Letters to the Editor
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Shailagh Murray
I don't know if you missed it, but the Post foolishly let their national political reporter talk to the public again.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2007/09/02/DI2007090200704.html?hpid=topnews
It got ugly, when a couple of her idiocies got follow up.
Shailagh Murray: Yes, we are all in awe of Karen. Such a fine journalist.
As to the Democrats and this war debate, I expect we are entering the murkiest phase yet. Yes, the Democrats are scaling back their ambitions. But the dynamic in Iraq has changed since the spring, and it is so hard to score these issues in the black and white way that many people would like. I expect that many of you in the anti-war community will be very disappointed a month from now.
led to:
How has Iraq changed?: You write "the dynamic in Iraq has changed since the spring." According to the reporting in your newspaper, the only dynamic that has changed is the political one in Washington. What's actually changed in Iraq? Is the civil war over? Is the government functioning? What?
Shailagh Murray: Well, this is the problem. The tribal dynamic, for instance, is something new that I think a lot of people didn't anticipate. It wasn't part of the model, but it may be a promising development that could lead to more stability from the ground up. I'm not arguing anything here! Just conveying what I'm hearing from politicians, which is that the pieces have moved around on the chess board. I would bet a surprising number lawmakers study these reports closely and listen to the testimony. I don't think many members of Congress think there are many sure answers at this point.
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The Truth is The Show Will Just Go On
Are posters such as Zandru right? What ultimately will become of this all? While I think everyone is better off seeing Washington for what it is rather than playing happy so people like Zandru can feel hope again, what will come of it all?
Greenwald, you've hit the nail on the head. That is exactly what is going to happen. But what now? Next month the war will continue as it has all along, and a year from now we will all go the the polls with the same choices we have today.
Even as more and more people become fed up with Washington, it will continue along as it always has. As you can see, the whole beltway establishment is fully functional with the majority of the country opposed to what they do. So now what? People will not do what it takes to change our nation's direction, and I mean real steps such as vote their congresspeople out of office.
Talking about it is a good first step, but when does the taking-action-to-change-Washington step come?
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Jameslow and Glenn
I've only paid attention to NPR during my blogging days - not much before - so I can only speak to what they do recently. And they so frequently are among the worst offenders of the most misleading media practices. This doesn't surprise me at all. In particular, they love glorifying the Brookings "scholars" and letting them be depicted however they want.
I can't bear to listen to NPR anymore. During law school, I used to set my stereo alarm to it and listen in the mornings, but soon couldn't stand it - it has the unique ability to numb and pacify its listeners. Everything down to the milquetoast, weird horn ensemble and tribal instrument renditions of popular songs has an anodyne this-is-high-culture-and-authoritative-news-truth tranquilizer effect. Then, when the patient -er- listener is good and senseless, they slip in quiet bombs like "experts now tend to agree that the surge is working."
NPR is the quintessential voice and sound of the Establishment. Instead of using agitprop, it uses what could be called soothprop. Armchair semi-consciousness in which one can simultaneously donate to "progressive" causes and events while swallowing elephant pills of propaganda and conventional wisdom without feeling the slightest discomfort.
It's just too depressing for me to listen to. And it's what nearly every single Member of Congress and upper-level executive official imbibes every morning with their coffee. It validates their entrenched views and assures them that the masses abide.
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Blindsided
Shailagh Murray:
The tribal dynamic, for instance, is something new that I think a lot of people didn't anticipate.
The tribal dynamic?! Is she talking about those tribes that have been there in the desert for, oh, thousands of years? Because the only people who didn't see them as part of the "dynamic" were the ones who lied us into this whole debacle, or who weren't doing their jobs (the press).
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Glenn, Jameslow, DClaw1, Paul...
When I started as an undergrad at NYU, I managed to get an internship at the local NPR affiliate in NYC. I learned the ropes rather quickly and one of those lessons was that think tank people answer the phone.
We had a stack of phone books provided by the think tanks. Each pundit had their own bio and picture.
As I was learning the trade my producer would discourage the use of these individuals but, they were always there as a last resort because again, they returned calls and agreed to tight deadlines.
There wasn't a week that went by when we did not rely on these phone books for at least a couple guests for the show.
I had already read Chomsky prior to entering this scene, so I realized at the time what was going on was a bit warped. But, it was expediency that won out.
I will point out that the best radio we ever put together was when we used primary sources. (e.g. a lawyer specializing in the field, or a business person dealing directly with the issue of the day) The problem is primary sources have careers and lives and are not usually available for interviews when it's convenient for deadlines.
I know this is probably not something new to any of you, but I watched it first hand. It's a combination of laziness, availability, and a bit of true believer-ism thrown in.
It's strange to think ten years removed that I was very much a part of this rotted corpse of a press corp, but I was.