Erick Erickson Describes Dave Weigel’s Role At The WaPo–UPDATED: The Anthropologist Responds

There are a few reporters out there who view conservatives with the mystified wonderment (in contrast to bald-faced hostility by most reporters)–such strange, exotic creatures, conservatives–and their reporting reminds me of anthropology reports given in National Geographic.

“The natives have strange rituals: they show up at Tea Party events with hand drawn posters and seem to really believe the government is too big but on the whole seem naive and rather dull-witted. They are friendly enough, for racist, bigoted, homophibic, Nazi criminals.”

That is Dave Weigel: A nice guy when he’s not patting you on your silly little naive head. Erick Erickson describes him here:

In fact, if you go through Dave’s archives you’ll find a slew of stories from the most recent one as I write to others that no one on the right really cares about, but people on the left who see the right collectively as fringe will eat up. And that’s the whole point of why he’s there.

There’s nothing unique about this situation. If the job is to cover the right from “inside the conservative movement,” that’s not actually happening. It’s like they put Weigel in a gorilla costume to infiltrate some gorillas in the mist and he stumbled into the wrong camp and is now reporting on activity completely unrelated to what actually matters. Never mind that the Washington Post’s online coverage of conservatives reflects a view that gorillas are more civilized than conservatives. And never mind that Weigel’s reporting is clouded with the groupthink you get among up-and-coming self-styled thinker/journalists who live together in D.C., are out to have an impact, but have never lived outside the clique. Insular groupthink journalism isn’t just useless because it doesn’t talk about what’s really going on, but because it only exists to coo at the pet ideas of the epistemic closure elites, usually preceded by a Media Matters press release to help direct their path.

Sure, Dave Weigel is a nice guy. But don’t treat his reporting from “inside the conservative movement” as serious when he clearly is not on the inside. He’s there because of what he wrote for publications funded by Tim Gill and George Soros, he’s there to track the fringe, to make the fringe look like the middle, and to dig in on agenda-based topics which kowtow to the narrow views of DC elites. His smarter readers know that’s the case, and are just there to enjoy the ride — the only one who seems to think otherwise is the adolescent naif Ezra Klein, late of the Center for American Progress, who doesn’t have any journalistic incentive to be objective toward the right or even passably fair.

Like Erick, I like Dave Weigel–in the same way I liked the trained Siberian Tigers at the Sigfried and Roy show: they look interesting and exotic, but are extraordinarily dangerous–as poor Roy learned the hard way. A journalist is a wild animal with an appetite for conservative meat and should be interacted with that way–always.

I do not expect Dave to be unbiased or fair. I do not expect him to defend a conservative point-of-view, ever, and therefore, I’m not disappointed or offended when he snaps off some pithy, demeaning, diminishing remark about conservatives or conservatism generally.

When he says something sufficiently irritating, I might respond, but mostly, I suppress the urge as it’s useless. Joking at a conservative’s expense and yucking it up is easy peasy. Everyone does it. So trendy.

So no, I don’t take Dave Weigel seriously. I think he’s a gifted writer and has interesting insight. He has an sophisticated mind and I enjoy talking to him. But he’s as ideologically left as the rest, he’s just willing to lower himself to hang with the natives from time to time. And he’s welcome to do so. Conservative people treat him with more kindness because he is willing to at least publicly view conservatives as a species of human. When it comes down to it though, his reporting sounds like reports from the out-back bush.

It would be fascinating to see what conservative, inside the conservative mind, reporting would look like. Too exotic for the Washington Post, that notion. Better stick with blogs.

UPDATED:

Dave Weigel responds to Erick and me here:

What I try to do is understand why the people I cover are doing what they’re doing — where an idea comes from, where a grudge comes from, where a “meme” (like Greece playing the role of “dark future that socialism will bring us” that France used to play).

Sometimes I sympathize with what’s going on. Sometimes I’m critical. I try to be open about that. But the people who talk to me know I’ll accurately report what they’re doing, and my report can either be used by some liberal to attack “those wacky conservatives” or used by some conservative to get a newsy take on something in the movement.

In his own way, I think Dave is agreeing with my assessment of his role. The thing is, Ezra Klein writes from within the neosocialist movement on the left. He writes as one of them. So even when he disagrees, his affection for the ideology shines through pure and clear.

The WaPo has no such conservative kind-eyes. Dave looks at the conservative movement with interest and to clarify and/or critique but not to defend or explain. And that’s the difference.

Posted in Bias, Blogging | 1 Comment »

Extreme Prejudice: How The Media Is Getting Worse…If That’s Even Possible

The gulf is destroyed. Where are the pictures of sick manatees you ask. Well, we haven’t seen them. Terrorists are ramping up rhetoric and action. The President decided to make public our secret ballistic missile tests. Meanwhile, he’s also unveiling, after 17 months, some kind of foreign policy plan. Questions about that? Nope, we’re talking about Rand Paul’s political fumbling and whether or not he’s a racist–underlying subtext: Republicans are racist. Subtext of subtext: All white people are racist. Still.

And that, my friends, is what passes for political commentary these days.

The media aren’t just lapdogs, they are slobbering morons walking the plank for the Democrat and Obama agenda.

Just when I think it can’t get worse or more superficial or more insane, it does. And I expect that as the Democrats see power leaching away will turn into psychotic demonizers and the press will happily carry the narrative, no matter how inane, because they love the Democrat ideology and love selling it.

The media are idea merchants and they have a story to sell. It’s not the story that anyone wants to buy, but they’re selling it anyway. And the fact is, they are VERY GOOD at their jobs. People don’t even notice the lopsided, biased coverage. They are too busy surviving.

But even with all this help, Democrats are in a precarious place and they know it.

Just to lay out the positions, so that when you see a news story you’ll have heard it before:

White people bad.

Men bad.

Everyone who disagrees with President: racist.

Teaparty: racist.

Arizona: racist.

Kentucky: racist.

Red state at all: racist.

Vote for anyone but a Democrat: racist.

Republicans stupid unless they’re way moderate in which case they’re stupid b/c they don’t just become Democrats.

Oil spill mishandling: not Obama’s fault.

Terrorism: not Obama’s fault.

Economy: not Obama’s fault.

Tennessee tonedeafness: not Obama’s fault.

Business: bad.

Government: good.

Banks: bad.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: good.

Wall Street: bad.

Main Street: bad if they disagree with Obama, good for political purposes.

Russia, Iran, China, Venezuela, Cuba: Good.

Britain, India, France, Poland, ally: Bad.

Muslims: Good.

Christians: Bad.

Jews: Satan’s foot soldiers.

Basically everything good in the world comes from Democrats and especially his royal highness President Barack Obama. Everything bad in the world comes from anyone who disagrees with him.

Got it? Okay, the media can be subtle sometimes, so just wanted to spell it out for you.

More here.

Posted in Bias | 26 Comments »

Meanwhile, We STILL Don’t Know What President Obama Was Up To When He Disappeared For A Couple Hours?

Where was President Obama, since he wasn’t at his daughter’s soccer game, and why isn’t the press asking?

What’s more concerning is that no one can confirm if the Secret Service even accompanied Obama on his adventure. Furthermore, let’s look at the elapsed time. If the president left the White House at 9:20AM as reported, according to Mapquest, it takes about sixteen minutes to get from the White House to 40th and Chesapeake NW, bringing his arrival time to the field at 9:36AM or so. But then he would have had to leave the field at the latest at 10:00AM to return to the White House at the documented time of 10:17AM. So he spent about twenty minutes at the game? When did the game end? That time is vague as well.

With all of the technology that people have — iPhones, Blackberries — not one person took a photo of Obama? And the press didn’t get a shot of him getting into his vehicle? Obama loves the cameras, and this is what he looks like at his daughter’s soccer game.

Even three days later, there are still no pictures of the president from Saturday’s game. The USA just disarmed to Russia, Poland’s president and 95 others were killed hours before, and there were many international leaders in Washington, D.C. for the nuclear summit set to begin on Monday, April 12.

And we shouldn’t raise even more questions on his whereabouts? According to the MSM, the answer is yes.

We still don’t know the answer to questions number one: Where was he?

We do know the answer to question number two: They are President Obama’s lap and attack dogs.

Posted in Barack Obama, Bias | 7 Comments »

Daily Caller Hit Piece On RNC Chairman Michael Steele Gets It Wrong?

Today, Jonathan Strong of the Daily Caller headlines with an article titled “High flyer: RNC Chairman Steele suggested buying private jet with GOP funds”. He asserts the following:

Once on the ground, FEC filings suggest, Steele travels in style. A February RNC trip to California, for example, included a $9,099 stop at the Beverly Hills Hotel, $6,596 dropped at the nearby Four Seasons, and $1,620.71 spent [update: the amount is actually $1,946.25] at Voyeur West Hollywood, a bondage-themed nightclub featuring topless women dancers imitating lesbian sex.

Someone with knowledge of the RNC meeting with Jonathan Strong responded:

“We are investigating the expenditure in question. The story willfully and erroneously suggests that the expenditure in question was one belonging to the Chairman. This was a reimbursement made to a non-committee staffer. The Chairman was never at the location in question, he had no knowledge of the expenditure, nor does he find the use of committee funds at such a location at all acceptable. Good reporting would make that distinction crystal clear. The committee has requested that the monies be returned to the committee and that the story be corrected so that it is accurate.”

In addition, the source vehemently denies many of the elements included in the story, including whether Chairman Steele declined interview requests, details around flights, etc.

The interesting thing about this piece? It’s written by a supposedly right-leaning web magazine [Full disclosure: I have written an editorial for Daily Caller.] Why would the Daily Caller writer want to portray the Chairman as having been to a strip club when it’s not the case? A damaging investigative piece of journalism should be tight and accurate.

It almost seems as if the right-leaning Webzine is trying to gain credibility with liberal news outlets and is willing to do so on the backs of their own ideological brethren. Or maybe they’re in the hip pocket of a conservative who doesn’t like Chairman Steele. Either way, this story may be another example of the right carelessly destroying their own.

No doubt, more details will be forthcoming.

Posted in Bias, Democrats, Political Animals | 6 Comments »

Ontario Bans Coulter: School Trying To Create A “Safe Place”

My brother called me to ridicule Canada in general and the decision to ban Ann Coulter in particular. Here is what really got him going:

Rita Valeriano was one of several protesters inside the hall who, with chants of “Coulter go home!” shouted down the International Free Press Society of Canada organizer who was addressing the crowd.

Valeriano, a 19-year-old sociology and women’s studies student, said later that she was happy Coulter was unable to speak the “hatred” she had planned to.

“On campus, we promise our students a safe and positive space,” she said. “And that’s not what (Coulter) brings.”

They want to create a “safe and positive space” all the while screaming hateful slogans against Coulter.

Also, what childish silly people. Where are they? Kindergarten? It sounds like they’re talking about preschoolers here….which may be the case.

If kids get mommy and daddy’s health care until they’re 26, at 18 their baby ears are probably too delicate to hear a diverse opinion.

Posted in Bias, Islam, Isms, Not America | 5 Comments »

New York Times Deifies Obama

From the New York Times the Obama Jesus. Says Jammie Wearing Fool [photo at link]:

Not content to show Obama with a halo, the New York Times is now creating images of him with a cross in the background.

Good grief. I guess the separation of church and state no longer applies when it comes to The Sainted One.

This is the definition of sacrilege. But I’m not sure the editors at the New York Times know God–that’s why they’re fooled by Obama.

Posted in Barack Obama, Bias, Christianity | 2 Comments »

Joblessness: Bad News Is Unexpected News

When bad things happen during the Obama administration it’s always so “unexpected”. The latest round of unexpectedly unexpected news was in the jobs arena. The AP reports:

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of newly laid-off workers filing initial claims for jobless benefits rose unexpectedly last week, evidence that layoffs are continuing and jobs remain scarce.

The rise is the fourth in the past five weeks. Most economists hoped that claims would resume a downward trend that was evident in the fall and early winter.

The Labor Department said Thursday that new claims for unemployment insurance rose by 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 480,000. Wall Street economists had expected a drop to 460,000, according to Thomson Reuters.

The four-week average, which smooths fluctuations, rose for the third straight week to 468,750.

The figure is the highest in the past two months. Initial claims dropped sharply in late December, raising hopes among economists that layoffs were nearing an end and the economy would soon start generating net gains in jobs.

Why one might think that the easing of joblessness in December (people STILL lost jobs) was due to seasonal hirings and that now, those people and many, many more don’t have jobs.

One would think that, if they weren’t a press person who had their heads so far up the administration’s financial guru’s rear that he too was blinded by Obama’s light.

The American people find this “unexpected” news laughable. It’s what they see all around them. And they don’t expect things to get better any time soon.

If this was the Bush administration, the recession would be called The 2nd Great Depression.

The jobless numbers are disheartening. There are reasons they’ll continue to get worse. And it will continue to be unexpected because any bad news surrounding the Obama administration is unexpected.

It’s going to get worse, morons. There are so many reasons in the underlying economy (commercial mortgage loan resets, increasing home defaults, scaling back work force–many companies cut salaries, not employees, etc.) for bad, not good, things to happen.

Layer on to the actual economy the administration’s mixed messages and outright hostility toward business, and you have an EXPECTEDLY unstable economic environment.

The jobless woes should surprise no one.

Posted in America, Barack Obama, Bias, Economy | 2 Comments »

John and Elizabeth Edwards Legally Split Today

Buried today in the news of the State of the Union and the Apple iPad this:

Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, who admitted last week that he fathered a child with a videographer, separated Wednesday from his wife, Elizabeth, according to a source close to her.

Edwards, 56, denied he was the infant’s father for more than a year, saying his affair with Rielle Hunter was over before she became pregnant.

The former U.S. senator from North Carolina unsuccessfully sought the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.

Elizabeth Edwards’ sister, Nancy Anania, told People magazine in an article dated Wednesday that Elizabeth told her, “I’ve had it. I can’t do this. I want my life back.”

The sister told the magazine, “She’s got cancer and has young children and totally believes in marriage … but she can only do so much.”

And there’s a sex tape. Of course. And it won’t get released “unless he needs the money.”

AND, John Edwards hates “fat rednecks:”

Young also writes that Edwards, who billed himself as the modest son of a mill worker, hated making appearances at state fairs where “fat rednecks try to shove food down my face. I know I’m the people’s senator, but do I have to hang out with them?”

You wouldn’t have heard this story if it weren’t for the MSM. But they’re no biased. Nosiree…

Posted in Bias, Democrats, Liberals, Political Animals | 1 Comment »

The Last Refuge Of A Miserable Democrat: Call The Voters Stupid

Joe Klein illustrates the anger coming from the left. The Democrats are imploding. The voters are frustrated. The horizon doesn’t look better for the libs.

Who’s to blame? Not the Democrats. Never them. It’s YOUR fault, says Joe Klein in his post titled Too Dumb To Thrive:

It is very difficult to have a democracy without citizens. It is impossible to be a citizen if you don’t make an effort to understand the most basic activities of your government. It is very difficult to thrive in an increasingly competitive world if you’re a nation of dodos.

Oh, and it’s Fox News’ fault, too.

Why can’t voters just get how awesome the President, the Democrats, their policies and the cheerleaders in the press really are? Why oh why oh why?

Idiots./sarcasm off

Posted in Bias, Liberals | 4 Comments »

Christiane Amanpour Gets Tortured With Enhanced Truth From Marc Theissen

One of the more interesting parts of the Scott Brown campaign was his defense of enhanced interrogation techniques. The Massachusetts voters approve of them, and him. Says Andy McCarthy:

It was health care that nationalized the special election for what we now know is the people’s Senate seat. But it was national security that put real distance between Scott Brown and Martha Coakley. “People talk about the potency of the health-care issue,” Brown’s top strategist, Eric Fehrnstrom, told National Review’s Robert Costa, “but from our own internal polling, the more potent issue here in Massachusetts was terrorism and the treatment of enemy combatants.” There is a powerful lesson here for Republicans, and here’s hoping they learn it.

One of the great frustrations of the Bush years was the fact that the administration had strong national-defense and counterterrorism policies that it shied away from defending. On enhanced-interrogation tactics, for example, President Bush’s position resonates with most Americans: When the nation is under siege, nothing is more important than getting life-saving intelligence. And, particularly when we are dealing with terrorists who are trained to resist interrogation and exploit our legal system, we must aggressively interrogate them and keep them out of our legal system. The opposing position, espoused most prominently by Sen. John McCain, was counterfactual and incoherent. Senator McCain pronounced both that enhanced interrogation (which he called “torture”) never works (which is patently untrue) and that an interrogator might at most use it in a ticking-bomb situation (the last situation in which you’d want to use it if, in fact, it never works).

It seems that the American people are getting an opportunity to compare and contrast the “keep America safe” techniques of President Bush and President Obama. President Obama is found wanting. And hypocritical. And ineffectual.

The press, though, continue to pound this “torture” meme. For once, Christiane Amanpour is stopped by Marc Theissen, author of the book Courting Disaster: How The CIA Kept America Safe and How Barack Obama Is Inviting The Next Attack. Here’s the clip:

The American people are very sensible. They don’t want people randomly waterboarded. They also know that the government has water boarded precisely three (3) terrorists and none have been water boarded at Guantanemo Bay.

It is atrocious that the Crotchbomber in Michigan never got questioned. I watched the testimony on the hill from America’s leading defenders–Janet Napolitano, and the DHS and the rest of the defense guys and was appalled. I thought Jeff Sessions was going to have a heart attack, he was so angry. And rightly so.

The American people don’t need a news anchor telling them that the Khemer Rouge is the same as the CIA with three confirmed terrorists. The moral equivalence is appalling.

Posted in Bias, Military, Terrorism | 5 Comments »