Posted on 01/13/2009 10:21:11 AM PST by Federalist Patriot
"Joe the Plumber," (Samuel Wurzelbacher) now in Israel to report for Pajamas Media on the war with Hamas in Gaza, found himself the subject of interviews as you will see in the video above. Among other things, Joe criticized the way the media covers wars today, and said the media should be "abolished from reporting" on the scene to cover wars.
I would disagree with Joe. He's right that there has been a great deal of biased and unfair reporting on wars in Vietnam and Iraq. But there have been journalists who report admirably on the scene of combat situations - Greg Kelly, Rick Leventhal, Oliver North, Richard Engel, are just a few that come to mind. What we need are more reporters like them. When they do their job in an honest manner, they do us all a great service. . . . (watch video)
(Excerpt) Read more at freedomslighthouse.com ...
The problem with the “fifteen minutes of fame” thing is that some people only have ten minutes of sense.
But, the ones that do ‘honest’ reporting are far and few between. Also, they are not the ones with their faces in your tv screen.
If you’re using Oliver North as an example of a responsible journalist, that’s the proof that there are NO born-and-bred career journalists doing competent, responsible (i.e. not treasonous) reporting from a war zone.
Had I been Stormin’ Norman Schwartzkopf in Kuwait and seen CNN cameras on the beach I’d have shot them all for letting the enemy know where we were.
Joe should be following the “real” mediots around and cover their coverage. Then he should show what’s really happening and how MSM is distorting reality.
> If you’re using Oliver North as an example of a responsible journalist, that’s the proof that there are NO born-and-bred career journalists doing competent, responsible (i.e. not treasonous) reporting from a war zone.
Huh? Can you please explain that? Do I understand that you believe Oliver North is not doing competent, responsible, non-treasonous reporting from a war zone?
I find that puzzling!
What Joe is going to prove here...and we might be utterly shocked...is that any “Joe” can actually go and be a reporter and a war correspondent. And if this is true...the whole profession is flushed down the toilet. We can start blogging networks and cover wars...and outpace the “pro” geeks of CNN.
This would suggest that a guy with a million or two in his hand...can start a online network...toss a dozen “Joes” as correspondents...and probably get ten percent of the national viewers watching his service.
Then who is?
I watched the PJTV clip and Joe did just fine. The reporters following him around were more interested in him than they were about what’s going on in Israel and he called them on it.
Look, the guy is definitely not a reporter. He is, however, presenting a perspective that the rest of the media isn’t showing. He’s out there just like any other man on the street would be and giving his impressions. It may not be highly informative but it is a fair assessment of what’s going on.
If you want a “real” war correspondent then look up Michael Yon. If you want more background then look up Michael Totten. If you want drama and spin then look up Christian Amanpour.
Also, IMHO, he MAY be able to show any "Joe" could do better than the MSM. Most of the congresscritters I've seen are not much smarter than your average crack ho. I thought it was revealing when the MSM said Palin wasn't qualified for national office when many of them in office were there on a family name or their spouse died. Your husband dying shouldn't be the most qualifying attribute to hold office.
The great Joe, again, when and where you need him...
Yah I knew that post was trouble. Oliver North is first and foremost a Marine and pretty much by definition he’s going to be responsible, not give away troop positions, etc. It kinda goes without saying.
So when you point to a Marine as one of three or four people who did a good job instead of one of the dozens and dozens — hundreds? — of people who have done nothing but journalism, and then says, see, look how easy it is to get it right, that means that among those dozens and dozens of long-time, brand-name journalists, NONE of them have done a good job.
> So when you point to a Marine as one of three or four people who did a good job instead of one of the dozens and dozens — hundreds? — of people who have done nothing but journalism, and then says, see, look how easy it is to get it right, that means that among those dozens and dozens of long-time, brand-name journalists, NONE of them have done a good job.
Ahhhh. I understand. You’re saying that Ollie — a professional Marine — does a good job (I agree) yet hundreds of professional journalists do not (I agree as well).
That is not to say that no professional journalists do a good job, just not very many (I agree)
I had thought you were implying that Ollie WASN’T doing a good job, in which case I was going to take isue.
I understand now (I believe I do, anyrate) and so I won’t take issue as we agree.
I think Joe’s point is that the MSM reporters aren’t doing their job. Yes there are some good reporters but they are few and far between, and they are mostly on the cable channels. Give ‘em heck Joe!
If a former soldier/marine is the only type of journalist which our armed forces can trust, then the rest of the so called professional journalist can stay home and cover the super-bowl game from the local tavern.
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