Letters to the Editor
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@Reality
Oh, I was just going off on a little tangent. I only meant to stress that very militaristic societies are very short-lived, in their fightin' stage. The drain on population and financial resources make for a bad situation.
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Of course!
And ultimately, it's he who mouthes the implicating words. - GG
Why have we not made a practice of calling Williams et al the sockpuppets that they are for their network bosses? Truly!
And along the same lines... Paul Dirks made a point the other day about "corporate" not necessarily being the problem, but the "consolidation."
It's a worthwhile point.
I've been using "corporatized," but am going to try to remember to start using "Consolidated Media." [ConMedia, for short]
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S/he was in there, Northwestwoods.
You forgot to include poor Nozzlebuffer. I'm sure you meant well.
'Nozzlebuffer' or however s/he spells has been figured to be a cipher for 'anonymoose'.
Rather sad when even handled commentators think they have to hide their 'names'. Wonder what her/his childhood was like.
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Journalistic Oppo Research
I dislike thinking that it has come to something like this, but the longer this flag pin/Reverend Wright/personality deconstruction coverage goes on, the more I think that the Left has to engage in oppo research on mainstream media figures.
As Glenn has pointed out, Tim Russert has a reputation as a pugnacious and tough interviewer (although not to high-ranking folks on the Right such as, oh, say, President Bush) who asks a lot of "gotcha" questions. But where are the holes in Russert's cloak of "ordinary tough guy from Buffalo"? What if he asked one of those ridiculous questions at a debate or in an interview, and instead of answering the candidate says, "Say, Tim, I'm just wondering: why aren't you wearing an NBC lapel pin? Aren't you proud of your network?" Or perhaps, "Tim, you purport to 'speak for the people,' but when was the last time you spent a week in Buffalo? Or even a day?"
We know what O'Reilly does when confronted with his hypocrisy: he shuts of their mikes. What if Williams was asked to square his multiple real-estate holdings and expensive cars with his insistence that he is speaking for the "Gate 14 crowd"? What if it was pointed out to Charlie Gibson that only very few "ordinary Americans" care about a rise in the capital gains tax?
I don't think it's going to happen any time soon, but I honestly believe it's the only thing that will stop this parade of hypocritical trivia from the "mainstream media."
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This is a major test.
I have a feeling we'll fail it. But it's a major test of the health of this democracy, if we still have one.
Connections probably have long existed between "experts" and corporate interests. But they've been under the table. No one really had slam dunk proof of their existence. There was plenty of speculation and logical deduction. But no real proof.
We now have proof, beyond a shadow of a doubt.
My guess is that this sort of corruption has been naturalized, normalized, and will largely be ignored. That's the pattern. Bush has been caught in hundreds of illegal acts, and is still in power. Countless acts of corruption, politicization of much of the Federal government, the DoJ, torture, lies galore, suppressing government scientists, lies about the economy, the environment, and the war.
It just doesn't seem to matter enough to enough Americans. Bush has created a new world wherein this sort of thing is "normal" now. Rather than outrage, too many Americans just go "ho hum."
I can only hope, yet again, one more time, that this will be the final straw.
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And this will change nothing.
This guy's got no clue. That's why he has the job he has.
He's a corporate and government mouthpiece, surrounded by other corporate and government mouthpieces, and I bet he's suspicious of anyone who tries to tell him the world he lives in isn't entirely real. Look at what it's done for him -- it's got him a nice house and an expensive sports car. How could anything be wrong with it?
It wouldn't surprise me if, in his mind, anyone who criticizes him and everyone else in his bubble is wrong, just by virtue of the fact that they're criticizing it in the first place. Because hey, what's not to like?
I posted a snippet from the Nation article last night after he posted his non-response response -- but the article didn't matter then, and I don't think it'll matter now.
We're just gnats to these people -- minor annoyances, nothing more.
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Meaning...
Clarifying: "It didn't matter then" meaning five years ago when the article was printed.
Of course, it didn't matter yesterday either.
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Glenn, this is a stunning piece of work
You are pulling at some very fascinating threads, my friend. My attention is rapt. Keep it coming.
(My latest sturm und drang attempts to tie these and other recent themes together. I humbly ask that you give it a look.)
Gotta go for now!
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Friends
Williams' most revealing comment was, "As I'm sure is obvious to even a casual viewer, I quickly entered into a close friendship with both men..."
Brian, you need new friends (and not because Gens. McCaffery or Downing are not nice fellas). It has always seemed to me that a wide circle of "friends" among those with whom one has professional ties inherently compromises one's objectivity. There's a difference between considering such people one's "friends" and merely being friendly. The latter is certainly acceptable, the former should be avoided. Professional associations which evolve into emotional bonds heighten the risk of errors in journalist judgment, as Williams -- and too much of the media -- seems to have forgotten.
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@zizou#5
Brian Williams has a Porsche 911 GT2-- $191,700 baby. He is definitely salt of the earth. I suggest all you whiners out there go buy a 911 GT2 and then maybe you'll leave Brian alone. Freakin' ingrates!
So true, all that. I live in an efficiency apartment, and sometimes even blog and comment in my... bathrobe! (Tho, I do not live in any of the five burroughs, and as a grrl am not named Vinny.) I drive a Toyota -- Tercel. So, I'm worthy to kneel and kiss Brian Williams' Italian loafers.
I think it is time for Glenn to fess up: Glenn do you now, or have you ever, blogged in a bathrobe? And have you ever done so in Brooklyn, Queens -- or heaven forfend -- the Bronx? If not, is your neighborhood in Brazil sufficiently upscale to match Williams' journalistic qualifications, hmmm? And what do you drive, eh?