Pundits

Gore's Pundit Problem

by Sheldon Rampton — September 30, 2002 - 11:00pm

After Al Gore spoke out against war with Iraq, media pundits like Morton Kondracke and Linda Chavez outdid themselves inventing "disturbing contradictions" in his statements, raising questions about his motives and avoiding the merits of his arguments. "Remember -- the pursuit of facts plays almost no role in our devolving pundit culture," writes Bob Somerby."What does your pundit corps try to get right? They try to get their scripted spins right."

Main Source:

The Daily Howler, October 1, 2002

The Chickenhawk Database

by Sheldon Rampton — September 8, 2002 - 9:37pm

What do George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Britt Hume, Rush Limbaugh, John Ashcroft, Tom DeLay, Trent Lott, Roger Ailes, Bill O'Reily and Jerry Falwell all have in common?

Main Source:

http://www.nhgazette.com/chickenhawks.html

The Blowhard Next Door

by Sheldon Rampton — August 25, 2002 - 11:00pm

Fox TV pundit Sean Hannity has a book out, titled Let Freedom Ring. Spinsanity.org analyzes its rhetoric, calling it "a poorly researched effort full of blatant falsehoods and highly distorted versions of the truth. ... Hannity seems on the brink of becoming America's leading conservative pundit. Let Freedom Ring is troubling evidence that Hannity won't let a little thing like truth get in the way of his rapid ascent."

Main Source:

Spinsanity.org, August 26, 2002

The Rah-Rah Boys

by Sheldon Rampton — August 17, 2002 - 11:00pm

Dot-com CEOs, day traders and other leading icons of the roaring 1990s are passing from the scene along with the economic bubble that created them, but Baffler editor Tom Frank notes that "one group remains untouched: the public intellectuals of the bull market. The writers of Dow-worshipping books and commentators who handed down daring pronunciamentos from the silicon heights are still cruising from one posh gig to the next.

Main Source:

Los Angeles Times, August 18, 2002