Posted on 07/20/2008 6:50:34 PM PDT by Red Steel
According to Christoph von Marschall, who is the Washington bureau chief of Der Tagesspiegel, a German daily newspaper, Barack Obama has been snubbing the Foreign Press. Phone calls and emails ignored, and von Marschall says, "We Don't Matter".
In the Washington Post today, von Marschall writes a piece which wonders if Obama's avoidance and refusal to answer questions from foreign journalists stems from a certain wariness about the risk of speaking to foreign media and how it can resonate back in America, and he uses the examples of Obama's adviser Austan Goolsbee and his former aide Samantha Power, both of which made comments to foreign press and both saw ripples throughout America at those comments.
Barring that reason, von Marschall also wonders if Obama's refusal to speak with the foreign press and answer questions from them could stem from arrogance at "being so close to power."
Then von Marschall says he was told by a campaign adviser to Obama "Why should we take the time for foreign media, since there is Obamania around the world?"
He does mention two examples from early spring where Obama allowed at least one foreign on a trip to Ohio and Texas, but says that has now changed as well.
He says to a certain point he finds it understandable since the readers of the foreign press cannot vote in American elections so that makes them less important to US politicians, although he does mention that John McCain has given many interviews to the International Press as has Hillary Clinton and that President Bush commonly holds round-table interviews with media from the countries to which he travels.
Von Marschall states, "Only Obama dismisses us so consistently." ,p> He contends that email requests, or questions, go unanswered and phones calls are not returned from the Obama campaign and he continues on to say, "We are last in line. We don't matter."
He ends his Washington Post editorial by saying, "Surely a man who has said he would talk with U.S. adversaries such as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad can spend a few moments with journalists from friendlier countries."
Although Von Marschall calls this a "dirty little secret", the fact that it is in the Washington Post, on Sunday, even though it is on page B07, pretty much guarantees that it isn't a secret any longer.
http://web.israelinsider.com/Articles/Politics/12993.htm
Better to have people think you might be out of your league than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Mayhap it would help if he were conversant in a foreign language? Merci beaucoup.
Obama is afraid of getting a question without a teleprompter.
Their first problem is thinking he HAS any power, unless they are referring to his super-hero status. The press has the audacity of curiosity, and maybe Barry fears one of them will attempt to "speak truth to power" like discussing his lineage and birth record.
Obama is taking his victory lap a few months early.
He won’t have a chance to do it later......it’s just beyond ridiculous.
Just ask him and see if you get a strait answer.
“refusal to answer questions from foreign journalists stems from a certain wariness about the risk of speaking to foreign media and how it can resonate back in America”
The foreign media might ask the hard questions that the American MSM won’t ask for fear of making him look unqualified. Obama’s campaign is choreography without substance. Whenever that gets pointed out, they’ll respond with accusations of racism and ‘swiftboating’.
Let me put it to you simply, Europe. His superior arrogant highness is chicken. He isn’t be able to ad-lib answers to your questions. So, you don’t exist.
Are there ANY worldwide examples of a foreign journalist saying, “Heeyyyyyyy. Wait a second here. This doesn’t add up.”
?
even one?
I'm still waiting.
Even liberals should be concerned about this behavior. Portent of things to come should this man enter the White House? Probably. Combined with the contempt of the US media for the ‘little people’, one wonders if another Waco is in the future if Obama is in the White House, especially with a Democrat Congress.
Which begs the question, just what is this trip for exactly?
I guess no journos over there find it odd.
Obama is a complete fraud. I don’t know how he sleeps at night.
We know the US media is in the tank with Obama. The media entourage that follows him are too happy fawning over him. And if they did get a hair up their @ss, which I doubt, some media sycophant may ask a tough question. But they won’t rock the boat in fear that the “Messiah” may not grant them access to him by kicking that LSM person to the curb by defying the unsaid rule.
The Israeli press will not be able to ask him any questions because hewill ignore them also.
If you've been observing the reporting on the Petraeus strategy in Iraq, you'll note that 90% of the positive reporting comes via international journalists, particularly British by-lines. CBS doen't even HAVE reporters in Iraq (except for Hail Obama Week).
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