Thursday, February 10, 2005
PropaGannon
My thoughts on the Jeff Gannon Experience are not altogether straightforward. For a great rundown, look at AmericaBlog. More detailed info is out there on Kos (check in the diaries listings, too); Atrios also played a big role in yesterday's Gannon explosion.
First off, this is clearly a good riddance to bad rubbish situation. As much as the right wing crows about the liberal media, anyone with a brain in their skull knows that there are some lines you don't cross. The existence of Talon News is fine, that's what the First Amendment is for, and we have had a strong partisan press much longer than we have had an objective one.
The problem here is that the White House granting access to someone who is clearly a freakin' whackjob diminishes the ability of the rest of the press to do their jobs. Today's Post has a piece by Howard Kurtz outlining the fact that other reports in the press corps saw him wearing a Secret Service-vetted pass with a fake name on it. Press Secretary McClellan has said he can;t decide who is a legitimate journalist and who isn't, and yet Salon today highlights that Gannon/Guckert was denied credentials in the House and Senate.
Here is my worry, though: While exposing Gannon/Guckert's rather bizarre sexual habits and enterprises, we risk taking the focus off the fact that this is part of the developing pattern of the White House manipulating information in an unprecedented way. Whether it is payola for conservative commentators, letting kooks in the briefing room, or just having Bush exist in a complete bubble insulated from criticism, this goes beyond the pale of "spin." The problem here is that the narrative from the right can become all about the gay sex and how bad that is, and divert attention from the question of Bush's manipulations.
Now the game, like so many others at the moment, is about who frames the message most effectively.
First off, this is clearly a good riddance to bad rubbish situation. As much as the right wing crows about the liberal media, anyone with a brain in their skull knows that there are some lines you don't cross. The existence of Talon News is fine, that's what the First Amendment is for, and we have had a strong partisan press much longer than we have had an objective one.
The problem here is that the White House granting access to someone who is clearly a freakin' whackjob diminishes the ability of the rest of the press to do their jobs. Today's Post has a piece by Howard Kurtz outlining the fact that other reports in the press corps saw him wearing a Secret Service-vetted pass with a fake name on it. Press Secretary McClellan has said he can;t decide who is a legitimate journalist and who isn't, and yet Salon today highlights that Gannon/Guckert was denied credentials in the House and Senate.
Here is my worry, though: While exposing Gannon/Guckert's rather bizarre sexual habits and enterprises, we risk taking the focus off the fact that this is part of the developing pattern of the White House manipulating information in an unprecedented way. Whether it is payola for conservative commentators, letting kooks in the briefing room, or just having Bush exist in a complete bubble insulated from criticism, this goes beyond the pale of "spin." The problem here is that the narrative from the right can become all about the gay sex and how bad that is, and divert attention from the question of Bush's manipulations.
Now the game, like so many others at the moment, is about who frames the message most effectively.
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