Monthly Archives: July 2011

Robert Samuelson: We Have Met the Enemy, and He Is Old

Posted on 07/29/2011 by Peter Hart

When your column is headlined "It's the Elderly, Stupid," I guess readers should know what to expect. Robert Samuelson delivers in today's Washington Post (a column that will appear elsewhere around the country, unfortunately), in a nasty diatribe about the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Media Criticism, Social Security, Washington Post | Tagged , | 17 Comments

Where Does Press Set Bar for Bachmann?

Posted on 07/29/2011 by Peter Hart

Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen wrote a rather apoplectic column about presidential candidate Michele Bachmann this week, lamenting the fact that other GOP candidates aren't calling her out for being completely ill-prepared for the job: Bachmann does not deserve to … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, Media Criticism, Time, Washington Post | Tagged , , | 16 Comments

Iran Helping Iraqi Insurgents…Make That Al-Qaeda

Posted on 07/29/2011 by Peter Hart

"Iran arming Iraq insurgents" was last month's story. Today's papers are telling a different story; the new line being pushed by U.S. officials is that Iran is supporting Al-Qaeda. Today's Washington Post: Iran Allows Money, Recruits to Reach Al-Qaeda, U.S. Says … Continue reading →

Posted in AP, Iran, New York Times, Washington Post | Tagged , , | 13 Comments

Friedman's Dream: If Only We Had a President Like Obama

Posted on 07/27/2011 by Jim Naureckas

In the debt ceiling debate, Republicans and corporate media have somewhat similar strategies: The GOP can't reach an agreement with the Democrats, because that would be a win for Obama. The media, meanwhile, can't say that the Democrats are doing … Continue reading →

Posted in Barack Obama, Budget, New York Times | Tagged | 9 Comments

The Secret of Rick Perry's Texas Jobs Miracle? Government Jobs

Posted on 07/27/2011 by Peter Hart

The speculation about whether Texas Gov. Rick Perry will jump into the Republican presidential race boils down to one word: Jobs. Perry's state has been generating jobs at an impressive rate–which Perry likes to think is due to low taxes … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Election, Media Criticism, Wall Street Journal | Tagged , | 9 Comments

What WaPo Won't Tell You About CIA's Yemen Drone Base

Posted on 07/27/2011 by Peter Hart

In a piece today, the Washington Post's Greg Miller reports on a CIA base that will be used to conduct drone strikes in Yemen: The agency is building a desert airstrip so that it can begin flying armed drones over … Continue reading →

Posted in AP, Mideast, New York Times, War/Military, Washington Post | Tagged , | 5 Comments

ABC's Drivel About 'Partisan Rancor'

Posted on 07/26/2011 by Peter Hart

Some of the media commentary around the debt ceiling bemoans the state of the partisanship in Washington. Much of the chatter is about a supposed failure to compromise. As Josh Marshall argues, "this is simply false, even painfully so." By … Continue reading →

Posted in ABC, Budget | Tagged , , , , | 13 Comments

For Beck, Norway Shooter Wasn't Right-Wing–Though His Victims Were 'Hitler Youth'

Posted on 07/26/2011 by Jim Naureckas

Glenn Beck (7/25/11, via Mediaite, 7/25/11) explains on his radio show why the right-wing Norway terror suspect is what we call left-wing here in America: This was one of the episodes where I showed the railroad tracks that were different … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe | Tagged , , , | 22 Comments

Tom Friedman's Radical Center, 2012 Edition

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Peter Hart

"Make Way for the Radical Center" is exactly the sort of headline that suggests a story one might want to skip. But this is a Tom Friedman column (7/24/11), so you know it's going to be good for…something. This time … Continue reading →

Posted in Election, New York Times | 17 Comments

Mistakes, Madeleine Albright and Dead Iraqi Children

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Peter Hart

Newsweek has a feature called "My Favorite Mistake," where a famous person talks about something they've done wrong.http://www.fair.org/blog/wp-admin/edit.php This week (7/24/11) it's former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. The mistake she cited was when she wore the wrong pin to … Continue reading →

Posted in CBS, Iraq, Newsweek | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Diallo Speaks: Are There Holes in the 'DSK Case Crumbles' Narrative?

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Peter Hart

Nafissatou Diallo, the hotel maid who has accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn,  is now speaking out publicly–weeks after press coverage took a turn against her, based on the notion that something about her made her allegations less credible. "Strauss-Kahn Prosecution Said to … Continue reading →

Posted in Gender, New York Times, Newsweek | Tagged | 11 Comments

Obama's Right-Wing Plan to Win the Center

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Peter Hart

Forget about "winning the future"–Barack Obama wants to win the center. That's what the Washington Post is telling readers (7/25/11): Obama 'Big Deal' on Debt a Gamble to Win the Center Advisers think securing his plan would ensure general-election victory … Continue reading →

Posted in Barack Obama, Budget, Washington Post | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

Time: The U.S. Audience Is Different

Posted on 07/25/2011 by Peter Hart

Every so often you're struck by something like this– a collection of covers for this week's Time:

Posted in Time | Leave a comment

NBC Finds 'Balance' in Debt Ceiling Poll

Posted on 07/21/2011 by Julie Hollar

NBC (Nightly News, 7/19/11) did some polling to see what the public thinks about the Republican and Democratic positions on the budget and debt ceiling : CHUCK TODD: Now, look, any sort of deal is putting pressure on the bases … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, NBC, Politics | Tagged | 9 Comments

The Times' 'Truism' on Mideast Peace

Posted on 07/21/2011 by Peter Hart

The first sentence of Mark Landler's piece in the New York Times today (7/21/11): It is a truism of Middle East peacemaking that the United States is the pivotal player–the most credible broker between the Israelis and the Palestinians. If … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel/Palestine, New York Times | Tagged | 1 Comment