I’ve never seen the press cover for a politician like they do for McCain. I know back in the day—sports writer’s used to shield the athletes they covered as much as possible, but this is insane. And it will continue through to the general election.
Neal Gabler has a fascinating article today in the NY Times about the relationship between St. McCain and his Hannah Montana fanboys in the press. I think he really gets to the nub of the mutual fascination — and outlines how McCain manages to fool a good number of Americans into thinking he is really a closet liberal despite being a raving wingnut…
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This is the problem. The macho “maverick” is the coolest kid in school and all the breathless media villagers are thrilled to be in his orbit. It’s why they are always telling us that his panders don’t mean anything. Everybody knows that cool guys think crazy preachers like Falwell and Hagee are losers. It’s a show for the rubes. Just like democracy..read on
The Maverick and the Media, by Neil Gabler.
No Trackbacks To “The Press and their love for McCain“
it’s just the barbeque right?
he bought of the media with boneless chicken wings!
McCain is no liberal… This McCain/press ‘love affair’ is creepy in the same way the old eccentric guy at the end of the block doting after all the grade schoolers with cool aid and treats irregardless of parental wishes is pediphile like creepy… And the whole goddamned McCain rah rah parade is a fucking facade…. This guy is dangerous and a phony, end of story……………JD
The press in England have a different impression of the Mav. He stopped in London recently and the press (I think it was in the Guardian) thought he looked tired and old. They stated he wasn’t wearing his makeup that cover his melanoma scars and he looked worn out and old. I really believe that when the debates start between McCain and the Dem nominee, the differences will be glaring and unavoidable. The mask will be off and McCain will be what he is: a compromise candidate who was selected only because everyone else was so much worse.
Neil Gabler is a self-infatuated pop culture critic who thinks
he is a profound observer as one who consistently goes deeply into the surface of things. Gabler is fascinated like a mindless child with politics as show biz. Gabler, in refusing to recognize that the game has real consequences in the form of war, depression, death of rule of law, death of middle class and killing off poor with greater and greater inequality via no health care, is morally dead, morally hollow. No doubt Gabler is equally fascinated with the show we see in Triumph of the Will; fascinated with German spectacle of flags, music, marching corps of young blondes as all part of a wink wink show prior to the Jews being put in the cattlecars. For a Jew I hope he yet finds that irony a kick. He thinks he is so smart when he is morally numb. He is contemptible on every level.
The more press he gets, the worse he looks.
Just give him time to do what he does best.
Even the doting press can’t shield all of it from view.
I heard a reporter yesterday talking about covering McCain. This reporter said if McCain feels he can trust the reporter he’s very open with them. So I think they all want to keep his trust so they give him a free ride. Sounds to me like the white house briefings. If a reporter wants to continue to be allowed in those briefings they must behave.
Do all the candidates throw parties or barbecues for the press?
…ummm, fuck McCain.
American’s are wise to what the media is up to. The polling suggests that many American’s are tired of the Wright issue. And the fact all the networks gave McCain a pass on Hagee. Even my father agreed it is Corporate Americas fear of a Democrat getting in the White House. I myself, I’m going to spend my Summer in the garden to escape this bullshit.
The press is giving McCain a free pass for now, but they have sure dug their heels FINALLY into Hillary. Is this really illegal?
Uh-oh
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s campaign says it “has complied with the law” surrounding a fundraising concert that Elton John is scheduled to perform on April 9 in New York City on behalf of the Democratic presidential candidate.
The statement came after Inside the Beltway earlier today questioned whether the New York senator and the British pop music star were violating the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA), which seeks to “minimize foreign intervention” in U.S. elections by establishing a series of limitations on foreign nationals.
The FECA “prohibits any foreign national from contributing, donating or spending funds in connection with any federal, state, or local election in the United States, either directly or indirectly. It is also unlawful to help foreign nationals violate that ban or to solicit, receive or accept contributions or donations from them. Persons who knowingly and willfully engage in these activities may be subject to fines and/or imprisonment.”
This could be interesting. If Obama is the democratic nominee, the press will have a hard time deciding where all their gushing should go. Without Hillary, they may have a hard time deciding whom to get their hate on for.
The way it is now, we’d have the war hero backstory vs the young gun minority uniter. Any chance we’d see any real reporting?
This morning Joe Scarborough went Limbaugh on his dumb show saying the media loves Obama and that they were easy on him because the MSM wants a black president. He then had Craig Crawford on who went into such an anti-Obama rant he turned red and almost lost his breath.
The press is trying to prove that they choose who will be President. Last time the press got a retard elected, this time they are going to try and get a senile old man elected
Self introspection on the part of the MSM pretty much come down to staring at their navels.
I wonder if there is a Kickback to certain reporters. That is why McCain gets such good press.
ConcernedCanuck @ 9:
Does this mean no benefits for Obama by U2?
I agree with roxney that the media picked Bush in 2004. All the Kerry bashing and the Chaney, “Be very afraid.” bullshit, MSM handed Bush the presidency. That and the dumb ass voters, who couldn’t tell they were being manipulated. Lets hope they are smarter this time.,
Get ready for Bush III then. The media was never much for exposing that guy either.
Left&Left @ 11:
I saw that too. That’s when I changed the channel.
goat hussein sage @ 13:
Yep, you nailed it. They believe in themselves as celebrities. That is why they continually quote the latest “ratings leaders” and how many viewers they have. Watch us and our constant “clean coal” advertisements, because we know more than you about everything and will inform you of your opinion. Blech.
goat hussein sage @ 15:
LOL…..guess not.
The media is picking Mccain. FOX is leading the way.
Too many reporters now have their own shows, especially on MSNBC. They are the “star” of their show. That’s not the way it’s supposed to work.
The Press is covering for the Republican party’s incompetent leadership now just as they have since Ronald Reagan. Nothing has changed since 1980. Sorry you haven’t noticed until now!
I get a kick out of CNN saying Clinton or Obama supporters will vote for McPimple if their candidate does not get the nomination. What a joke. Let’s see, I want Obama but Clinto got the nimination, so I will vote for McShitstain? I doubt that is how it is gonna go down….
I thought Limpballs was to busy rigging the primaries, Now he has time to appear with Scarbrough? Is there anything else Limpballs can foul up?
Ask McCain why his father let Israel off the hook for their attempted sinking and murder of the USS Liberty crew. Ask him why he runs interference on this topic, and how much he gets paid to ensure that the problem gets swept under the rug. Ask him why Lieberman has been chosen as his running mate.
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/.....es0712.htm
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/margolis12.html
fwacbar @ 24:
You’d be surprised. My grandma who’s a lifelong democrat said she’d vote for four more years of shit with McGeritol. I told her she could f*ck herself.
ok,…I didn’t tell her that.
McCain has been made to be some sort of icon. That plus his age may make it difficult for the press to write anything negative about him. They may feel to do so would show disrespect for the elderly “war hero”.
It’s like the grandfather of the family who is getting old and making mistakes. No one in the family talks about it when he’s around because they respect him and don’t want to hurt his feelings.
Of course the press are not members of McCain’s family, but he makes them feel like they are by joking around with them, and things like the cookout.
McCain and the media both work for the same country - and it is not US.
You’re taking a page out of the Hillary playbook.
Can’t wait to see Mccain as president experiencing a senor moment. Hmm, I wonder where the red button will be?
P.D. @ 31:
Lieberman will be holding it.
And this bullshit whoring for McCain by the MSM produces propaganda that causes
the unwashed mass or retards poll this way:
For the second poll in a row, more than 20% of Clinton and 20% of Obama supporters say they would support McCain when he’s matched up against the other Democrat.
So that means that 40% of polled Democrats are IDIOTS!
I have great hope for the future……
LOL patricia, I’d laugh. But the thought truly terrifies me!
wow - digby agrees with me *g* said it 3 years ago that they treat him the way the middle aged out of shape white guy sportswriters gush about quarterbacks
anyhoo - 2 Media Matters guys (Brock and Waldman) have just released a book on this called Free Ride - and from the 2 excerpts alone, they do a very good job of laying out it’s genesis and application - click on any of the ads for it to read an excerpt
StirFry @ 27:
Ask Grandma these questions for me:
You would rather see John McBush choose the next 2-3 Supreme Court nominees?
You would rather see McBush choosing a cabinet of his liking which will probably include the same neo-con artists who’ve been foisted upon us for the past eight years?
Do you want us to continue occupying Iraq for a hundred years? You won’t even be around when the bills come due.
Do you want to see you and your family’s civil and privacy rights diminished even more?
Do you want another Republican who is beholden to the Christian Fundamentalist right wing and the FOX news crowd as their president until 2012?
Are you willing to sign off on torture as official U.S. policy rather than have a Democrat become president?
McMediaFonzie’s gonna be fun to watch at the debates as McNeopuppet desperately searches the stage for the jukebox, and it’ll only get funnier when McShootinblanks tries to answer economic questions with “Aaaaaayyyyyy”…
Last Week’s McAKA’s(finally updated), The Big Pile O’ McAKA’s and Chimpy’s GreatestShitsList Survey here
P.D. @ 34:
Don’t laugh. Lieberman will ABSOLUTELY be McCain’s VP - and they will be (s)elected.
It’s all been prearranged.
Your vote is irrelevant.
Wow nony, That’s a downer. I hope the sheeple wisen up. If not, were doomed.
ConcernedCanuck @ 9:
With the exception of Rupert Murdoch and Sun Myung Moon of course.
miss skeptic @ 3:
I agree. McCain’s cruising right now because the Democrats are busy putting on the real sideshow. That’s gonna end eventually, and it’ll be McInsane against the Democrat (hopefully it’ll be Obama. It’ll look like the Kennedy/Nixon debates of 1960 all over again).
P.D. @ 39:
No one wants the truth. That’s why the criminals have won. It became far more popular and acceptable to call truth tellers “conspiracy theorists” than it did to compel the media to ask probing follow up questions and do their jobs.
The criminals no the truth, and they own the media.
sharkcellar @ 7:
K street jobseeker’s sure-hire strategy…
Don’t take this the wrong way because I have alot of respect for this site, but I’m dissapointed that no one posted the Hillary/Bosnia scandel. This site is named Crooks and ‘Liars’. I believe Hillary fits into the liar catagory… or do you only hold republicans accountable for thier words/actions?
is it the press’ love affair with mccain?
OR
is it the press’ fear of the rightwing?
i think it is the latter. i think the press is 100% afraid of the rush/hannity/drudge/scarborough/fox security echo chamber. other than systemic racism, i think it is partly why they focused for so long on pastor wright, yet barely mentioned parsley/robertson/haggee. it is why they continually repeat the BS that the “surge has worked”, when everyone knows that it hasn’t. it is why they continue to parrot the neoliberal talking points, and rarely report on the deleterious effects market fundamentalism has had on the vast, vast majority of the people across the globe. it is all b/c they are afraid of being called out and being mocked and ridiculed by the rightwing.
I actually think this question is more interesting that it appears at first. If Obama is the nominee, then the MSM may be forced to play nice.
I really don’t think someone like Chris Matthews would be able to bash Obama like he regularly does Clinton, so even if he is a McCain supporter, it would be less vitriolic, I think. Likewise, with McCain’s history of service and status as POW, I don’t think Obama supporters would be able to vilify him as much either. I just don’t see how the MSM press would be able to indulge in high level character assassination this time around. I think they would have to be very careful not to get called for swiftboating, ageism or race-baiting.
(Please note, I’m not talking about political operatives or their mouthpieces. For character assassination, see Saxby Chambliss, GWB, Swiftboat Veterans for “Truth”, Limberger, Shammity, Tweety, etc. etc.)
No wonder the repubs would prefer Hillary be the nominee. Judging by both MSM and partisan (demo and repub) media, she is sooooooo much easier to hate.
fwacbar @ 24:
Thanks for squeezin in #~700, fwacbar! Feel free to pop out a few more…
;-}