April 05, 2006

• "When two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly half way between. It is possible for one side simply to be wrong." The fallacy of the "two sides to every story" maxim.
• On the other hand, I do dearly love This American Life and Car Talk, so I'm not willing to call NPR a complete bust. I still feel the need to pledge, as it's not all news that I use there.
• The story of Tom Delay's resignation yesterday was a classic example. They played his hogwash soundbite about leaving to "help the party" and so that "liberal Democrats" wouldn't "steal the seat", when everyone with ears to hear knows he's leaving to turn his 1.5 million campaign fund into a legal defense fund because he's fucked after his crooked and indicted co-conspirators rolled on him. To top it off, they follow up with a man-on-the-street report that says DeLay's constituents just don't know why he stepped down. I understand there's a fine line, but when this administration has nothing but lie after lie after lie after lie and it gets proven again and again and again, I just can't stand to hear the same bullshit spouted on the radio. "Today the administration declared that Iraq was definitely postively not in a state of civil war, nor would it ever, ever be, despite the concerns of some to the contrary." Jebus H. Crispy call the fuckin elephant an elephant! What does it fuckin' take??
• Oh, true, Car Talk is good, but please to note that ThisAmericanLife.org is from Public Radio International, not NPR. Although I suppose it doesn't matter too much. I'm really just bitching about the news part. /grumble /fuss
• Yes, but my local NPR station is the one that plays the PRI programs, so it's six-and-one-half-dozen of the other. A friend recently told me that's how he always heard the cliche, so I've been using it a lot. In fact, I think I heard a story on NPR about how different people hear the same cliches...fascinating stuff...
• petebest, I think you might have mislinked--your "isn't" in the first paragraph and the link in the second paragraph are to the same source (and in reference to something that aired on Fox in 2004). Also, the link in "liberalism" talks about an incident from 1993. "Locusts with switchblades" gives me a 403 error (no permission to view). I agree that the supposed libreal bias in the media (including NPR) is a fiction, but I think this point can be supported better. Neighborhood Public Radio takes a stab at addressing the inconsistency between National Public Radio's demographics and who is actually listening.
• Weird patita - I got the image via Google and it works that way, but not directly. And yeah, I knew the second link was the same as the one in the FPP, but I was betting so few people would follow it . . . double plus points for you :) I wasn't really arguing against the myth of liberal bias in the media (though certainly it can be found in places), but more that if NPR is going for objective reporting, they're way off. It's one thing to give equal air time to both sides, but in the case of this administration their air time is so grotesquely out of whack with reality that they're simply chasing their tail and ending up doing the administration's bidding by furthering whatever ridiculous meme they want to peretuate. "Today President Bush said" is just the same thing as "here's a ridiculous lie we think you might want to believe" and I'm just plain fed up with them.
• I rather liked NPR when I was listening to it during the lockout at the CBC. But then the lockout ended, and, yeah, well, sorry NPR. It seemed like good coverage, for Americans, but what really got to me was the heavy Greater-Buffalo-Area accents on the local coverage. They had me climbing the walls, which was hard to do, seeing as how I was commuting at the time. I kept expecting them to break out and say "Tahps never stahps saving you moahre." Sweet Mothra, that was bad. Sorry, Lara. Being more upstate, I'm sure you don't speak like some godforsaken Tonawandan.
• "It seemed like good coverage, for Americans" Ha!
• A couple of weeks ago my husband asked me if I felt like NPR had progressively become less objective and softer on all of the issues surrounding the president. I was checking all of your links because I was hoping to confirm his (and my) opinion with some recent stats. It's depressing as hell that they just roll over like a dog. I do enjoy the locally produced Latino USA. Our Air America coverage here is spotty, but he's been listening to that. I've been reading more international news coverage (BBC and Deutsche Welle usually).
• I was going to suggest a pledge drive of our own. Tracicle has a Amazon wishlist on her blog BUT the link is dead. I want to give...really I do. Fix the link and we'll buy you trinkets.
• Maybe I can google up some goodness later patita, but suffice to say I think you and hubby are right. By, like, a lot.
• Petebest: I like it when NPR puts the words of the guys I hate right out there. I can listen to how Tom DeLay is doing this for the good of the GOP, etc. Then I can shout at the radio in my car: "You lying FUCK!" Then I feel better.
• Here's a start for the search, petebest. Looks like this is covered better than I thought! It'll be interesting to see how many complaints come from the right and left about the lack of balance.
• EarWax: I've had to start flipping to the classical station for fear that I will cause a traffic accident.
• If it's gotten that bad, I'm glad I started riding the bus. It's all Led Zeppelin all the time on my bus! It's driver's choice, so I remain blissfully ignorant of radio these days. Capt., I pride myself on my lack of Buffalo accent. It's truly horrible.
• Lara, your bus driver is Otto? Cool! Y'know those guitars that are, like, double - guitars?
• You’re free to give money or not to public radio based on political bias. I think that is not as good a reason as the “this is complete bullshit” reason though. I have to say that I’m concerned that A. there is any bias at NPR and B. that there is very little in the way of critical exposition. I figure if you want bias you listen to Air America or Limbaugh or whatever. But NPR should be just the issues and critical reportage. They’ve got the time.
• I have to say that I’m concerned that A. there is any bias at NPR and B. that there is very little in the way of critical exposition. I agree, but there's the rub: How can you report on this administration without calling bullshit on the . . practically fuckin' everything they've ever said? Is that bias? Or is that simple critical exposition? Case in point. Helen Thomas recently asked Bush why we went to war because no WMDs were found, no ties to Al-Qaida, etc. And he said: "I never wanted war" And yet we know that he was plotting to paint a US plane in United Nations colors and draw fire on it in order to have an excuse to invade. See, that's wanting war. So when he says "I never wanted war" - during a press conference now, you don't get more on the record than that - he was lying. Clear. Simple. Important. Did NPR report that? Don Gonyea? Did the White House reporter critically expose that baldface, chickenhawk costing-soldier's-lives LIE? No. They did not. They played the quote, that's all. Which, ironically or not, has the effect of supporting his lie. Because it goes unchallenged. Joe Radio hears that and may think "oh well he never wanted war". 2004 was the year NPR really jumped in the shitter. They refused time and again to call bullshit on this administration even as they went through the motions of "questioning" the lying press releases and industry-funded bold political maneuvers. They attacked Kerry in the interest of "fairness", they interviewed know-nothing soccer moms on how much they love Bush and why they hate gays and did NOTHING to educate or research the basis of those opinions. And they fired Bob Edwards. Yes, they fired Bob Edwards, we will never forgive them for that. They'll pay . . oh they'll pay . . .
• More and more I'm convinced that media bias is inevitable, and more importantly, necessary. I stopped listening to NPR precisely because these stupid pledge drives piss me off too much. However, here's my idea: Since NPR does rely partially on government money, it should parrot and be biased to whatever administration is currently in office. That way, when a liberal is in office, NPR can be a liberal mouthpiece, and vice versa. No one will be happy then!
• Oh sure, petebest, that'd be the "this is bullshit" part of the reason. If I was a reporter I'd print just what Bush said - along with what you said. I'd give him the next couple of days to comment. Which seems to be the problem. Most of the press is all about "now" and "access." BushCo can limit access and get away with a single focused message. The thing is to reverse that. E.g. "So all you're going to say on the WMDs and the memo, etc. etc. is 'I never wanted war'? Ok, we'll print that then." So you have Bush looking like an ass for saying nothing about the big mess - as opposed to trying to accomodate the comment to fit the situation. But I stopped taking NPR as anything but entertainment since Tavis Smiley left.
• "Truth is neither objectivity nor the balanced view; truth is a selfless subjectivity" - Knut Hamsun
• "When asked why President Bush stated a position that was clearly opposite of his actions, Press Secretary Scott McClellan said *audio clip* 'Uh, that comment is his larger position on that and I think we've discussed it already David.' And yet all evidence points to the fact that he was in fact lying." That's fair. Seriously, are the even *able* to say someone was lying? Does being "fair" preclude them from that? If so, that in itself is bullshit.
• Death to Teri Gross! Seriously. I found her sycophantic and annoying to begin with, but ever since her Bill O'Reilly interview, I was just disgusted with her. Lord knows he disgusts me even more, but she so obviously was out to attack him and not interview him. and on that note...you can have your thread back.
• And why does she have to call herself Meeechelle Norris. It's freaking Michelle. Sheesh
• I think part of it is the monopoly on the press as well. You get someone asking hardball questions and they’re gone. But really, no one who would ask hardball questions gets put in a position to. Hell, they hadn’t called on Thomas for what, 3 years? There’s a great clip of Rumsfeld saying he never said the Iraq war would be easy or we would be greeted as liberators and then they play a clip of him saying exactly that and he just nods his head and talks about “the perception is...” I think the American people want the straight story. I just don’t think the news conglomerates think it’s good for the bottom line. And of course they’re in bed with politicians - the FCC, etc. etc. Most of my news comes from the ‘net.
• There’s a great clip of Rumsfeld saying he never said the Iraq war would be easy or we would be greeted as liberators and then they play a clip of him saying exactly that and he just nods his head and talks about “the perception is...” Yeah that is a good one. And if NPR wants my money they can play that over and over. Play the clip of Bush saying "whenever you hear us talk about a wire tap, we're talking about a court order. Nothing about that is going to change" . . . 2 years after the warrantless wiretapping. That's some slap-in-the-face fucked up shit, and NPR avoids it all the time. And yeah, that whole "Meeechelle" thing is idiotic.
• Five rules from the NPR drinking game Nina Totenberg reads a transcript (1 drink) oboe is heard (2 drinks) Malcolm Gladwell reference (1 drink) Scott Simon cracks himself up (1 drink) Daniel Schorr mentions Watergate (3 drinks) *stolen with impunity from Merlin Mann's 5ives*
• "Truth is neither objectivity nor the balanced view; truth is a selfless subjectivity" - Knut Hamsun You do, er, know about his support for the Nazis?
• luckily for us, wisconsin public radio's inhouse programming is, imho, surprisingly good... and i generally enjoy most of the syndicated shows like TOTN, Boston's On Point, etc. similar story with pbs. nova and frontline are two of the best shows on television... but when juxtaposed with commercials(?!) featuring oil apologists and walmart schmaltz, baby jesus gets very sad and doesn't want to pledge money. so i guess the bias, per se, of npr doesnt bother me quite as much as the "underwriting" does.
• Amen, PeteBest. I would love to support NPR but in good conscience, I cannot. I also have cancelled my Washington Post subscription for the same reason. On the plus side, Katie Couric is sure to restore journalistic integrity to CBS with her trademark no-holds barred-aggressive attack dog interviewing style.
• how many drinks for a report by Snigda Prakash, Fes? i love her name as much as i love her voice...
• oopsie. preview is my friend.
• Daniel Schorr mentions Watergate (3 drinks) *stolen with impunity from Merlin Mann's 5ives* I heart Merlin. And the Daniel Schorr thing, dear God, you will be drunk in NO TIME. Though his voice work for "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" is not to be missed. His impression of Dolly Parton complaining about her tits had me crying. Snigda Prakash She's no Sylvia Poggioli, Lakshmi Singh, or Mandalit Delbarco.
• Mandalit del Barco's voice makes me think that, if only she met me, she'd understand how much I love her.
• Abby Ryan - NPR traffic reporter in Chicago. Sexiest - Voice - Ever.
• Pete, relax. Now, try this here antidote.
• Podcasting Roils NPR Fundraising
• *tweeee!* 2 minutes for not reading every link in the FPP, 1 minute for double-linking
• Pete, relax. NO!!!
• Dude, stop typing to yourself. It's the first sign of madness Heh!
• Heh. Good article orococo, thanks!
• reading every link would cut way too much into my time killing time.
• Snigda! The first time I heard her say her name, it sounded more like "Snikta", and I thought I'd finally found another woman Wolverine could love.
• Sylvia Poggioli never really sounds Italian to me until she says her name. Then it's like her Italian quotient goes off the charts. Reminds me of that SNL skit with Jimmy Smits. I like Sniggda Prikash--LOTS. Plus, I'd totally tap Terri Gross. I bet she's a demon in the sack.
• Yes, Daniel Schorr sounds like he has no saliva whatsoever. It's painful to listen to him -- (will he CHOKE on-air?) But I like NPR. It's my balm when I wake up in the morning. I make my own mind up about how I feel about the issues of the day. NPR is fiber to the rest of it all.
• I gave myself a cooling off period, and tried NPR again. DAMN do they suck huge sweaty ass balls. They're FOX with an inferiority complex. They don't challenge anything and dutifully regurgitate whatever the administration says. And their public interest stories are insipid to the point of transdimensional-bizarreness. (Talking about the news part here - the game show part is okay) Feh. Either give it to quid or board that shit up.