Really, That Guy?

Sometimes it’s easy to forget why I chose academia over journalism, but then I am reminded. Stephen Hayes is a liar, a charalatan, and a fraud. He is probably one of the worst journalists ever, in the sense that he is not only of dubious talent but supplements this with a propensity for sheer distortion [...]

Read Full Post »

MSNBC and the Political Spectrum

Regarding MSNBC’s decision to relieve Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews of their election night duties, Ezra Klein makes the necessary point: “MSNBC is not a liberal network. They are a centrist network with two hours of liberal programming in the evenings and three hours of conservative programming in the mornings.”
I’m always a little surprised conservatives [...]

Read Full Post »

On the Other Hand…

Somewhat counterintuitively, might the New Yorker cover do more good than harm? Assume for argument’s sake that those who actually believe in the stereotypes being depicted would never vote for Barack Obama (or any national Democrat) in the first place. Is it possible moderate voters — particularly evangelical Christians sensitive to being satirized themselves — [...]

Read Full Post »

The New Yorker’s Obama Cover

Responding to the outpouring of criticism, Andrew Sullivan writes, “I still see it as satire, and the notion that most Americans are incapable of seeing that strikes me as excessively paranoid and a little condescending.” I think Sullivan here errs on the side of giving too much credit to the average American. “Satire needs overstatement,” [...]

Read Full Post »

Race and Crime in the District

“In my direct friend group, about half have been mugged,” Ezra Klein wrote not long after his friend — and fellow prominent liberal DC blogger — Brian Beutler was shot three times in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. “Crime is the background noise to life in DC,” he mused. “Less an act of God than a [...]

Read Full Post »