts infuriated many Democratic activists and bloggers – and some liberal journalists.

I never understaood why the left made a big issue of this, it all seemed like it was just looking for something to complain about.

The reason is what happened when the battle over Sarah Palin came to a head on Oct. 2, 2008, in St. Louis, Mo. That night, the press showed its colors – and they were Democratic blue. That was the night that Palin cleaned Joe Biden's clock in their only debate, and nobody in the media could even see it, let alone report it. That was the night that the dual blinders of ideology and elitism prevented us being honest brokers.

Now this I remember cleary, she destroyed Biden and the press claimed Joe had won big time!

Sen. Biden, however, was in a place by himself when it came to bogus claims, absurd contentions, and flights of rhetorical fancy. He threw out several assertions that were so preposterous that – had Palin made them – they would have prompted immediate calls for McCain to dump her from the ticket.

There were lists of his massive bullshgit and gaffs on the net yet the press continued to claim he had beaten her badly.

The good senator from Delaware warmed up slowly, erroneously claiming that McCain voted with Obama on a budget resolution, and asserting wrongly that Obama wanted to return to the Reagan-era marginal income tax rates. He also embarked on an appallingly wrongheaded monologue about the constitutional history of the vice presidency. But when the talk turned to national security, presumably Biden's purported area of expertise, he went completely off the grid.

To sum up: One factual error and three fibs in only 31 words. Pretty impressive, in its way.)

If anyone else needed proof Biden was joke, they need only watch his answers again.

She knew what she was talking about and he didn't, but to this day people still rag her and cover up for the walking jackass who is VP.

 

[Sinatra]

Very interesting article, with many things I had forgotten, so I cut and pasted a few of them:

From the beginning, and for the ensuing 10 months, the coverage of this governor consisted of a steamy stew of cultural elitism and partisanship. The overt sexism of some male commentators wasn't countered, as one might have expected, by their female counterparts. Women columnists turned on Sarah Palin rather quickly. A plain-speaking, moose-hunting, Bible-thumping, pro-life, self-described "hockey mom" with five children and movie star looks with only a passing interest in foreign policy -- that wasn't the woman journalism's reigning feminists had envisioned for the glass ceiling-breaking role of First Female President (or Vice President). Hillary Rodham Clinton was more like what they had in mind – and Sarah, well, she was the un-Hillary.

This is still going on, the mysogist attacks on her and the many unfair comments.

The first thing reporters and commentators seemed to have noticed about Gov. Palin was her physical beauty. The second was that she had a bunch of kids, the last one born with Down's syndrome in spring 2008. For some reason, these two facts infuriated many Democratic activists and bloggers – and some liberal journalists.

I never understaood why the left made a big issue of this, it all seemed like it was just looking for something to complain about.

Now this I remember cleary, she destroyed Biden and the press claimed Joe had won big time!

Sen. Biden, however, was in a place by himself when it came to bogus claims, absurd contentions, and flights of rhetorical fancy. He threw out several assertions that were so preposterous that – had Palin made them – they would have prompted immediate calls for McCain to dump her from the ticket.

There were lists of his massive bullshgit and gaffs on the net yet the press continued to claim he had beaten her badly.

The good senator from Delaware warmed up slowly, erroneously claiming that McCain voted with Obama on a budget resolution, and asserting wrongly that Obama wanted to return to the Reagan-era marginal income tax rates. He also embarked on an appallingly wrongheaded monologue about the constitutional history of the vice presidency. But when the talk turned to national security, presumably Biden's purported area of expertise, he went completely off the grid.

To sum up: One factual error and three fibs in only 31 words. Pretty impressive, in its way.)

If anyone else needed proof Biden was joke, they need only watch his answers again.

She knew what she was talking about and he didn't, but to this day people still rag her and cover up for the walking jackass who is VP.

Agreed. Palin's performance was solid during her debate, and in a more fair media environment, should have lessened the concerns over her abilities - she appeared confident, affable, and charming. Biden was Biden, often rambling, and far less than the expert he was supposed to be.

Most troubling though was the so-called feminists who attacked Palin. A self-made woman who values family and hard work, and is pro-life...well that proved too dangerous a combination for these feminists eh?

Regardless of where one stands on politics, a fair minded person must admit the treatment against Palin was appalling - and continues to this day, even as it appears a few jounalists are now realizing just how far they allowed themselves to fall.

 

[Bfgrn]

Very interesting article, with many things I had forgotten, so I cut and pasted a few of them:

From the beginning, and for the ensuing 10 months, the coverage of this governor consisted of a steamy stew of cultural elitism and partisanship. The overt sexism of some male commentators wasn't countered, as one might have expected, by their female counterparts. Women columnists turned on Sarah Palin rather quickly. A plain-speaking, moose-hunting, Bible-thumping, pro-life, self-described "hockey mom" with five children and movie star looks with only a passing interest in foreign policy -- that wasn't the woman journalism's reigning feminists had envisioned for the glass ceiling-breaking role of First Female President (or Vice President). Hillary Rodham Clinton was more like what they had in mind – and Sarah, well, she was the un-Hillary.

This is still going on, the mysogist attacks on her and the many unfair comments.



I never understaood why the left made a big issue of this, it all seemed like it was just looking for something to complain about.

Now this I remember cleary, she destroyed Biden and the press claimed Joe had won big time!


There were lists of his massive bullshgit and gaffs on the net yet the press continued to claim he had beaten her badly.

The good senator from Delaware warmed up slowly, erroneously claiming that McCain voted with Obama on a budget resolution, and asserting wrongly that Obama wanted to return to the Reagan-era marginal income tax rates. He also embarked on an appallingly wrongheaded monologue about the constitutional history of the vice presidency. But when the talk turned to national security, presumably Biden's purported area of expertise, he went completely off the grid.

To sum up: One factual error and three fibs in only 31 words. Pretty impressive, in its way.)

If anyone else needed proof Biden was joke, they need only watch his answers again.

She knew what she was talking about and he didn't, but to this day people still rag her and cover up for the walking jackass who is VP.

Agreed. Palin's performance was solid during her debate, and in a more fair media environment, should have lessened the concerns over her abilities - she appeared confident, affable, and charming. Biden was Biden, often rambling, and far less than the expert he was supposed to be.

Most troubling though was the so-called feminists who attacked Palin. A self-made woman who values family and hard work, and is pro-life...well that proved too dangerous a combination for these feminists eh?

Regardless of where one stands on politics, a fair minded person must admit the treatment against Palin was appalling - and continues to this day, even as it appears a few jounalists are now realizing just how far they allowed themselves to fall.

While you pea brains are dreaming up all kinds of excuses, leveling false accusations and always being VICTIMS...you continue to overlook ONE item...Sarah Palin is an empty vessel that PROVED over and over that she was NOT qualified for the job...it has NOTHING to do with charm, it has to do with BRAINS and KNOWLEDGE...Palin came up EMPTY

 

[Sinatra]

Very interesting article, with many things I had forgotten, so I cut and pasted a few of them:


This is still going on, the mysogist attacks on her and the many unfair comments.



I never understaood why the left made a big issue of this, it all seemed like it was just looking for something to complain about.

Now this I remember cleary, she destroyed Biden and the press claimed Joe had won big time!


There were lists of his massive bullshgit and gaffs on the net yet the press continued to claim he had beaten her badly.


If anyone else needed proof Biden was joke, they need only watch his answers again.

She knew what she was talking about and he didn't, but to this day people still rag her and cover up for the walking jackass who is VP.

Agreed. Palin's performance was solid during her debate, and in a more fair media environment, should have lessened the concerns over her abilities - she appeared confident, affable, and charming. Biden was Biden, often rambling, and far less than the expert he was supposed to be.

Most troubling though was the so-called feminists who attacked Palin. A self-made woman who values family and hard work, and is pro-life...well that proved too dangerous a combination for these feminists eh?

Regardless of where one stands on politics, a fair minded person must admit the treatment against Palin was appalling - and continues to this day, even as it appears a few jounalists are now realizing just how far they allowed themselves to fall.

While you pea brains are dreaming up all kinds of excuses, leveling false accusations and always being VICTIMS...you continue to overlook ONE item...Sarah Palin is an empty vessel that PROVED over and over that she was NOT qualified for the job...it has NOTHING to do with charm, it has to do with BRAINS and KNOWLEDGE...Palin came up EMPTY

Joe Biden?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmRXH7RkCZQ]YouTube - The Drunk: Joe Biden drunk singing gaffe Obama vice president[/ame]

 

[Oddball]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2mzbuRgnI4]YouTube - Joe Biden Tells Chuck Graham to Stand Up[/ame]

 

[Bfgrn]

Agreed. Palin's performance was solid during her debate, and in a more fair media environment, should have lessened the concerns over her abilities - she appeared confident, affable, and charming. Biden was Biden, often rambling, and far less than the expert he was supposed to be.

Most troubling though was the so-called feminists who attacked Palin. A self-made woman who values family and hard work, and is pro-life...well that proved too dangerous a combination for these feminists eh?

Regardless of where one stands on politics, a fair minded person must admit the treatment against Palin was appalling - and continues to this day, even as it appears a few jounalists are now realizing just how far they allowed themselves to fall.

While you pea brains are dreaming up all kinds of excuses, leveling false accusations and always being VICTIMS...you continue to overlook ONE item...Sarah Palin is an empty vessel that PROVED over and over that she was NOT qualified for the job...it has NOTHING to do with charm, it has to do with BRAINS and KNOWLEDGE...Palin came up EMPTY

Joe Biden?

Joe Biden won the VP debate...hands down...

Vice President Biden; elected 6 times as Senator from Delaware. He has 37 + years of experience and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in foreign policy, judiciary and constitutional law...

He has actually MET Putin...and he also knows Africa is a continent, NOT a country...

 

[Sinatra]

While you pea brains are dreaming up all kinds of excuses, leveling false accusations and always being VICTIMS...you continue to overlook ONE item...Sarah Palin is an empty vessel that PROVED over and over that she was NOT qualified for the job...it has NOTHING to do with charm, it has to do with BRAINS and KNOWLEDGE...Palin came up EMPTY

Joe Biden?

Joe Biden won the VP debate...hands down...

Vice President Biden; elected 6 times as Senator from Delaware. He has 37 + years of experience and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in foreign policy, judiciary and constitutional law...

He has actually MET Putin...and he also knows Africa is a continent, NOT a country...

Joe Biden?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sM19YOqs7hU]YouTube - Joe Biden's racist slip[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hrQABAlo8g&feature=related[/ame]

 

[Oddball]

But at least his boss is "clean"!