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September 11, 2008
Not impressed with pig and lipstick analysis? Try this.
First, everyone I’ve read has misread it. It’s not about Palin being a pig, but John McCain. McCain’s trying to wrap himself in the image of a reformer (and, hence, changer), and by picking Palin, has tried to make it pretty, but it’s just lipstick. This isn’t a gross sexist remark — Palin’s a pig — but a sly sexist remark: she’s just gussying up the old wreck. So much of the dextrasphere’s loud indignation (now being picked up by some of the media), is as off the mark, as the attempts of the Obama camp to dismiss the topic. Palin Derangement Syndrome can apparently affect friend and foe alike.. . .
As for the MSM, I get the impression that they’re playing this up — obviously Fox, but even the allegedly pro-Obama other stations. Wouldn’t this be a good time to remind both candidates that there are issues to deal with, rather than invoke the “in politics perception is reality” clause as a justification for covering such a silly controversy. (Coming from the people who have an enormous say in our perceptions, I’d say this is pretty cheap.)
So the Obama people know what it’s like to have the press jump on your mistakes. Not fun. So unfair. They should talk to the Israelis about it. Might help them if they ever get their hands on the levers of power.
But still, what’s with the media? In my read — and I have limited access to the daily news these days, so I welcome correction — it’s not that the MSM don’t have “ideological” predispositions (they have plenty), but they are so addicted to attracting attention, that they’d sooner play up an issue stupidly — “he dissed her, man…” “no he di’nt” — than focus on less exciting but more important issues. So given the conjunction of being in danger of losing credibility for their partisanship, and having a “People magazine” moment available, the MSM jump the shark express: feeding frenzy. Don’t need to read boring policy papers and ask serious questions if you can ask, “Well, how’s Obama going to get out of this one?
Posted by CrankyProfessor at September 11, 2008 8:42 AM