Vanity: Has Ann Coulter Taken Over The Drudge Report?

Drudge Report ^ | 1/24/11 | me

[elk]

"Why doesn’t someone create a nicely organized front page for Free Republic that can link directly to the articles that get added here?"

This is a brilliant idea. Dr. Nudge, I mean, Drudgereport, has certain biases that I've noticed over time.

There is a manipulative element in it all, as well.

There is a methodology in influencing and moving people that uses, fear, sex, then while the mind has been hit with these emotions, inserts the idea they want to forward. Until I learned that, I wondered why Drudge would have these weird, cheesy violent crime reports. I think its manipulation and distraction.

He has a lot of power, given in large part to him by conservatives, but I think they should stop and analyze if Drudge deserves to keep that level of power and influence, especially for conservatives.

So, an alternative that at the very least conservatives could turn to for a news summary, as suggested by FReeper JediJones, is a brilliant idea.

So, you see why I call Drudge, "Dr. Nudge," because he is busy not just reporting in a neutral manner, but nudging and influencing public opinion as well as driving the news cycle. That's a lot of power.

[JediJones]

Yeah, I think when they call him “erratic,” they’re basically saying that, “shockingly, he would choose to follow his own principles instead of cutting a deal with the rest of us.”

[Question Liberal Authority]

I like a lot of things about Newt, but I don't see how he has any credibility when it comes to defining "marriage". Even months ago, Jay Leno was telling jokes like "Newt believes marriage is a sacred bond between a man, his mistress, and the woman he cheated on his first wife with."

I agree that Mitt won't have any credibility on the issue. "The courts made me do it" is a weak defense, and his defense of RomneyCare is that it's a state issue, not a Federal issue. So wouldn't the same thing apply to marriage?

Ron Paul obviously won't do anything to ban gay marriage, unless the marriage is between two members of the Federal Reserve Board.

If gay marriage is your #1 issue, then Santorum might be your only bet.

[JediJones]

Thanks, well, I already think he’s jumped the shark with his anti-Newt bias, and if he really has Romney operatives working for him, that’s unforgivable.

I’d say it’s time to launch the “Free Republic Times.”

My new theory is that Drudge/Coulter/et al. either believe that Romney would appoint Supreme Court justices who will legislate gay marriage from the bench based on his record in Massachusetts, or they have actually been promised that by the Romney campaign. I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a major stealth movement going on within the RINO wing of the party to get gay marriage instituted through the Supreme Court. I think that’s why they want to keep the issue as quiet as can be and not discussed in the campaign or platform much. They don’t want people asking too many questions. The homosexual lobby has been quiet, too quiet on the issue lately.

[firebrand]

We are witnessing something historic but not behind the scenes. This is not Follow the Money. This is Follow the Patriotism.

The Tea Party is showing its passion. Witness the first ever closing down of the audience response in the Tampa debate, after the unprecedented audience outcry in SC.

By the way, despite all the misstatements about this in the media, the standing ovation in SC was in response to Newt’s championing of the virtues of work, money, and ownership. Even the moderator was floored by the response. There is nothing as energizing as a wildly supportive audience. We saw it locally for Giuliani (ok, you might not like him), and the party leaders were knocked off their feet. They had never seen the like of it in their lifetime.

All of Fox, including the New York Post, is in the tank for Romney. They don’t want the Tea Party favorite because that is passion unleashed and outside of their control. Same reason that the Republican old guard is fighting it.

We are watching the surge from the political heartland of America that we have been dreaming about. Some Tea Party people are new to the political scene, but that is a plus, not a minus, because it shows they have been roused from some kind of slumber. The giant awakes.

[Resettozero]

Sounds like a lot of work for several people. That’s probably why it takes a commercial enterprise.

Today, I’ve been collecting links to other news sources like Drudge and I’ll add to and delete my list as time goes on.

Matt has had a beautiful idea which apparently is in the course of playing out because of his human weaknesses. His Report was built overnight largely due to the Lewinksy affair and what followed. If he strays from what kind of site the Report has been for the past years, his site hits can diminish rapidly and permanently, although he probably doesn’t believe it.

His love affair with all things Hollywood and show biz is something I’ve put up with for a long time. Now, it seems like a good time to revamp my regular sources and make my own Report.

Besides, I’ve noticed that there are recent spells when he or anyone else will update the site. For such a huge money-maker site, I’ve thought that is oddly nonchalant.

[Resettozero]

...when he or anyone else will NOT update the site.

[JediJones]

That’s a classic liberal trap, claiming that because someone is immoral that they cannot or should not be a spokesman for morality. Newt’s marital problems don’t have anything to do with his policy on gay marriage. He openly told a voter in Iowa to not vote for him when the guy asked him his policy on gay marriage and didn’t like his answer.

I don’t just have one issue. But I think what’s really interesting all of us is why support among the elites and insiders is so passionate for Romney above all other candidates and why the one candidate perceived as a real threat to him has been so powerfully Romneyboated. I know some of the Romney backers have been bought off, but there’s very little that the strongest Romney supporters are openly saying that passes muster as any kind of plausible explanation at all. There is a palpable sense that Romney and, by extension, some of his supporters are hiding something.

[JediJones]

When I was researching the Drudge “gay” rumors, I found out his site started out as an entertainment gossip page based on tips he’d get working as a low level employee in the industry. I think it gradually morphed into a more political thing because that’s what got him the most hits. Remember this was in the ‘90s when conservative media was just getting started and there was a lot of unmet demand. So he could simply be someone who saw an opportunity and not necessarily someone with rock-ribbed conservative principles. It’s pretty clear he’s more of a libertarian if anything.

[dfwgator]

Remember this was in the ‘90s when conservative media was just getting started and there was a lot of unmet demand. So he could simply be someone who saw an opportunity and not necessarily someone with rock-ribbed conservative principles.

Case in point, David Brock.

[Question Liberal Authority]

That’s a classic liberal trap, claiming that because someone is immoral that they cannot or should not be a spokesman for morality.

I know a woman who is a moderate Republican. Her parents got divorced and marital fidelity is a big issue with her. When Donald Trump was floating his trial balloons, she was like "I'd never vote for him. He cheated on his wife.". Now she's the same way with Gingrich. "How could anyone vote for him? He cheated on his wife.". I'd say something like, "he balanced the Federal Budget and reformed Welfare.", but she doesn't want to hear a word of it.

People say Bill Clinton wasn't hurt by his philandering, but he's still a late-night punchline to this day. And if you take Bill Clinton out of the equation, it's certainly hurt Tiger Woods, who at one time was one of the most popular human beings on the face of the Earth. Philandering hasn't helped Al Gore, Mark Sanford, Jesse Jackson, Eliot Spitzer, Arnold Schwarzenegger or Charlie Sheen much in the public eye.

OTOH, Brad Pitt is held in high esteem in some circles, so a man in the public eye can recover from a messy divorce, provided he does good works and looks like Brad Pitt.

I do believe that someone like Newt might be able to recover enough to win an election. Certainly, he's demonstrated that he can get women to vote for him better than Romney has demonstrated that he's "the most electable".

But for some people, Romney is the last man standing and they're going with Romney. I think that's what might have happened with Ann Coulter. She was begging Chris Christie to get into the race, and when he didn't, she went all gaga for Mitt. Now people are like "gosh, who knew she could be so nasty to people with whom she disagreed", but she's always had a sharp tongue. It's just some people around here never found themselves on the other side of an argument with her before.

[Resettozero]

“...could simply be someone who saw an opportunity and not necessarily someone with rock-ribbed conservative principles.”

Thank you. That’s it. My memory is refreshed. I agree with your recollection of past events.

But I’m disturbed to realize I allowed myself to become mesmerized by the Report and depended greatly on the site in spite of evidence all along that it was not what I hoped it would be; what I genuinely wished it to be.

That’s over; I’ll check Drudge Report once in a while but not several times daily anymore. No need to.

[jersey117]

Drudge wasn’t really pro Romney. He’s been heavily anti obama. I just think he’s not happy with Gingrich. He was pretty neutral during the primary process until Newt became the front runner.