Posted on 08/06/2004 12:24:46 PM PDT by cinnathepoet
I came back from vacation raring to gripe about how we in the press conveniently overlook significant details on these catchy little stories we go bonkers over.
Details like the roar of the crowd in the Des Moines ballroom where Howard Dean screamed his immortal Scream. Details like a full characterization of the journalist Teresa Heinz Kerry told to "shove it." Then, I discovered just how far behind the curve a blissful few days in the West Virginia mountains can leave you. See, for example, this and this.
The Truth behind Shove-it Gate
Krugman -- Triumph of the Trivial
Still, I want to add my two bits: When I Googled "Teresa Heinz Kerry" and "shove it," I saw twice as many references to the episode that do NOT mention Richard Mellon Scaife (who employs the journalist she told to "shove it") as references that do. This significant omission leaves the news consumer with the impression that the object of her remark was just another journalist -- albeit perhaps a conservative one - as opposed to a journalist from a paper with a long and ugly history with Heinz Kerry and her family.
This omission makes it much easier to write pat little didn't-we-tell-you-she-was-strange headlines such as "Teresa Heinz Kerry Calls for More Civil Tone in Politics, Then Tells Reporter to 'Shove It'" or "Show and Tell: Teresa Heinz Kerry's 'Shove It' Outburst Is the Latest in String of Outspoken Behavior."
It's also worth noting that these handy little omissions cross party lines. When I Googled "Schwarzenegger" and "girlie girls," I found almost twice as many references to the remark that did NOT mention the phrase's "Saturday Night Live" origins compared to those that did cite "SNL."
Reminds me of that squeaking sound bite that Hugh Hewitt plays from time to time which he calls "Beekman".
I checked Kerry and Viet Nam on Google and very few of the stories report that he bugged out on his unit while they were under fire, deserted the active Navy and then returned to the US where he committed treason. They do conveniently leave out these little details.
And speaking of Terry Kerry, not one article mentioned the tight and long standing (1997) relationship she has with Ken Lay, the guy who destroyed Enron and thousands of little guys. Not one article mentions how many personal servants she employs or have many of them are not illegal aliens.
The media sure does leave out detail!
That is right. They are so upset about leaving out the wrong details and have no sense of what the heart of a story should be, probably because of blind partisanship.
I didn't know about the Ken Lay thing. Probably because the media haven't covered it! But that's no excuse. I do have FR.
She writes, "When I googled 'Schwarzenegger' and 'girlie girls'..."
I thought the word was "girlie-men." She's so desperate to find a Scaifegoat that she can't even remember what The Governator was getting bollocked for.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
Good catch! It was girly men. I think I need to send Overholzer some of these Freeper comments.
The lying is a big deal that almost everyone ignored. Was she lying or does she have a short-term memory problem? When she made the speech, remember that long pause before she said "un-Pennsylvanian"? Maybe she had too much wine and couldn't remember what she said.
Kind of reminds me of Arafat's rant: "You must be accurately when quoting General Arafat."
The other important detail is Teresa's HYPOCRISY. She had just finished a plea for more civil discourse, then tells a reporter to "shove it".
Then she makes a speech at the convention saying that her husband is not afraid of DISSENT.
I guess that doesn't include her. Dissent? She won't even tolerate questions!
How is what paper a reporter works for anywhere near as important as the fact the wife of a presidential candidate is going around calling people anti-American and then lying about it?
Exactly.
Obviously the press could do a better job of slanting the news-NOT!
If these folks want to re-open "Shoveitgate", I think that' just fine...
Better yet:
overholserg@missouri.edu
Yeah, the editor of the City Paper is a real journalist. If I need to know where the Asian massages are, I'll give you a call.
SD
I called and spoke to the reporter/editor. He was very civil--to me, as I was to him.
And I did see the tape. She did say un-Pennsylvanian, and un-American, which was the start of it all.
Which reporter/editor are you talking about? You mean the one who interviewed Heinz-Kerry? Not Overholzer, right?
The former, yes. The guy who interviewed THK, asking her to explain what she meant by saying unAmerican. I thought he is courageous, taking death threats and not backing down. I think these Swift Boat guys are probably getting them, too.........while the vets/guys on the stage and the generals in the wings are getting paid or promises of appointments if Kerry is elected. From my reading, only 3 of the guys on the stage that night actually served with Kerry. The rest were just for show.
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