Category: Hack Journalism

Conservatives Outsourcing Punditry to India

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Time Magazine has decided not to renew the contracts with William Kristol or Charles Krauthammer.

If you are wondering if this means that there is an outbreak of sanity with Time‘s editor, the answer is no. They are in negotiations with Ramesh Ponnuru to write some OP/EDs for them.

It’s pretty clear that they were pushed. Kristol is not talking, and Krauthammer has made it clear it was pushed:

“I was very happy to work with them,” said Mr. Krauthammer on the phone from his Washington office. “And I have a lot of things that occupy me.”

Asked if he would have preferred to stay with the magazine, Mr. Krauthammer, a Pulitzer Prize winner who writes a regular column for The Washington Post, suggested there wasn’t much of a choice. “It’s a hypothetical that didn’t arise,” he said.

(emphasis mine)

As to my little funny about, “outsourcing punditry to India”, if the Wingnutosphere decides to get up in arms about it in an orgy of phony offensensitivity, that’s fine with me. They are a bunch of inbred, knuckle dragging, drooling idiots.

It’s All Us Feelthy Bloggers Fault

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At a national press club event, WH Reporter, and wanker, Dick Gregory claimed that the polarization in the national dialog was a function of the internet. Blogger Richard Power (love that pseudonym) eloquenty responds, and reminds Mr. Gregory of the words of I.F. Stone and Tom Paine, and then sums up (some) the events that really led up to this polarization:

  • Rich pigs like Richard Mellon Scaife dropping tens of millions of dollars on attempted coups like “The Arkansas Project”.
  • The impeachment debacle.
  • The incompetent handling of intel by Bush and His Evil Minions™ leading up to 911
  • The deliberate and premeditated minipulation and deception on intelligence by Bush and His Evil Minions™ leading up to Iraq.
  • The Swift Boating.
  • The theft of the election in Florida in 2000.
  • Voter suppression and intimidation.
  • The Jamming on Democratic phone banks on election day.
  • The US Gulags.
  • The politicization of the Justice Department.
  • Terry Sciavo
  • Valerie Plame

He makes the point that if Tom Paine were alive, he’d be blogging. Go read it.

The thing that really bugs guys like Mr. Gregory is not the “polarization”, it’s that some guy sitting in front of his screen can fact check him using 15 minutes with Google, and show that he’s doing sloppy, poor quality work.

Would Reverent Moon Please Buy the Washington Post Too???

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It would improve the quality of the journalism there no end. We have a front page article saying that a bunch of nuts, who have been thoroughly debunked, are claiming that Barack Obama is a crypto-Muslim.

The more I read stories and opinions from the Post, the more that I am convinced that the entire Watergate affair was just stupid dumb luck.

Journamalist Perry Bacon Jr., today’s worst person in the world!

Quote of the Day, Anita Esterday

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Ms. Esterday is the waitress who was quoted in that whole “tipgate” story with Clinton.

Well, after being contacted by the gazillionth reporter today, she sais something very wise:

You people are really nuts,” she told a reporter during a phone interview. “There’s kids dying in the war, the price of oil right now — there’s better things in this world to be thinking about than who served Hillary Clinton at Maid-Rite and who got a tip and who didn’t get a tip.

She is our wise woman of the day.

Journamalism at NPR

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I heard the story today about Hillary Clinton going to a restaurant in in Iowa, and having her picture taken with a waitress, but not leaving a tip on NPR.

The story was untrue, the campaign says that they paid $157, and left a $100 tip, and it was confirmed by the restaurant manager.

So much for Journalism, at least the journalism of David Greene, at NPR.

Update, NPR has a correction:

Editor’s Note: Since this story aired, Hillary Clinton’s campaign contacted NPR to say that the campaign paid Maid-Rite a bill for $157 the day of Clinton’s visit and left $100 in tip money. NPR contacted Maid-Rite manager Brad Crawford, who confirmed that a bill was paid and tip money was left. Crawford, who was not in the restaurant at the time, said that he believes a campaign staffer left the money with one of his employees, but “where Hillary was sitting, there was no tip left.”

How about a little fact checking in the future.

David Frum and Facts Have Only a Passing Acquaintance

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David Frum, the Canadian former Bush speech writer whose phrase Axis of Evil is probably responsible for a thousand or so American deaths had an essay on Marketplace, yesterday, and while I expect right wingers to lie, this is the first time in my not so young (I’m 45) life that literally every word out of his mouth was not the truth.

So, I’m sending them the following letter:

Subject: Re: No defense for Europe’s protectionism

In listening to Mr. Frum’s essay on defense procurement, the F-35, and the Eurofighter, I had a unique experience. This is the first time in my life in which I have heard a commentary where I know that literally every fact stated is incorrect. I am not suggesting that there is deliberate deception involved, but the only alternative is a complete ignorance of the subject involved.

Cases in point:
* The NATO allies will soon reach a crucial decision about their next-generation air-to-ground fighter plane. Two candidates have emerged as finalists: the US-UK-Dutch-Italian-Norwegian F-35, or an update of the Franco-German “Eurofighter.”

While the F-35 is intended to a large degree, perhaps primarily, for air to ground operations, the Eurofighter Typhoon is primarily an air defense fighter, though an air-to-ground capability is being developed for the plane in later tranches.

The Eurofighter is not a Franco-German endeavor. The French are not involved at all, having built the Dassault Rafale. The partner nations are the UK, Germany, Italy, and Spain. The F-35 is not a US-UK-Dutch-Italian-Norwegian project. Only the UK qualifies a very junior partner, and they have still not been given the information necessary to properly maintain the aircraft. The rest of the countries are simply customers.

* Just about everybody agrees that the F-35 is the better — and probably cheaper — plane.

When comparing the two aircraft, the Eurofighter is more agile, with a higher thrust to weight ratio and lower wing loading, and faster, it supercruises, and has a higher ceiling, much like the F-35’s big brother, the F-22, though the F-35 is stealthy, and the Eurofighter is not.

Additionally, the Typhoon can accommodate the Meteor, the long-range missile being developed in Europe, which has superior kinematics to the US AMRAAM, while the F-35, with its internal weapons stowage cannot.

Furthermore, the current prices are nearly the same, but you are comparing a design that is in production (Typhooon) with one that is still in development (F-35), and whose price is still escalating, so it to predict anything beyond parity in cost is simply wrong.

* It’s the plane that will be bought by the Israelis, who tend to be choosy about things bearing on national survival.

The Israelis will not be able to buy the Eurofighter, as political considerations of of the Typhoon’s sale to Saudi Arabia preclude this. Additionally, it will be purchased with significant US military aid, which requires that US equipment be purchased with these funds.

Additionally, the cancellation of significant defense purchases of French aircraft and British tanks in the 1960s, the Israelis do not feel that they can rely on the Europeans as a reliable source of supply.

* The Eurofighter is built on four separate assembly lines in four Western European nations. This redundancy creates more jobs, but at very high cost. High cost, in turn, reduces the number of aircraft the European allies can afford to purchase.

This applies to final assembly lines only , and it is, in fact not very costly. The evidence is in examining the F-16 program, the least expensive, and most numerious, of the previous generation of Western combat aircraft, where it has been assembled in the US, Korea, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Turkey.

I would note that given the facts to support his thesis are all wrong, his thesis itself is suspect.

As Atrios would put it, wanker of the day*.

*The “wanker” bit is not going in the letter.

Shailagh Murray is a Tool and an Idiot

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Dodd Makes Play on FISA Legislation
Her analysis:

Whenever that big day comes, Dodd — as the keeper of the “hold” — must return from the campaign trail to officially block debate on the bill. That entails standing around on the Senate floor, forcing procedural votes, avoiding the furious glares of colleagues who don’t share the same concerns. The standard duration of such showdowns is about a week — time that Dodd, who is trailing badly in early primary polls, can scarcely afford.

Of course, there is the reality, with facts, as opposed to bloviating:

Chris Dodd: The Netroots Show the Love

Senator Dodd’s campaign communications director Hari Sevugan tells me that $150,000 in small contributions have poured into Dodd’s campaign in the past 24 hours, since his announcement that he will put a hold on–and may even filibuster–a foreign intelligence surveillance bill approved yesterday by the Senate Intelligence Committee. Dodd objects to a provision that would grant immunity to the telecommunications companies that turned over their customers’ phone and e-mail records to the government’s warrantless surveillance program. The companies have been hit with 40 pending lawsuits charging them with privacy violation.

You have a 3rd tier candidate for president who has just raised $150K in about 24 hours, and is probably in the 2nd tier (with Bill Richardson) as a result of his stand.

He’s on every bloggers lips right now, but according to Shailagh Murray his move is somehow a really bad idea.

My guess is that the lead levels in DC water are higher than they are letting on.

Kausgoat Scandal!!!!!

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Yep, the latest scandal is that Mickey Kaus orally sodomizes goats.

It first showed up in the comments of a Matthew Yglesias post about how bone headed (pun not intended*) Kaus was about claiming that some dumb ass phony rumors of a John Edwards affair:

Mickey Kaus’ long post here about John Edwards’ alleged affair with Rielle Hunter is almost self-refuting. Basically, we have an anonymous source saying Hunter said she had an affair with Edwards, versus Hunter, on the record, saying that’s not the case. Then there’s Edwards, also saying it’s not the case. But Kaus initially deems Edwards’ denial too vague and non-specific.

Then someone posted something about Mickey Kaus having carnal knowledge of a goat, which soon escalated into oral sodomy with said ruminant.

It should that Mr. Kaus has issued no denial, so we must assume that this is true.

In any case, it soon found its way to Atrios, and then to his Wikipedia entry.

It’s also been mentioned on Wonkette , Sadly No, Oliver Willis, Kos, The Group News Blog, and many others.

I wouldn’t mention it, but Mickey Kaus has STILL not offered a denial, so by the standards of…Mickey Kaus…Mickey Kaus blows goats.

Yes, I know that this is irresponsible, and that I should feel bad about this, but piling on a wanker is fun sometimes.

*OK, the pun was intended, and I’m glad.

Al Gore and the UN IPCC Win Nobel Peace Prize

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That sound that you hear ius wingnut heads exploding at the news. Heh.

Maybe they will turn their guns away from the Frost Family now, at least a bit.

That being said, I sand by my earlier prediction: Albert Gore will not be running for president in 2008. He’s happy doing what he’s doing right now, and he knows that the presstitutes will come after him if he runs.

Here is the picture, taken before the award, that convinced me that he is not running. This is not the face of Gore running for president:

Media Whores at the WaPo

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In this case Howie Kurtz, the Washington Post’s walking conflict of interest media critic who says that the media is going all out on Hillary’s laugh because it was fun to do.

Jon Stewart, setting the pace for political journalism, kicked things off last week by assembling a grab bag of giggling and guffawing when the senator appeared on all five Sunday talk shows, from a barn outside her Chappaqua, N.Y., home. As Clinton was seen bursting into belly laughs– sometimes oddly and abruptly — at queries by the likes of Bob Schieffer and Chris Wallace, the “Daily Show” host likened her to a robot switching into chuckle mode when aggressive interrogators needed to be neutralized.

It’s nice that reporters like Jon Stewart, but to quote Mr. Stewart (with bleating from Carlson and Bergalia)

STEWART: Will jump on it. In many ways, it’s funny. And I made a special effort to come on the show today, because I have privately, amongst my friends and also in occasional newspapers and television shows, mentioned this show as being bad.

BEGALA: We have noticed.

STEWART: And I wanted to — I felt that that wasn’t fair and I should come here and tell you that I don’t — it’s not so much that it’s bad, as it’s hurting America. But I wanted to come here today and say…

STEWART: Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America.

….

STEWART: See, the thing is, we need your help. Right now, you’re helping the politicians and the corporations. And we’re left out there to mow our lawns.

BEGALA: By beating up on them? You just said we’re too rough on them when they make mistakes.

STEWART: No, no, no, you’re not too rough on them. You’re part of their strategies. You are partisan, what do you call it, hacks.

….

STEWART: … is that the news organizations look to Comedy Central for their cues on integrity.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: So what I would suggest is, when you talk about you’re holding politicians’ feet to fire, I think that’s disingenuous. I think you’re…

CARLSON: “How are you holding up?” I mean, come on.

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: No, no, no. But my role isn’t, I don’t think…

CARLSON: But you can ask him a real question, don’t you think, instead of saying…

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: I don’t think I have to. By the way, I also asked him, “Were you in Cambodia?” But I didn’t really care.

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: Because I don’t care, because I think it’s stupid.

CARLSON: I can tell.

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: But my point is this. If your idea of confronting me is that I don’t ask hard-hitting enough news questions, we’re in bad shape, fellows. (LAUGHTER)

CARLSON: We’re here to love you, not confront you.

(CROSSTALK)

CARLSON: We’re here to be nice.

STEWART: No, no, no, but what I’m saying is this. I’m not. I’m here to confront you, because we need help
from the media and they’re hurting us. And it’s — the idea is…

…

STEWART: It’s not honest. What you do is not honest. What you do is partisan hackery. And I will tell you why I know it.

CARLSON: You had John Kerry on your show and you sniff his throne and you’re accusing us of partisan hackery?

STEWART: Absolutely.

CARLSON: You’ve got to be kidding me. He comes on and you…

(CROSSTALK)

STEWART: You’re on CNN. The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls.

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: What is wrong with you?

….

Emphasis mine.

NPR Tells White House That He Doesn’t Get His Choice of Toady to Interview Him

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The White House offered NPR an interview with George W. Bush, with the stipulation that Juan Williams (Softball Interviewer, Toady to Right Wingers, and Incompetent) interview him. NPR said no interview unless they chose the interviewer, so the White House had him interview Bush on….wait for it….Fox News.

I never how Juan Williams has managed to keep a job. I have never heard him do a story, or an interview, competently, and he brushed off Clarence Thomas’s sexual harassment without revealing that he himself was a sexual harasser.

My conclusion is that he has been coasting on his book Eyes on the Prize* for about 25 years.

*I bet you were expecting me to accuse him of an being an affirmative action hire, but I don’t think that he is. I think that he has gotten his job because on the fact that he was prominently competent once (never to be repeated).

Columbus Dispatch Uses Nazi Style Imagery

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The Columbus Dispatch has just published a cartoon showing Iranians as cockroaches emerging from a sewer.


This is really something straight straight from Der Stürmer.

Glenn Sheller, chief bigot and moron Editorial Page Editor has replied that they are only depicting SOME Iranians as cockroaches, or to paraphrase, “We’re not saying that all Jews use Christian baby’s blood to bake Matzo, just some Jews.”

I’m so glad I have a daughter, so I can forbid her to marry him.

Jerk.

What Rox Populi Said: Journamalism

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She has a good post taking just one quote of Andrew Glass, a particularly brain-dead journamalist working for the Politico1.

I would add one thing though, which that good Ms. Populi misses, that Glass screws up on his Swiss neutrality analogy.

He likes to think that the Swiss are a bunch of chocolate and cuckoo clock making people holding hands and singing “Kumbaya”. They aren’t, and they never were.

They gained national identity when they were the most feared mercenaries in Europe. They were not neutral, they were rented for a fee.

Following the abolition of merc armies, they became aggressively neutral, building an impressive citizen army, mobilizing their population, and shooting and capturing anything that crossed their borders.

They had no territorial ambitions, but they were people that you did not want to f$#% with.

1But I’m repeating myself.

Of Course Fox is Screaming “Terrorism”

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I was exercising (stationary bicycle), and watching TV at the Gym. CNN was focusing the bridge collapse and the trapped miners, and on the next TV over, Fox News was screaming “run for your lives, and put your trust in Bush”, about the Foot and Mouth* outbreak in the UK.

Fox News is really into creating terror as a way to hold onto viewers.

Let’s be clear. This is not terrorism. The subvariant of the virus is not one commonly found, but it is very close to the one in the 1967 outbreak, which is used for vaccine manufacture at a laboratory in Pirbright, which is is within the 3- kilometer protection zone.

If someone wanted to do bio-terrorism with hoof and mouth, it would be easier to go to areas of Asia or Africa where the disease is endemic (the 2001 outbreak was the “Type O pan Asia” strain), collect samples, and cover most of the country in a car for multiple outbreaks in multiple locations.

I once priced it out, and you could probably do this for less than 50 grand.

*Foot and Mouth and Hoof and Mouth are the same thing. The Brits call it the former, and we call it the latter.

People that I Hate To Agree With

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There are times when I find myself agreeing with people or organizations that I find abhorent.
This is one of those times.
First, Andrew Sullivan, Proud Endorser of the Racist and Sloppy Bell Curve:

The bottom line for Americans is this: George Bush’s friends do not go to jail. Your friends do.

This is a very simple matter. Either Libby is subject to the rule of law or not. Bush’s action is constitutionally solid but morally and politically indefensible – an act of arrogance born of permanent privilege that still, somehow, even after all these years, manages to shock.

And if that didn’t make me feel queasy, there is The Moonie Washington Times, whose sole purpose seems to be giving the New York Sun a run for its money regarding the hackticular nature of it’s news and editorial sections:

But none of this exonerates the commutation. Perjury is a serious crime. This newspaper argued on behalf of its seriousness in the 1990s, during the Clinton perjury controversy, and today is no different. We’d have hoped that more conservatives would agree. The integrity of the judicial process depends on fact-finding and truth-telling. A jury found Libby guilty of not only perjury but also obstruction justice and lying to a grand jury. It handed down a very supportable verdict.