One of my personal 'where's the remote' times is when O'R and H&C -- Sean in particular with a big smiling 'Welcome back Rev. Sharpton,' or words to that effect -- give face time and credibility to this racist liberal loon 'Reverend.' Big Al never held a job let alone a public service job and yet a Prez candidate, and has never apologized for his race-baiting actions that resulted in the deaths of some, not to mention the rape hoax.
As to news quality, Senator Alan Simpson once told Fox's Chris Wallace that the Washington press corps seemed to specialize in "controversy, crap, and confusion". It fits well to what we get in news quality on TV.
Evidently for the "...stupid people--who constitute the grand overwhelming majority of this and all other nations--do believe and are moulded and convinced by what they get out of a newspaper [TV coverage]. -- "License of the Press," speech, 1873.
Nonetheless, the post by the blog host of 'One Hand Clapping' hit the nail on the head about the childish coverage we are subjected to and I've never forgotten it.
Years ago, speaking about his church congregation relating to the news coverage of the slaughter of school children in that hostage incident in Russia (underlining my emphasis):
"Only eight or ten people (roughly one quarter of those in the room) were aware that 340+ people were killed in the incident, half of them young children. No one was aware that some of the murdered children were shot in the back as they attempted to escape. Only one person was aware that very few of the children were allowed to go to the bathroom, most were not provided water, and some were reduced to urinating in cups and bottles, and then drinking their own urine, or pouring it on themselves to lessen the effects of the sweltering heat. No one was aware that a man was murdered in front of a group of children, after which they were told, ‘This will happen to you if you don’t obey us.’ No one was aware that some of the barbarians have been identified as members of the Wahhabi sect of Islam, and that many of the hostages were ordered to pray to Allah. Just a handful knew that many of the victims were Christian. Most of them knew that many of the hundreds of survivors will be maimed for life.
Why is this? Why are the important facts (the number of children involved, direct connections with radical Islam, the sadistic torment that was visited on the victims before their death or rescue … ) about this tragedy not being hammered home by the mainstream media?
Last night I watched about two hours of FoxNews (we report …you decide) while preparing this morning’s Sunday school lesson. What I saw and heard was very unsettling. In the two hours time (now mind you, this news report was occurring a mere twenty-four hours after the ‘resolution’ of the crisis in Russia) of news coverage, I saw maybe a grand total of five minutes coverage of the massacre in Russia – and that five minutes contained virtually no references to any of the facts mentioned above.
Other than occasional mention of President Clinton’s upcoming heart surgery, the remaining hour and fifty-five minutes was spent interviewing Geraldo Rivera and various other Fox correspondents, attired in rain gear, standing out in the rain and wind, and prognosticating about how hard hurricane Frances was going to hit Florida at any moment. These reporters were frantic -- in a look-at-me, aren’t-I-brave-standing-out-here-in-the-wind-and-rain? kind of way (maybe they should issue purple hearts for hurricane reporting).
They would point to the palm trees swaying behind them, or the boats being tossed about in the harbor, occasionally pick up a severed tree branch that had been ripped from a nearby tree, complain about the pounding rain and ferocious (if I hear that word one more time, I think I will lose it) winds that were battering them, and paint a grim picture about what was imminently going to happen to the area around them.
The correspondents’ (supposedly) conspicuous bravery, and humanitarian kindergarten-level advice and warnings (stay indoors, or find a nearby shelter, be aware that strong rain and winds can cause significant damage …) that were being dished out, for hours on end, gave the term overkill new meaning.
I’m not in any way minimizing the personal tragedy that many in Florida will have to endure as a result of the devastation caused by Frances. But let’s put things in perspective here. Hurricane Frances is an act of nature – and an act of nature for which the residents of coastal Florida must always be as prepared as they are able. Considering modern meteorological advances, we receive fair warning that such natural catastrophes are approaching. And, although material losses are usually significant (a sad fact in itself), very few lives are lost. And very few people receive life-long emotional scars as a result of the tragedy.
On a scale of human heartbreak, what occurred in Russia just a few days ago eclipses any havoc that Frances may wreak on the lives that she touches."
Add to that the experienced liberal pundits on a talk show or a panel who know very well how to fillibuster and use up the conservatives' time with little interruption by the host.
For years, the crafty Colmes has ALWAYS talked over Ann Coulter's every sentence and she appears inarticulate and ineffective. If you've noticed, Hannity seldom interrupts and says, "Let her finish".
Off the TV subject slightly, I turned off my radio yeterday when even Hannity's substitute gave all the time in the world for Charles Rangle to spout his propaganda and one lie after another without coming up for air. The fill-in host could not have answered this onslaught even if he was qualified as a debater, which he's not.
Rangle is a regular on the Hannity radio show. Radio host, Michael Medved, also gives hours of air time to anti-Bush, anti-war, anti-American spouters of evil. Fortunately, he's an excellent debater which lessens my resentment slightly.
I've become convinced that this "fair and balanced" crappola is put out by amoral TV and radio operators (including Fox), producers and most TV and radio talk show hosts just for the conflict of it all. They have complete disregard for the damage it's doing to our country and to our central nerwous systems. They just don't care. It's all about THEM......their ratings, their incomes, their awards, their standing in the pecking-order of their peers in the industry, and their prestige and power.
Thank God for Free Republic, Rush and Laura Ingraham.
Leni