Thank you, Eric! I've been thinking I'm losing my mind, asking myself what the hell is going on with the news media and why the coverage of Joe Biden's presidency has been so negative. The sad and feckless reporting of vaccine "hesitancy," the slavering glee of having Donald Trump to still write about, the "border crisis" (oh, wait, isn't every issue from infrastructure to Biden's dog a "crisis"?), and of course, the horror of Nancy Pelosi refusing to allow two Republican insurrectionist members of Congress to sit on the Jan. 6th Committee! The press is ginning up "crises" simply because since Biden took office, TV news ratings are down and newspapers have continued to lose readers. Trump was manna from heaven for five years - the stories wrote themselves, including two impeachments and his friends' criminal activities made for some
scandals. Now it seems they don't know how to report the news anymore unless they turn it into a "crisis."
Now we're being treated to critical race theory and the burning question of whether or not Hunter Biden's sale of his artwork should be "investigated." The press ponders over these non-issues while nobody is questioning Trump's $75 million slush fund and who has donated to it. We're all dying to know why Simone Biles quit the Olympics, and whenever Prince Harry and Meghan so much as cough, we see hundreds of articles describing it and asking, "what will they do next?"
Thank you for the opportunity to spout off. Your blog is the highlight of my news day. I feel validated.
Just watched the opening statements from the four officers. If the media marginalizes these four brave police officers after what they just stated then we truly are in deep shit in this country.
Imagine what that would be like: facing the mob, hand to hand, vastly outnumbered, because of your sense of duty and patriotism, while having people screaming "TRAITOR" at you. All people in this country must now face the Trump mob.
I heard a good portion of the opening statements, and I don't know what questions will be asked, but I think not enough emphasis is ever being placed on this aspect. Not in terms of the emotional sympathy; to hell with that immature manipulative political gameplaying. But in terms of making it clear that NOBODY had the luxury of hindsight on 1/6, not the police, not the Congress, and most of all NOT THE ATTACKERS, so that they could have known at the time whether hundreds of people would be killed and this treasonous insurrection, this violent and planned attack on the United States of America, would be successful or not.
This isn't about the mob. This is about those who inspired that mob, who thought they would benefit from that mob, and who are continuing to try to excuse and minimize the TREASON that EVERY SINGLE PERSON in that mob undeniably committed.
The four officers echoed your wish! Loud and clear. Hearing their firsthand stories of what that day was like for them mesmerized me. Hours of hand to hand combat performed by cops doing their jobs. They showed amazing character.
I disagree that any of their testimony made that point clear. Yes, they showed great character. No, they didn't mention, even once, that only in hindsight do we know that the insurrection was unsuccessful, and that assuming it would not overthrow the government is a massive failure of reasoning.
The insurrection continues, and will continue until that point is made more definitively.
Massive deaths could still have occurred even though their attack was unsuccessful. It was almost certain their attack would fail to overthrow the gov't. That should not be considered a reason to suggest or imply it was not treason, and that is what is happening. That is my point.
I mean they showed great character on 1/6, and also today. For sure the insurrection continues. I imagine in the heat of battle, you don’t know who won it till it’s over, so I don’t get your point. Bennie Thompson’s final question to each of the officers was what each of them wanted from the committee and I heard each remark emphatically that they wanted to get to the top of the heap, ie the FG. I worry how the msm will spin it.
I understand you implicitly recognize that those in battle don't know they will succeed. I'm saying that relying on that implicit presumption is insufficient. It needs to be made explicit: the attackers were not rioting; they, and anyone who incited them or defends them were trying to overthrow the government, and to do that they were *making war on the United States*, and should be charged with treason. All of them.
Yes we must and we will. Meanwhile CNN is still running a headline on the digital front page, "Pelosi exploded the myth of bipartisanship", as if McCarthy and his crooked cronies hadn't set the whole thing up knowing that after blowing up the true bipartisan investigation idea with a filibuster the repubs would send in the clowns, forcing the move. The maga idiots Won't see it. The rest of us need to shout it from the rooftops.
The media need to be confronted with Joseph Welch's famous challenge to Joe McCarthy: "At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" I don't know how we do it but it must be done.
Our airline system is one of the safest in the world because every detail of every accident, incident and crash is investigated in painstaking detail for the purpose of maintaining appropriate and up-to-date procedures, policies and regulations, with public safety as the grail. The National Transportation Safety Board is not a political enterprise, any more than an independent investigation into an attempted coup should be. The republicans, who fear the truth about Jan. 6 for good reason, have caused and promoted chaos in every possible way and the press needs and deserves vigorous criticism for their role in pandering to the maga mess. If they ran the airline biz the response to a crash would be, "Sorry! Wasn't our fault. The Dems crash 'em too!" And the press would report on the "controversy", blame the pilots, and there would be another wreck with the same 'unknown' cause, and rinse, repeat.
This morning's WaPo, in an otherwise good preview story, began, "House Democrats on Tuesday will attempt to move past the partisan rancor that has engulfed their effort to investigate the Jan. 6 attack...."
I emailed the reporters to ask what rancor Democrats had engaged in. Ha ha.
It's worth noting that Officer Hodges is referring the rioters as terrorists and just said "they continued to try to persuade me to join their cult" Any GOP rep who tries to downplay this will not do well with more than the people who would and possibly did commit these atrocities. Any media outlet who downplays this testimony is in for a rocky ride. I wonder if they saw this coming when they wrote those tepid, both sides pieces?
I loved how he used the word terrorist thruout. He even read the (legal?) definition of terrorist out loud which clearly describes the insurgents/ maga crowd. Great dramatic moment. Good political theater vs the crap of the FG and acolytes.
It is appalling that our Failed Political Press ™ has missed the story of the century: one of our two political parties has gone completely insane.
The second plot line, of course is that the press itself has gotten the story wrong since at least the Reagan era, and they are never going to admit that they have a 40-year fail; I mean who would trust them ever again?
I am really afraid that it may be too late to turn things around after all these years of the media ignoring, downplaying and even helping promote right wing lies. I strongly believe that the media could have put a stop to the slide into cuckoo land back in the 90s when Republicans really went bonkers with their multiple investigations of bogus accusations against the Clintons. Back then I was appalled that the media didn’t even express shock or outrage when Republicans not only accused the Clintons of murdering their close friend Vince Foster, they insisted on multiple investigations of that completely insane slander. The media clearly admired Newt as a canny, smart political operator not as the volatile, extremist crackpot that he really is. They treated Ken Starr as a smart, respected, non-partisan jurist even after his behavior had made it clear he was a partisan hack and a zealot. But then Starr was a member of the Sally Quinn inner circle so anything he did got a pass from the rest of Sally’s pals.
The media still admires Frank Luntz despite his long record of deliberately misleading voters. They shrugged off Karl Rove’s bragging about how Republicans create their own reality, unlike the stupid Democrats who insist in living in the reality-based world. Now the media is shocked that the Republican base is so out of touch with reality, willing to believe all kinds of crackpot things? It’s not a big leap from believing the Clintons are murderers to believing Democrats run pedophile rings.
My late husband and former submariner in the US Navy used to say, ‘you can’t shine sh..t.’ Despite media enamored w/bothsiderism, it is what it is and you can’t shine ....
Powerful testimony. Just turned off Chucko as he’s going right into the political gossip, nothing about the substance of the morning. Shallow, lazy. What’s wrong w/these people? My jaw dropped when the officers said in no uncertain terms, they want to get to the FG. So honest, heartfelt from men who put their lives on the line for political hacks who see, hear, speak no evil. Good start.
I'm listening to the testimony of officers who were assaulted at the Capitol. If the media and 'both sides' this stuff we are right and truly screwed as a country. These men are testifying that they were assaulted, tased, had their ammo stolen, were threatened with being shot with their own weapons. They are both shaming the GOP reps who are downplaying the vent and letting the know how angry they are. There's not more than 1 side to this testimony. It is horrifying.
And yet someone at MSNBC (either Chuck Todd or one of his guests) lamented that the composition of the committee "made it impossible to hear another point of view." As if there is another point of view on what the Capitol and Metro cops had to deal with. There's your "liberal media" in action.
Sen. Rob Portman voted in favor of an independent commission, but then immediately fell into step and voiced the GOP's prefabricated position: "I believe that committee, hand selected by Speaker Pelosi, will further divide the nation by operating on a partisan basis, which is the last thing the nation needs." That was BEFORE Kevin McCarthy tried to plant Banks and Jordan and then took his ball and went home when Nancy Pelosi refused to seat sabotuers. So Portman, who is retiring and has no reason to fear the wrath of the wingnut faction of his party, happily goes along with the laughable notion that only an independent commission - that his party rejected - can look into the sedition that the leader of his party perpetrated. Catch 22 is alive and well.
The Watergate hearings happened years, not months, after the Watergate burglary, and that crime was pathetically simple compared to the current Republicon insurrection strategy. I'm all for denouncing their dishonesty and treason on every channel, but nostalgia isn't a good guide to current affairs.
Speculation is what fills all those column inches (both real and digital) but it really doesn't matter. If the committee does its job correctly, the truth will come out. These media outlets and use all the words they want and stir up all the faux controversy they want but a hearing is a hearing and the truth will come out. I'll be over here eating popcorn and watching the fallout.
I’m wondering what will happen in media if/when subpoenas are ignored by McCarthy, et.al. a certainty imo. And, yes, media have been hammering Biden for not much. The piece about Hunter’s art showing was a bust. Trivia, gossip, who’s up, Dems are dolts. Really a shame and as hollow as McCarthy is a person. Up is down in the press.
Sure looks like it right now. Today’s testimony complete with video backup was both damning and heartbreaking. All 4 officers asked for an inquiry to see if there was a higher authority involved. Hopefully some of those GQP people are pooping their pants right about now.
Often when I’ve come away from watching a political debate or a hearing such as this, with enthusiasm and praise for the event, I’ll turn on the pundits to hear a totally different tone, analysis, take, etc. Very off putting.
So glad rabid Rs are off the committee, a gift to Dems from McCarthy. I’m hoping you’re right, Eric. Let’s see if media gives Dems and the truth that come out of the hearings, their due.
12:35 pm - I don’t think the Republicans are going to be able to spin this. This is sad and devastating testimony. “Unmitigated disaster” chances are way up, Eric.
I saw your tweet about the NYT “how did this turn into a political football comment, and it’s infuriating. I dont have a Twitter account any more as I told the truth about Ted Cruz and got banned for it, but I would’ve lost it anyway over crap like that. I can’t stand it anymore.
Thank you, Eric! I've been thinking I'm losing my mind, asking myself what the hell is going on with the news media and why the coverage of Joe Biden's presidency has been so negative. The sad and feckless reporting of vaccine "hesitancy," the slavering glee of having Donald Trump to still write about, the "border crisis" (oh, wait, isn't every issue from infrastructure to Biden's dog a "crisis"?), and of course, the horror of Nancy Pelosi refusing to allow two Republican insurrectionist members of Congress to sit on the Jan. 6th Committee! The press is ginning up "crises" simply because since Biden took office, TV news ratings are down and newspapers have continued to lose readers. Trump was manna from heaven for five years - the stories wrote themselves, including two impeachments and his friends' criminal activities made for some
scandals. Now it seems they don't know how to report the news anymore unless they turn it into a "crisis."
Now we're being treated to critical race theory and the burning question of whether or not Hunter Biden's sale of his artwork should be "investigated." The press ponders over these non-issues while nobody is questioning Trump's $75 million slush fund and who has donated to it. We're all dying to know why Simone Biles quit the Olympics, and whenever Prince Harry and Meghan so much as cough, we see hundreds of articles describing it and asking, "what will they do next?"
Thank you for the opportunity to spout off. Your blog is the highlight of my news day. I feel validated.
I’m glad Press Run is helpful!
Just watched the opening statements from the four officers. If the media marginalizes these four brave police officers after what they just stated then we truly are in deep shit in this country.
Very powerful indeed
Imagine what that would be like: facing the mob, hand to hand, vastly outnumbered, because of your sense of duty and patriotism, while having people screaming "TRAITOR" at you. All people in this country must now face the Trump mob.
I heard a good portion of the opening statements, and I don't know what questions will be asked, but I think not enough emphasis is ever being placed on this aspect. Not in terms of the emotional sympathy; to hell with that immature manipulative political gameplaying. But in terms of making it clear that NOBODY had the luxury of hindsight on 1/6, not the police, not the Congress, and most of all NOT THE ATTACKERS, so that they could have known at the time whether hundreds of people would be killed and this treasonous insurrection, this violent and planned attack on the United States of America, would be successful or not.
This isn't about the mob. This is about those who inspired that mob, who thought they would benefit from that mob, and who are continuing to try to excuse and minimize the TREASON that EVERY SINGLE PERSON in that mob undeniably committed.
The four officers echoed your wish! Loud and clear. Hearing their firsthand stories of what that day was like for them mesmerized me. Hours of hand to hand combat performed by cops doing their jobs. They showed amazing character.
I disagree that any of their testimony made that point clear. Yes, they showed great character. No, they didn't mention, even once, that only in hindsight do we know that the insurrection was unsuccessful, and that assuming it would not overthrow the government is a massive failure of reasoning.
The insurrection continues, and will continue until that point is made more definitively.
Are you meaning we had no clue if they’d win or lose the Capitol at the time? Their success would equal an overthrow of the govt. deaths of many?
Massive deaths could still have occurred even though their attack was unsuccessful. It was almost certain their attack would fail to overthrow the gov't. That should not be considered a reason to suggest or imply it was not treason, and that is what is happening. That is my point.
I mean they showed great character on 1/6, and also today. For sure the insurrection continues. I imagine in the heat of battle, you don’t know who won it till it’s over, so I don’t get your point. Bennie Thompson’s final question to each of the officers was what each of them wanted from the committee and I heard each remark emphatically that they wanted to get to the top of the heap, ie the FG. I worry how the msm will spin it.
I understand you implicitly recognize that those in battle don't know they will succeed. I'm saying that relying on that implicit presumption is insufficient. It needs to be made explicit: the attackers were not rioting; they, and anyone who incited them or defends them were trying to overthrow the government, and to do that they were *making war on the United States*, and should be charged with treason. All of them.
Yes we must and we will. Meanwhile CNN is still running a headline on the digital front page, "Pelosi exploded the myth of bipartisanship", as if McCarthy and his crooked cronies hadn't set the whole thing up knowing that after blowing up the true bipartisan investigation idea with a filibuster the repubs would send in the clowns, forcing the move. The maga idiots Won't see it. The rest of us need to shout it from the rooftops.
The media need to be confronted with Joseph Welch's famous challenge to Joe McCarthy: "At long last, have you left no sense of decency?" I don't know how we do it but it must be done.
I would start with the odious Chris Cillizza. His misreporting of Hillary’s email practices was a big boost to Trump.
Yes. Odious is a great description!
Our airline system is one of the safest in the world because every detail of every accident, incident and crash is investigated in painstaking detail for the purpose of maintaining appropriate and up-to-date procedures, policies and regulations, with public safety as the grail. The National Transportation Safety Board is not a political enterprise, any more than an independent investigation into an attempted coup should be. The republicans, who fear the truth about Jan. 6 for good reason, have caused and promoted chaos in every possible way and the press needs and deserves vigorous criticism for their role in pandering to the maga mess. If they ran the airline biz the response to a crash would be, "Sorry! Wasn't our fault. The Dems crash 'em too!" And the press would report on the "controversy", blame the pilots, and there would be another wreck with the same 'unknown' cause, and rinse, repeat.
Obfuscation is al the GOP knows today
This morning's WaPo, in an otherwise good preview story, began, "House Democrats on Tuesday will attempt to move past the partisan rancor that has engulfed their effort to investigate the Jan. 6 attack...."
I emailed the reporters to ask what rancor Democrats had engaged in. Ha ha.
Well, Nancy hurt their feelings when she rejected Banks and Jordan. How dare she?
It's worth noting that Officer Hodges is referring the rioters as terrorists and just said "they continued to try to persuade me to join their cult" Any GOP rep who tries to downplay this will not do well with more than the people who would and possibly did commit these atrocities. Any media outlet who downplays this testimony is in for a rocky ride. I wonder if they saw this coming when they wrote those tepid, both sides pieces?
I loved how he used the word terrorist thruout. He even read the (legal?) definition of terrorist out loud which clearly describes the insurgents/ maga crowd. Great dramatic moment. Good political theater vs the crap of the FG and acolytes.
It is appalling that our Failed Political Press ™ has missed the story of the century: one of our two political parties has gone completely insane.
The second plot line, of course is that the press itself has gotten the story wrong since at least the Reagan era, and they are never going to admit that they have a 40-year fail; I mean who would trust them ever again?
I am really afraid that it may be too late to turn things around after all these years of the media ignoring, downplaying and even helping promote right wing lies. I strongly believe that the media could have put a stop to the slide into cuckoo land back in the 90s when Republicans really went bonkers with their multiple investigations of bogus accusations against the Clintons. Back then I was appalled that the media didn’t even express shock or outrage when Republicans not only accused the Clintons of murdering their close friend Vince Foster, they insisted on multiple investigations of that completely insane slander. The media clearly admired Newt as a canny, smart political operator not as the volatile, extremist crackpot that he really is. They treated Ken Starr as a smart, respected, non-partisan jurist even after his behavior had made it clear he was a partisan hack and a zealot. But then Starr was a member of the Sally Quinn inner circle so anything he did got a pass from the rest of Sally’s pals.
The media still admires Frank Luntz despite his long record of deliberately misleading voters. They shrugged off Karl Rove’s bragging about how Republicans create their own reality, unlike the stupid Democrats who insist in living in the reality-based world. Now the media is shocked that the Republican base is so out of touch with reality, willing to believe all kinds of crackpot things? It’s not a big leap from believing the Clintons are murderers to believing Democrats run pedophile rings.
My late husband and former submariner in the US Navy used to say, ‘you can’t shine sh..t.’ Despite media enamored w/bothsiderism, it is what it is and you can’t shine ....
Yep! but press keeps trying….
Powerful testimony. Just turned off Chucko as he’s going right into the political gossip, nothing about the substance of the morning. Shallow, lazy. What’s wrong w/these people? My jaw dropped when the officers said in no uncertain terms, they want to get to the FG. So honest, heartfelt from men who put their lives on the line for political hacks who see, hear, speak no evil. Good start.
I'm listening to the testimony of officers who were assaulted at the Capitol. If the media and 'both sides' this stuff we are right and truly screwed as a country. These men are testifying that they were assaulted, tased, had their ammo stolen, were threatened with being shot with their own weapons. They are both shaming the GOP reps who are downplaying the vent and letting the know how angry they are. There's not more than 1 side to this testimony. It is horrifying.
Silly me - they are blaming Pelosi - OF COURSE!
And yet someone at MSNBC (either Chuck Todd or one of his guests) lamented that the composition of the committee "made it impossible to hear another point of view." As if there is another point of view on what the Capitol and Metro cops had to deal with. There's your "liberal media" in action.
Bizarre - and what a stretch. And what does that have to do with today's testimony. ugh. I waste $0 on cable access to anything.
Sen. Rob Portman voted in favor of an independent commission, but then immediately fell into step and voiced the GOP's prefabricated position: "I believe that committee, hand selected by Speaker Pelosi, will further divide the nation by operating on a partisan basis, which is the last thing the nation needs." That was BEFORE Kevin McCarthy tried to plant Banks and Jordan and then took his ball and went home when Nancy Pelosi refused to seat sabotuers. So Portman, who is retiring and has no reason to fear the wrath of the wingnut faction of his party, happily goes along with the laughable notion that only an independent commission - that his party rejected - can look into the sedition that the leader of his party perpetrated. Catch 22 is alive and well.
right, bc investigations are not allowed to “divide” America….GOP really is shameless
Unless the GQP initiated investigations to discredit Democrats. Then it's "Divide Away"!
Remember when the Watergate hearings were on all the broadcast networks. But these hearings are only on cable...
No cable then Joe. I watched them start to finish. Fewer channels.
The Watergate hearings happened years, not months, after the Watergate burglary, and that crime was pathetically simple compared to the current Republicon insurrection strategy. I'm all for denouncing their dishonesty and treason on every channel, but nostalgia isn't a good guide to current affairs.
^^^ What T. Max posted!
I checked around lunchtime and Fox was carrying the hearings which surprised me.
Speculation is what fills all those column inches (both real and digital) but it really doesn't matter. If the committee does its job correctly, the truth will come out. These media outlets and use all the words they want and stir up all the faux controversy they want but a hearing is a hearing and the truth will come out. I'll be over here eating popcorn and watching the fallout.
I’m wondering what will happen in media if/when subpoenas are ignored by McCarthy, et.al. a certainty imo. And, yes, media have been hammering Biden for not much. The piece about Hunter’s art showing was a bust. Trivia, gossip, who’s up, Dems are dolts. Really a shame and as hollow as McCarthy is a person. Up is down in the press.
there’s still a chance the Jan 6 committee will be unmitigated disaster for GOP
Sure looks like it right now. Today’s testimony complete with video backup was both damning and heartbreaking. All 4 officers asked for an inquiry to see if there was a higher authority involved. Hopefully some of those GQP people are pooping their pants right about now.
Often when I’ve come away from watching a political debate or a hearing such as this, with enthusiasm and praise for the event, I’ll turn on the pundits to hear a totally different tone, analysis, take, etc. Very off putting.
This wasn’t just an event. Honestly, punditry will not play well. It might happen but it won’t go well.
Adam Kinzinger made a powerful statement and got choked up doing it. It was impressive.
So glad rabid Rs are off the committee, a gift to Dems from McCarthy. I’m hoping you’re right, Eric. Let’s see if media gives Dems and the truth that come out of the hearings, their due.
Thank you, Eric. Really appreciate your column and the reminders to scrutinize the press. All of them.
thanks for the note!
12:35 pm - I don’t think the Republicans are going to be able to spin this. This is sad and devastating testimony. “Unmitigated disaster” chances are way up, Eric.
I so hope you are right!
I saw your tweet about the NYT “how did this turn into a political football comment, and it’s infuriating. I dont have a Twitter account any more as I told the truth about Ted Cruz and got banned for it, but I would’ve lost it anyway over crap like that. I can’t stand it anymore.