Are Republicans Ever Right About the Media?
As much as we groan and roll our eyes every time Republicans bitch about the “liberal media”, we complain a lot about the media, too. I mean, Republicans have them so cowed that they can’t report an inconvenient fact about Republicans anymore without the “Democrats say…” qualifier or inviting some propaganda-spreading GOP strategist on to distort the issue.
So, it pains me to say this but Newt was sort of right about the CNN debate moderator asking him about his ex-wife:
(Forward to 2:15)
I hate Newt, but I think I’m a pretty objective thinker and I gotta tell ya’ – I’d be pissed off too!
Debates are supposed to be so that each candidate can answer the SAME questions so the viewer can decide between them. But it seems, as of very recently, that they’ve morphed into a series of gotcha questions directed at particular candidates.
And why do news outlets get to host debates anyway? They have motives and priorities that have nothing to do with the purpose of debates. In fact, you can say their motives are counter to what viewers of a debate hope to get out of it. News outlets are interested in ratings only. I wish I could say they were interested in ratings AND their reputation as a news organization, but that is evidently not true either.
If there were real debates hosted by an organization other than the news networks, the networks would still broadcast them. In fact, they would likely ALL carry the debate instead of each of them having exclusive rights to it like we have now.
Shouldn’t Republicans be hosting the Republican debate? They’re the ones who need to figure out who to choose, and I know their criteria are different than what the cable news hosts are asking in these debates because when these candidates show up to talk to primary voters in person, they get entirely different questions.
I know a lot of left-leaning folks are greatly entertained by what they’re seeing in these debates, but remember, cable news networks never get better; they only get worse! We’re next! Some day our favorite candidates will have to stand there and allow some cable news personality to play games and ask them each customized and personal gotcha questions right after another, right down the line.
The cable news networks have single-handedly, and in a short order, completely RUINED political debates! They’ve abused the privilidge of hosting them. We need to take it away from them and force them to go back to reporting ON the debate instead (as if they could even do that).
That’s it, you blew it! From now on, primary debates should be held by the political parties themselves. And what of the Presidential Debates for the General? Well, maybe they could be held in High School gymnasiums and hosted by student debate squads. I’m sure they’d do a better job.
Oh, and by the way, afterwards CNN had the nerve to refer to the GOP Primary as a “Soap Opera” on their website:
