PrintJune 14, 2008
AP attempts to salvage Obama's VP panel story
A notable example of the way the press is attempting to paper over Barack Obama's blunders was spotted and wittily mocked by Steve Gilbert of Sweetness & Light. Glen Johnson of the Associated Press penned an embarrassing paean to the sole member of the triumvirate supposed to vet vice presidential choices who has not been shown to have ethical problems: Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.
Johnson's puff piece ignores the problems of the other two team members and is full of vapid praise such as: "Caroline Kennedy lives a very private life with a very public profile. It's the perfect skill set for her newest assignment," which Gilbert thoughtfully features in bold type, as is his style in treating silly material from the MSM.
Even better, however, is the research that Steve does to bring to readers' attention some of the evidence ignored by the puff piece. One of the reasons I enjoy Steve's site so much is that he manages to dig up both events and photos which tell a very different story than the propaganda piece being critiqued. When Johnson writes about Kennedy:
Today she presents annual Profiles in Courage awards and preserves her father's legacy with her work at his presidential library and at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. [boldface in S&L],
Gilbert counters with the following:
S&L provides the perfect picture:As we have previously noted, the year before this selfsame moral paragon honored the America-hating duo of John Murtha and Alberto Mora with her foundation's award:Caroline Kennedy: In November 2005, Congressman John P. Murtha, a Vietnam War veteran and the ranking Democrat and former chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, galvanized debate about the war in Iraq by calling for the phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from the conflict. Murtha, who had voted in favor of the Iraq war, argued that American soldiers had become targets and "a catalyst for violence" in Iraq. His unexpected and dramatic reversal of support for the war put him at odds with military leaders, the Bush Administration, and many members of his own party. For his political courage and his dedication to principled public service, John P. Murtha was honored with the 2006 Profile in Courage Award...Her "perfect skill set"? Her "discretion"?
Sweetness & Light rarely gets full credit for its brilliant use of news photographs. Steve Gilbert combs the news feeds and finds the special shots that editors at major media discard as too unflattering for those whose causes they support. For example, S&L discovered and featured this photograph of Cindy Sheehan, which was kept out of initial MSM coverage of her Crawford stunts:
Steve provided others (see here) too, revealing that Cindy Sheehan's staged event in Crawford, TX was not the success the media portrayed. When Drudge picked up this photograph, it was widely seen at least in the conservative media, though S&L was rarely credited with its discovery.
S&L is one of the places I go to see creative original work in analyzing the stories of our day, and is one of the most visually interesting places to boot. If you like droll humor combined with insightful analysis and a great eye, check it out on a regular basis, as I do..
