Let's Take Action - Tell the Media to STOP PLAYING THE RACE CARD

[EffieBlack]

The media, as I've said in previous posts, have lost their damned minds.

For the past week, they have been falling all over themselves trying to cram the entire Democratic contest into a tiny "this is all about race" box, a box that they created.

For example, as Media Matter accurately notes, Chris Matthews and his buddies have been blasting the candidates for focusing too much on race during Monday's debate - failing to mention that it was their own colleagues who asked question after question after question ABOUT RACE!

And in just the last hour on MSNBC:

Willie Geist interviewed John Ridley - the entire interview consisted of them agreeing that, in "making the {South Carolina} primary all about race," they are turning of independent and moderate voters, are splitting the party, and will be in trouble later in the year.

A few minutes later, Mika Brzezinski interviewed Chuck Todd - they spent the whole time looking at polls of how white and black voters were voting, presented a poll that showed Obama leading Clinton in South Carolina by 10 points and then agreed that if Obama didn't "clean up" among both blacks and whites in double digits in Saturday's primary," he'll have a hard time from here on because he hasn't shown that he can "unite black and white voters."

Excuse me?

Let me get this straight - they are now insisting that 1) Clinton and Obama have made the S.C. primary "all about race;" 2) it's no longer necessary for Obama to win South Carolina by a comfortable margin, he must also decimate Clinton among black and white voters in order to be seen as viable; 3) if Obama doesn't win the white vote by double digits in one state, it's proof that he can't "unite" black and white voters?

This is unbelievable!

First of all, I have seen a number of Clinton's and Obama's speeches and campaign events in the past few days. Neither one of them are talking about race - they are talking about the economy, the war, their health care plans, etc. It is the MEDIA that is obsessed with race. The only time the candidates talk about race are when the MEDIA asks them about it!

Second, when did the rules change about primary wins and who changed them? I don't recall hearing about this rule that a candidate must "clean up" in double digits among voters of different races in order to be considered viable. The media never mentioned this rule in previous primaries. Clinton didn't "clean up" among white voters in New Hampshire, but it wasn't assumed that her victory there didn't count.

I urge everyone who thinks that this is as oiutrageous as I do to write to the news outlets - especially MSNBC - and tell them to STOP PLAYING THE RACE CARD. This campaign is not about race and the candidates have not made it about race. It is the media who - bored with its breathless coverage of Obama's viability (old news) and Hillary's demise (old, wrong news) - decided about 10 days ago to start playing the race card in their coverage.

This is irresponsible, its dangerous and its wrong. The country has shown that it is much further ahead than the press - they have shown that they are willing to vote for minorities and women, but the media is trying to tell them otherwise.

This is not about trying to help either Clinton or Obama win. But I'll be damned if I'm going to sit around quietly while the press tries to trample on the small but important progress seen in the recent primary contests and drag this country backward just because THEY have run out of interesting, easy lift stories to write and talk about.

MSNBC is not the only outlet doing this, but they're among the worst, so I'm starting with them. Please send them emails telling them to STOP PLAYING THE RACE CARD!!!

Chris Matthews
[e-mail]

Joe Scarborough
[e-mail]

MSNBC
Phil Griffin
Senior Vice President
NBC News
[e-mail]

Steve Capus
President, NBC News
[e-mail]

[IndianaJones]

1. let me know how that works out. nt.

[Rock_Garden]

2. Anderson Cooper admitted last night that viewers were furious with CNN.

They've gotten tons of mail (negative) about that very subject. Black women are especially steamed at them for asking, "Will you choose race or gender when voting?", as if they're not capable of voting on the issues. So, what did CNN do about this negative input? They sent a reporter into an AA hair salon to ask women, "Will you choose race or gender when voting?". Slow learners.

[EffieBlack]

3. Amazing, isn't it?

Funny that they don't go around asking white women "will you choose race or gender?"

Because THAT would suggest that white women don't care about the issues or that maybe they're even RACIST! And we can't let anyone make those kinds of assumptions about white women, can we?

[Tom Rinaldo]

4. A Big K&R. There was a media piece posted last night that seemed right out of "The Onion"

"Clinton makes race an issue"

...But it was Clinton himself who dished on the topic when he told an audience in Charleston that he was proud of the Democratic Party for having a woman and a black candidate. In response to a question from a crowd member who asked about "race-baiting" by the media, Clinton said he understands why Obama is drawing support among blacks, who are expected to comprise at least half the primary turnout.

"As far as I can tell, neither Senator Obama nor Hillary have lost votes because of their race or gender. They are getting votes, to be sure, because of their race or gender — that's why people tell me Hillary doesn't have a chance of winning here," the former president said. "But that's understandable because people are proud when someone who they identify with emerges for the first time....

...One Clinton supporter openly played the race card.

After fielding several questions from a crowd of about 200 in Kingstree, Bill Clinton called on a black man standing off to the side of the small stage. The man identified himself as a pastor and told Clinton that "black America is voting for Obama because he's black."

The man also said Democrats are in a "dangerous position" because if Obama wins the nomination, voters will put a Republican in the White House.

"They're not ready to for a black president," the man said.

Several black audience members nodded their heads. Several said in unison, "That's right!"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=4176979&mesg_id=4176979

The media can speculate about whether or not America is ready for a Black President. The media can write long pieces about how it changed Obama's prospects in South Carolina to win the caucus in overwhelmingly white Iowa because that reassured Black voters in South Carolina that maybe America was ready to elect a Black man president. But when Clinton calls on a Black audiance member to speak and that man volunteers uncertainty about the prospects of a Black being elected President, THAT becomes fodder for a hit piece on Bill Clinton making race an issue in this election!!!

[Rock_Garden]

5. Hello, muddah, hello, fodder.

Never mind - you're probably way too young for that one.

I find it to be the irony of all ironies that the first seriously popular AA candidate for President was mentored by Joe Lieberman, very publicly brunched with Bloomberg, trash talked the Democratic Party, and is attempting to win the nomination with independent and Republican votes. If any candidate would feel compassion for the history and platform of the Democratic Party, I would think it would be Barack Obama. I know that his devoted supporters would disagree with that assessment, and I know that I'm heavily biased towards my own candidate and her spouse. But I can't shake the feeling that Obama is not particularly good for the future of the Democratic Party itself.

[Tom Rinaldo]

6. "...here I am in Camp Grenada. Camp is very entertaining..."

I guess that can be said about the various candidate camps if you like professional wrestling, lol.

I'll leave my reply at that because I would rather stick with the purpose of this thread which is a spotlight on the media.

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. "...and they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining". A mucical (sort of) KICK n/t

[EffieBlack]

8. Ding ding ding! You get it!

The media has been talking about race ad nauseum for months, but are now behaving as if Bill Clinton introduced the topic into the public conversation - that the only reason anyone now notices that Obama isn't white is that Clinton criticized him last week.

Interestingly, most of the mainstream media reported that exchange between Clinton and the black voter as if it was somehow Clinton attacking Obama - while conveniently leaving out his response to the question, in which he said that 1) He hopes that he voter is wrong about American not being ready to elect a black president; 2) He will work hard for an Obama victory in November if he gets the nomination; and 3) Obama could beat any Republican in November.