Could Olbermann possibly be more worthless? [View All]

[Karmadillo]

Describing a conversation with Jonathan Alter, the Daily Howler expresses displeasure over Olbermann's failure to point out the media's role in the trashing of Al Gore. Interesting discussion.

http://www.dailyhowler.com/dh051806.shtml

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Could Olbermann possibly be more worthless? For an even more perfect example, try to believe what eventually happened when he started to pose his third question to Alter:

OLBERMANN: You said that we don`t necessarily have the same kind of second acts in American politics that we, that Richard Nixon took advantage of. But what, the 2008 election–if Al Gore ran in 2008 as the Democratic nominee, there would seem to be two groups that would have an opportunity to get a do-over...

Omigod! Our analysts sat up in their chairs! Surely, Keith was going to say it! Given that lead-in, here was the obvious question for Alter–the question we assumed Keith would ask:

ALTERNATE UNIVERSE OLBERMANN QUESTION: If Al Gore ran in 2008 as the Democratic nominee, there would seem to be two groups that would have an opportunity to get a do-over. One, of course, Jonathan, would be your own press corps. You guys hounded Gore during Campaign 2000, inventing a long string of attacks on his character which everyone pretty much now concedes were unfair. “Invented the Internet”–which Gore never said–was just one of many, as everyone knows. Wouldn’t you guys get a chance for a do-over–a chance to report a bit more fairly about Al Gore as a candidate?

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<my summary: but Olbermann doesn't ask about the role of the media>

Of course! The public could get a do-over, Keith said–and maybe Gore could even do better! Translation: People like Olbermann never break faith with the people who pay them their millions. By light-years, the most remarkable conduct in Campaign 2000 was the gross misconduct of the press corps itself. But people like Olbermann never say that! Olbermann is pure Standard Issue–and you are the people he plays with.

Why couldn’t Olbermann ask the obvious? Why couldn’t the great man ask if the press corps couldn’t do better? First, he probably doesn’t understand the subject. But second, Olbermann follows Chris Matthews on MSNBC–and Matthews was cable’s greatest offender in the press corps’ two-year War Against Gore. Any discussion of press conduct would have to turn to Matthews quite quickly–so Olbermann will never prompt that discussion. Instead, he and Alter told the Standard Story: Al Gore failed to reach the White House because he ran such a lousy campaign. They’ve said it over and over again–because it obscures what actually happened. Tuesday, we heard it one more time–as we got played for pure fools.

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