Fueled by Internet and radio, Kerry rumor grew into a news story

The Dallas Morning News ^ | Feb. 13, 2004 08:35 PM

[new cruelty]

Early Friday morning, radio personality Don Imus went public with the question that newsrooms across the country were wrestling with.

As an Internet-fueled rumor about John Kerry gained steam, Imus wondered aloud: "Do you think I should ask him?"

"We've chosen not to report it," CNN's Lou Dobbs told the New York radio host on the air. "I'm not interested in the story."

[doug from upland]

We need a takeoff on WHERE'S WALDO called WHERE'S BIMBO?

[Scarchin]

Hmmmmmm...So why was the bogus Bush cocaine problem news?

[goldstategop]

The liberal media can go cry me a river - they've hounded President Bush for something that most people consider old stuff and they're still not satisfied! Believe me, I'd love to see John F. Kerry be given a fraction of the Chinese water torture to which Bush has been subjected - now THAT would be poetic justice!

[The South Texan]

"Robert W. Mong Jr., president and editor of The Dallas Morning News, said newspapers must maintain their standards of fairness and balance - even if others don't do the same."


Fricking joke of the year.

[Freee-dame]

He did. He said I "categorically deny it. It's not true." If he's lying, he's toast. But you can't claim he didn't deny it.

...depends on his definition of "it."

[dc-zoo]

They suddenly discover "standards" when it comes to reporting dirt on a fellow democrat.

[torchthemummy]

"An hour later, Imus broached the subject, asking the Democratic front-runner a vague question about an alleged affair. Kerry denied it, quickly ending the discussion."

Notice that even though Kerry brushed the question off with a quick denial populated with maleable meanings, they couldn't bother to actually include the exchange to let others make their own judgement. Instead we get alot of mumble-jumbo from mostly liberal prfessionals (I use that term loosely.) Lot's of posturing, little substance.

[lilylangtree]

"American newspapers are hurt by their conservatism"--I laughed myself silly when I read this. The statement only applies to demonRATS. It's another way of stating nothing bad gets reported on a demonRAT like Kerry but any PUB conservative PUB is fair game. Look how the American newspapers pounced on the rumor of Bush's military record and refused to let it die while simultaneously REFUSED to print on Kerry & his intern's relationship. Mainstream media is pro-demonRAT it makes a person sick.

[SkyPilot]

"I read the Drudge Report, and there wasn't a shred of evidence there," he said. "You must have proof. Period."

Bbbbbut--for GW Bush, they will make a news story out of a molar that was drilled (OR NOT!!??????????) in 1971.

[Prodigal Son]

This is the sole reason why drudge and talk radio are so popular.

I don't think it's the sole reason. A major reason yes. But pundits who pontificate on the information age were predicting this long ago- before Drudge ever became a phenom.

A good book to read that offers some insights on this is Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte. That book was copyrighted in 1988 and published in 1995 and he was already pointing these sorts of things out.

With information being digitalized, this was inevitable. There was a time when only big companies could even afford to reach millions. Now, you and I can publish something for very cheap on the internet and have millions of people read it. Same for other media. Drudge can run his news clearing house on one HTML document from home. He collects almost a 7 figure salary and has no employees. In theory, you and I could do the same. In ten years, the landscape will look different still.

But all I'm getting at is- this would've happened even if you positively loved the networks for their pro-American coverage. It's just about bits of information being cheap. Information is now cheap and abundant. For the networks to try and hold onto their control of the information is like for me to try to hoarde one square meter of sand in a desert. It's futile. The sand/info is everywhere.

The future of television will be about people tailoring their programs to their tastes- not to that of the networks. When I can control a television broadcast in this manner, I might consider buying one again. I haven't owned one in 13+ years.

[MEG33]

The Dallas Morning News was my paper growing up,my parents paper.I moved to Dallas and continued to love the News,then I moved out of state.I returned to Texas in the 90s and did not recognize it.

[MEG33]

You cannot imagine the wonders of remote control.It is its own Zot enabler!

[CIB-173RDABN]

The debate revealed the dilemma that the mainstream media faces when uncorroborated reports emerge in today's high-speed world of talk radio, talking heads and incessant Internet updates.

---

How is this different then when the main stream press use "unnamed sources". How do we even know there are sources, and how do we know if what they "report" is true.

The mainstream press have forgotten what their product is. It is not news, it is eyeballs, yours and mine. They make their money selling adverstising, not on subscriptions.

Over the years they have somehow got it in their heads that their main role in our society is to shape our minds to the new social order. The great unwash, that make up most of this country are too stupid to know what is right, so they will educate us.

But the great unwash are not going along with the program, they are finding ways around the gatekeepers of information, and they are upset, and confused, and do not know what to do but cry out about how unfair it all is.

The world as they know it is coming to an end, and they don't know what to do. And you know, the funny thing is, almost anyone of us on this forum could tell them in just a few words how to turn it all around and make a fortune at the same time, but that would mean really becoming unbias in their reporting, and we know that will never happen. So I say let them sink in their own delusions.

[Just mythoughts]

These people have a bent mind. This should have been titled

"Newsrooms across America WRESTLING with the QUESTION"

Visualize that now.

The liberal way make the story a non-story because it is all about themselves.

[kcvl]

"We've chosen not to report it," CNN's Lou Dobbs told the New York radio host on the air. "I'm not interested in the story."


So why did they have a "news" crew outside her parents home?

[Prodigal Son]

You cannot imagine the wonders of remote control.It is its own Zot enabler!

I just zotted the whole thing. I have no use for television in its current form.

[Julliardsux]

FYI - Keep your eyes glued to a female staffer of Kerry's to the senate finance committee, instead of Alex Polier.

[icwhatudo]

Paul Schwartzman is a reporter with Gen. Clark.

Yaron Schwartzman is Kerry girls new "fiance" hiding with her in Africa.

Hmmmmmmmm

[185JHP]

Drudge's popularity has more to do with "delivered goods" than pap and filth. Lotta people don't like what he does, but he's still doing it.

[faithincowboys]

There is something sweet about this. Kerry made so much fun of Limbaugh's troubles, it was sweeet for Limbaugh to be able to talk about Kerry's issues for 3 hours, Kerry deserves it!