The White House whine: 'It's all the media's fault'

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/1028/p09s01-codc.html

WASHINGTON – After several months of bad news, the Bush administration has discovered the source of its problems. It turns out that it's not the Democrats, not really anyway. It's not Saddam or Osama. It's not even Bill Clinton. No, the problem, it turns out, is the media. snip

This is all very interesting, even compelling, save for one small problem. When one looks at the facts, the argument just doesn't hold up. In fact, up until the last few months, one could argue that the Bush administration has had a relatively easy time of it with the press. Most of the potential "scandals" the press could have latched on to - Enron, Halliburton, etc. - were mostly overlooked, even by the usually tenacious Washington press corps, in large part probably because since Sept. 11 there are bigger issues at stake.

But now, as much as the president wants good news reported, there simply isn't a lot to be had at the moment. The nation's former surplus is now a record deficit, thanks in large part to tax cuts the president advocated. School principals and parents are unhappy with the education reform he pushed for and then underfunded. States aren't pleased that they're seeing more federal mandates, some of which involve homeland security, without seeing more money coming their way. snip

And that's why strategies like the one Mr. Bush is employing now rarely work. You can rail against the messenger all you want, but when the message is bad, it doesn't sound like defending yourself, it sounds like whining.

more

[ComerPerro]

1. Nothing is EVER the administrations fault

I am getting damn sick of their deflecting. Nothing is their fault.

Well, if they have this little control over what is going on, then maybe they should all resign due to massive incompetence.

[radfringe]

7. whaaaaaaaaaaa

The Not my fault list - it's ____________ fault
(in no particular order)

- Clinton
- Bin Laden
- Democrats
- Saddam
- terra-ists
- evil doers
- FBI
- CIA
- France and Germany
- the media

[xxqqqzme]

2. It is simply outrageous!

It isn't enough that the corporate owned media beat his war drums, has orgasims after squatter delivers yet another lack luster, cliche ladened speech, camps out @ the pig farm like it is some spa vacation and spreads every rumor Saurov tells them to. My question is:

What the hell do these rat bastards want? They got the cake, icing, hot fudge sauce on the side and a f*cking big ass bowl of cherries and they scream 'MORE'.

[JackSwift]

3. Blaming the right wing press

was pitiful even when Nixon did it. It's probably the worst strategy that the Junta could have adopted.

[radfringe]

8. I'm sure you've noticed

that most of the media are now characterizing any statement coming from Baghdad Bush's office as spin

News video clips haven't been all the "well" edited either

last night on ABC news, a clip of Baghdad Bush's "press conference" was shown, they showed him responding to one question, following that another reporter asked him about bringing troops home

his response was "...that's a trick question, I won't answer trick questions...."

Doesn't show Baghdad Bush in a good light, the video editor could have "cut" the tape before it got to that little exchange

I keep remembering something that I heard that Clinton once said - "never piss off people who buy ink by the barrel"....

[Robb]

14. FWIW, Clinton was paraphrasing

...Lane Kirkland, who said:

"My pappy told me never to bet my bladder against a brewery or get into an argument with people who buy ink by the barrel."

:)

[onebigbadwulf]

4. Well he's half right...

It's the media's fault that all his enron, bin laden, haliburton, carlyle group, bechtel, record deficit, WMD, boykin, spending, 9-11, and troop death lies haven't been aired enough to get him executed for treason...

but that's okay. Maybe one day he will understand that the media has gone very very VERY easy on him.

[kodi]

5. george walker bush is such a pussy.

a spoiled little brat who never left anything better than he found it.

[DulceDecorum]

6. Mommy, Daddy make them stop

It's not fair.
:cry:

How come nobody is mad at Jeb?
Or Marvin?
Or Neil?
How come they are all blaming me?
:shrug:

[Paschall]

9. Not that it's a surprise, but the facts don't support the White House

Since the invasion of Iraq began in March, official voices have dominated U.S. network newscasts, while opponents of the war have been notably underrepresented, according to a study by FAIR. ...

Nearly two thirds of all {news} sources, 64 percent, were pro-war, while 71 percent of U.S. guests favored the war. Anti-war voices were 10 percent of all sources, but just 6 percent of non-Iraqi sources and 3 percent of U.S. sources. Thus viewers were more than six times as likely to see a pro-war source as one who was anti-war; with U.S. guests alone, the ratio increases to 25 to 1. (more)

Source: Amplifying Officials, Squelching Dissent
FAIR study finds democracy poorly served by war coverage
http://www.fair.org/extra/0305/warstudy.html

[in_cog_ni_to]

10. "It's the media's fault"

must be this weeks talking point. Last night on Tweety's show Howard Fineman and Frank Luntz BOTH said that as long as THE MEDIA keeps showing ONLY bad things then the shrubs numbers will continue to fall. WAAAAAH! :cry: As long as THE MEDIA doesn't show things like new schools or new programs set up in Iraq his numbers will fall. WAAAAAAAAH! :cry: Pay attention to the RW talking heads. Let's see if they continue this mantra.

Tweety showed a poll where 58% of Independent voters want someone other than the shrub. :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: That's what the discussion was about. The FAAAAALLING #'s in the polls. :bounce:

[bleedingheart]

11. The problem is the semi-literate toddler who is sitting in Gore's chair

I am still laughing at the "unsticker" moniker for Rice...
hahahahaha

what an maroooopn...what a nincowpoop....

hahahahaha

[dbt]

12. bu$h has "had a relatively easy time of it with the press?!?!?!"

JESUS HAROLD CHRIST ON A BOAT PADDLE!

The Amerikan Whore Media has bent over backwards, forwards and sideways for this Reptile in the People's House! They have slathered him with praise for every misstep he has made. They put his stumblebum face all over my thoughtscreen every goddam time he comes out to mangle the English language in public.

They go "Awwww, ain't he cute" every time he says "Uhhh" because his tiny brain CAN'T FIGURE OUT THE NEXT WORD.

The Media NEVER ONCE said "Wait a minute" when he lied to us all on TV* about why we just HAD to invade Iraq RIGHT NOW or the boogeyman was gonna eat us all.

"A relatively easy time of it with the press," my shiny...metal...ass!**

:nuke:
dbt

* Thank you, Merle Haggard
** Thank you, Bender

[JHB]

13. Yeah, it's "the Media"'s fault he looks bad (the "not nostamj" edition)

[Zomby Woof]

15. The source of that article

I have my serious misgivings about the Christian Science faith (serious!), but not their newspaper. My local paper regularly runs both editorials and cartoons from the CSM, and they are very fair, and not afraid to take on Bush. This article is yet another push for truth in a sea of whoring BS. Thanks for providing it!