I never see the Sunday Morning Talk Shows - no TV, and I'm at church - but they are not only regarded as influential, but the people who watch them seem utterly convinced that they are the most informed people in America. They're the political geeks, the involved, the difference-makers.
The big news over the past few weeks, the stories that are going to figure in commentary for another decade or more, are 1) several Democratic fundraisers who have been indicted for major crimes, and 2) What, exactly, did the Israelis bomb in Syria?
So, Meet The Press has a meet the candidates series - today was Hillary Clinton and so far they've featured 4 Democrats and John McCain (I'm sure they'll get around to the rest of the Republicans eventually) - and the other two shows had Senator Clinton as well. They didn't focus on Norman Hsu, however. They wanted to know what Hillary will do in Iraq. If she is ever elected, by the time she takes office there won't be that many variations left on what can be done in Iraq by 2009. The Middle-east, sure - there'll be plenty of that for years to come, and I'd like to hear what she thinks would be wise to do in Iran, in Lebanon, in Pakistan, in the region as a whole. Iraq, not so much. Also, one show asked about her health care plan, which is nearly identical to John Edward's.
And what's your favorite ice cream, Mrs. Clinton? If you could be any animal in the world, what would it be? Crap.
Media Matters has an interesting study showing that conservatives are invited to the Sunday morning shows slightly more often than progressives. Their headline and lead paragraph would suggest that the conservatives are invited much more often, but I quibble. They also don't mention that the hosts of these shows, Russert, Stephanopolous, and Schieffer, are progressives, but again, I quibble. The study also claims that only half of the journalists were identifiable by ideology, and that there are more conservatives than progressives in the mix. Where did they find all these neutral journalists in a profession that votes for Democrats 92% of the time?
But I quibble. I'm sure it's a very revealing study. Revealing of something, anyway.
2 comments:
AVI,
Very good job of "driving the nails in", so to speak. Succinct and neatly done.
Plaudits and accolades.
People who watch these shows regularly fancy themselves the best informed, but in discussion they really don't seem that well informed. I find the Sunday morning shows shallow and boring and never watch them.
Sunday mornings are too special to sully with idiotic political propaganda.
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