The Battle over Bias (Eric Alterman Alert)

Esquire | March 2003 | Daniel Torday

[Norman Arbuthnot]

The superlatively conservative golden-haired commentator Ann Coulter sold tons of her book Slander by charging that, yes, the media is a tool of the left. Now swinging back for the bruised liberals is Nation columnist Eric Alterman with his rebuttal book, What Liberal Media? Esquire had a few unbiased questions for him

ESQ: Do you worry that engaging in a dialogue with Ann Coulter is a mistake?

EA: Definitely. I debase myself every time I say her name. That’s why I said from the beginning that it’s gonna take a lot of money to get me to do this.

ESQ: How did you first become aware of her?

EA: I was on MSNBC with her when it first began. No one had ever heard of her. And the craziest things would come out of her mouth. She’s such a strange animal, I almost treated her like I was with an animal in a zoo than someone I could engage with in any way.

ESQ: Give us an example of why you think there’s no liberal bias.

EA: The hatred of the media for Al Gore, and the sucking up to George Bush. The reporters who covered Gore hated his guts. Now, I happen to think the country is to the left of not just Republicans but Democrats on most issues. In a poll taken recently by The New York Times, we see it again: The country doesn’t like Bush’s positions, but it likes Bush. That’s supposed to be how you feel about a talkshow host, not a president.

ESQ: Would it necessarily be a bad thing if there were bias in the American media?

EA: To me, the whole idea of bias is sort of bullshit. Another word for bias is context. The media should be biased, and objectivity is a sham. In Europe, that’s the way the media; you buy a newspaper that shares your politics. Every page of The Guardian, the Liberacion, is biased. And the world is much more understandable to people. Fox News probably does a better job of reporting the news in an understandable way than CNN or NBC, because it provides a context.

ESQ: As a liberal, who do you find more objectionable: Bill O’Reilly, Chris Matthews, or Rush Limbaugh?

EA: No question it’s Limbaugh. He has an army. I think O’Reilly and Matthews are entertainers. I don’t think anybody would follow the other two into the fire, but Limbaugh is different. The lack of civility that he demonstrates toward liberal politicians is really dangerous to our political public. I hate to say it, but I wish the guy would have gone deaf. I shouldn’t say that, but on behalf of the country, it would be better without Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million listeners.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

This is a real interview that is in the latest edition of Esquire magazine, but it is not on the magazine's web site yet. That is why I don't have link posted. Trust me, this is real.

It will be interesting to see if Alterman outsells Al Gore's latest book. He implies he received "a lot of money" up front to write this book. I find it hard to believe that a publisher would do that. Besides readers of the Nation who the hell is going to buy this book?

[narby]

Now, I happen to think the country is to the left of not just Republicans but Democrats on most issues.

This Clymer must have some really whacked out circle of friends.

[Sir_Humphrey]

No question it’s Limbaugh. He has an army

Ok Eic- why does he have a huge following? Could it be beacuse most people thinks more along his lines than you do?

[jdege]

Now, I happen to think the country is to the left of not just Republicans but Democrats on most issues. In a poll taken recently by The New York Times, we see it again: The country doesn’t like Bush’s positions, but it likes Bush.

The New York Times?

Haven't they learned to not believe their own propaganda?

[Orangedog]

"I hate to say it, but I wish the guy would have gone deaf. I shouldn’t say that, but on behalf of the country, it would be better without Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million listeners."

But if all 20 million of us were gone, who would pay the taxes?....Oh,...he just wants us to pay-up and shut-up! Now I get it.

[OldFashionedAmerican]

Now, I happen to think the country is to the left of not just Republicans but Democrats on most issues.

My God, if he actually said this, he's about a million times more delusional than even I thought! What a m*ron!

[JCG]

I hate to say it, but I wish the guy would have gone deaf. I shouldn’t say that, but on behalf of the country, it would be better without Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million listeners.

Oh, those warm, fuzzy Liberals. They just ooze compassion and heart. ('Course if you're a conservative, they'd like to make your heart ooze, too.)

America's Fifth Column ... watch Steve Emerson/PBS documentary JIHAD! In America
New Link: Download 8 Mb zip file here (60 minute video)

Who is Steve Emerson?

[amused]

"The media should be biased, and objectivity is a sham.."

Thank you Eric. Now if the leftists in the media could be so honest, we would actually have a dialogue here.

[adversarial]

The lack of civility that he demonstrates toward liberal politicians is really dangerous to our political public.

but then...

I debase myself every time I say her name

and...

the craziest things would come out of her mouth. She’s such a strange animal, I almost treated her like I was with an animal in a zoo than someone I could engage with in any way.

and...

I wish the guy would have gone deaf. I shouldn’t say that, but on behalf of the country, it would be better without Rush Limbaugh and his 20 million listeners.

[Monti Cello]

Ann Coulter could kick this guy's ass with one arm tied behind her back.

That's my Miller Lite fantasy ad.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

Now, I happen to think the country is to the left of not just Republicans but Democrats on most issues.

This Clymer must have some really whacked out circle of friends.

He's so out of touch he thinks the average person thinks like Katrina Van den Heuvel and the staff at the Nation. I can't think of too many areas where the people are to the left of most Democrats. Alterman must live in some ultra liberal area like the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

[jackbill]

I'm having a problem trying to decide who more resembles (physically) a rat - Eric Alterman or Joe Conason.

I don't think that I will lose any sleep over it though.

[cricket]

Wish Rush would take this gutless wonder on; word for word, down to the mat.

Alterman is a total loser; and only those who read Nation and those who have no clue who he is would buy his book.

Hope he stays down there with Algore for the most books never sold. . .

[Cosmo]

Here's what I wrote to National Review after reading the Altermann/Bozell debates:
To cite a few instances when someone on the conservative side of the aisle asserts that much of our complaints concerning liberal bias are overblown, is to do little more than provide exceptions that prove the rule. That is all that Alterman has succeeded in doing with his anecdotes .
Mr. Bozell, on the other hand, does not rely on the opinions of the likes of James Baker or Bill Kristol (the latter having questionable conservative credentials as it is) , but rather, offers up example after example at MRC in the interest of providing that "smoking gun" which the left seems bent on viewing before conceding a point..
I'm frankly surprised National Review would give a forum to such a lame argument as mr. Altermann has put forth.

[ohiobushman]

Hey eric,I shouldn't saw this but I hope you go deaf & your little "willy" falls off. This guy has no brain(or heart)! Could someone please post a pic of the beautiful and intelligent Ann,so I can calm down?

[cricket]

yes. . .those remarkable observations need to foot-noted in time. . .

Liberalspeak is a beautiful thing. . .

[ffusco]

"The media should be biased, and objectivity is a sham."

Thank you Joseph Goebbels.

[ffusco]

Marketing Maxims of Josef Goebbels: A review of David Irving's Goebbels

The word "propaganda," as it was used before it became a dirty word, is usually defined as "information," but experts now think that’s not an accurate defininition. Based on the role that Goebbels fulfilled as Minister of Propaganda, the word "propaganda" is equivalent to the word "marketing" that we use today. As Minister of Propaganda, Goebbels was essentially the head of marketing for the NSDAP.

As we market the holy message of Creativity to the modern multitudes, there is much we can learn from the old master. Of course, Goebbels’s tactics would have been much different if he were active today, because one of the key underpinnings of his strategic outlook was flexibility; he would always alter his marketing tactics based on prevailing circumstances.

The following are some propaganda (marketing) maxims gleaned from Irving’s biography:

"[With cinema] lies the future, and we should be wrong to dismiss this all as American gimmickery. Join it! Beat it!"

"The more the movement grows, the more we must exploit technology."

"Never lose sight of the fundamental principle of all propaganda, the constant repetition of the most effective arguments."

"Propaganda means repetition and more repetition!"

"Repeat it until even the densest has got it."

"Repetition is the lynchpin of propaganda."

(paraphrase) Always tell the truth. People should never doubt the credibility of your reporting

"The propaganda which produces the desired results is good, and all other propaganda is bad . . . therefore, it is meaningless to say your propaganda is too crude, too brutal, or too unfair; for none of these terms matter."

"Denials alone won’t work. You’ve got to counterattack."

"Our principle must always be, never hold your tongue: always say something. If need be, force our enemies to lose themselves in denials instead of spewing out more lies."

"Denials must always be categoric."

(paraphrase) If you’re just going to be totally on the defensive on any discussion of a particular matter, then don’t even bother denying.

(paraphrase) Only lie as a very last resort, and then only as a defensive tactic.

"Domination of the street is the first step to state power." [Note: We believe that under today‘s conditions, in this era when people spend most of their free time in front of the TV or computer rather than out on the streets, this maxim should be changed to "Domination of the media is the first step to state power."]

"Propaganda is always a means to an end."

"We have a lot to learn from the bolsheviks, particularly in the fields of agitation and propaganda." [In order to update this for modern times, I would substitue "Madison Avenue" for "bolsheviks".]

Joseph Goebbels was one of the most extraordinary racial activists of all time. He was comparable to Brother Ben "August" Smith in modern times. Goebbels was indefatigable, working countless 18-hour days trying to awaken the White masses. A multi-talented genius of a man, Goebbels wore several hats within the NSDAP. But his strongest skills were in propaganda.

One of the most informative books a racial activist can get his or her hands on David Irving's definitive new biography, Goebbels: Mastermind of the Third Reich. You can download it from the Pro-

[Terry Mross]

Brilliant Analysis!

[Timesink]

Liberal Playbook: When you can't argue the facts, spew hatred and insults. "I hate to say it, but I wish the guy would have gone deaf." "She?s such a strange animal, I almost treated her like I was with an animal in a zoo than someone I could engage with in any way."

The only animal here is Eric Alterman.