on covering the GOP convention: “We want to find out actual information about Republicans. We want to know where the pods are, where they’re grown, and we want to photograph them before they’re harvested.” Next to XM’s “Everything, All the Time,” The Daily Show’s “The Most Trusted Name in Fake News” might be the best tag line ever.
Category Archives: Politics & Government
Political conventions
David Weinberger sums it up nicely: “The Convention folks think their job is to script an event for the news media, and the news media don’t want to cover an event that’s been scripted.”
Convention blogging
Three of our reporters are heading for Boston to cover the Democratic Convention. As reporters for state news networks, they focus on the state delegations and do a lot of their work at the hotel where the delegates are staying. Along with our “regular” news coverage, each of the reporters will take a stab at blogging the four-day event as well. Radio Iowa’s O. Kay Henderson posted some wonderful reports (via email) from the 2000 convention, but we just didn’t have tools (or the word “blog”). The other two guys are experienced reporters but are new to this kind of writing (as far as I know). Should be interesting.
Ventriloquist God
“I trust God speaks through me. Without that, I couldn’t do my job.”
— President Bush, quoted in the Lancaster New Era, during a private meeting with an Amish group. [via Scripting News]
Fahrenheit 9/11
If I were Dick Cheney, I’d explore two options for dealing with Michael Moore’s movie, Fahrenheit 9/11. First, try to find a working time machine and send a Terminator back to 2000 and erase Michael Moore before he makes the documentary. That poses some real technical challenges, so Plan B would be to place armed National Guard troops at the entrance of every theater trying to show the movie. Close ’em down. I really think this option poses less risk to George Bush’s re-election than letting people see Fahrenheit 9/11.
Whatever your politics, this is a powerful film. Some have said it won’t change anyone’s mind about George Bush. The people that love him will love him (and vote for him) in November. Those that think he’s a dangerous moron surrounded by evil, greedy men…will still think so after seeing this movie.
But don’t you think that Dick Cheney and Carl Rove got an early copy and screened it there in the White House? Sure, they might have dismissed it as liberal propaganda. Or maybe Rove turned to Cheney and asked, “Did you ever see the Terminator movies?”
PS: If you’ve never read Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, it’s a classic.
David Weinberger: “Americans face forward”
“The greatest country in history. We can do so much. We will do so much. This country was, after all, founded to move into the future, not to hold onto the habits and ideas of the past. For most countries, if you ask them what they are, what’s unique and defining about them, they’ll point to their past. Not us. Americans have always pointed to the future. If you want to understand us, look at what we’re going to do. Americans face forward.”
A speech that David Weinberger wrote but never gave.
“In the 21st century, the secret police will have corporate IDs”
Source: Dr. David Weinberger
Air Left
I listened to Air America several times –for a few minutes at time– today. Not enough to form much of an opinion. Initial impressions: Sort of spooky hearing a talk show host wailing on the Republicans. After all these years of Rush, it just felt strange to hear someone so openly bashing the Republicans and Bush. (I know, I know, the liberal media blah, blah, blah). But I can’t say I was much impressed with the execution. But, it’s early. Sounds like Jeff listened more, and more thoughtfully, than I. (By my count, Jeff is on his third name for his weblog. I like this one.) Politics aside, Rush does radio very well. I suspect that has as much to do with his success as his views. I’ll be surprised if the Air America folks can measure up. We’ll see (hear).
American Plutocracy
“Recently Kevin Phillips, former chief political strategist for Richard Nixon and author of “Wealth and Democracy,” said he no longer believes that democracy even exists in this country, but has in fact been replaced by a plutocracy — a government controlled by its wealthiest individuals to promote their own specific agenda.” Full article. [via JOHO]
Why Rush’s TV show flopped
Mark Whicker, writing for The Orange County Register, calls talk shows “a crack in the mirror of America. The reason that mudslinging works on the radio is simple: On the radio, Limbaugh is speaking to the dittoheads, the disciples who swallow everything. On TV, Limbaugh has to address the population as a whole.” [MercuryNews.com]