Media Criticism Made Easy - Oliver Willis Shows How

Oliver Willis has a new job at "Media Matters for America", a new group dedicated (we think) to "debunking" the lies of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy.

Based on this post by Mr. Willis (at his private site), by his standards it will be a simple job:

1. Identify a reporter as associated with the VRWC - a Scaife-owned newspaper is fine;

2. Find something objectionable the reporter wrote at some point in the past;

3. Insist, based on (1) and (2), that any story involving the reporter is all lies.

Ahh, you are wondering - isn't there a possible problem if readers follow the links and look for supporting evidence?

Mr. Willis's rule seems to be, don't worry, they won't. In fact, he is so confident that I daresay he did not follow the links himself. Let me help.

From the Willis post:

Drudge is trying to make political hay out of the fact that Teresa Heinz Kerry told a newspaper "reporter" to "shove it". Frankly, she should have told him worse.

Based on the video, it appears that the "reporter" in question attempted to attribute a quote to Mrs. Kerry that she didn't say. She proceeded to ask him which paper he worked for, and realizing what he was up to - she told him to "shove it".

Emphasis added; links as in original.

And what do we learn when we follow the links? The print version makes clear that the reporter was questioning her use of the word "un-American", and seekng clarification; it also quotes her directly as having said it. How Mr. Willis concludes from this that "it appears that the "reporter" in question attempted to attribute a quote to Mrs. Kerry that she didn't say" is a mystery. It appears that Ms. Heinz Kerry attempted to deny her own words, and that Mr. Willis has not reviewed any of the evidence he has offered.

Or perhaps he saw something different on the video? What I saw on the video suggests that Ms. Heinz Kerry got off easy in the press account.

According to the AP, "When she faced McNickle again a short time later, he continued to question her, and she replied, "You said something I didn't say. Now shove it."

OK, the reporter may have been there live and not seen the tape, but I have. On the tape, Ms. Heinz Kerry chats with the Governor (and is presumably informed of the reporter's Scaife connection - this is surely an old Pittsburgh rivalry). She pushes through the crowd, finds the reporter, and initiates the final confrontation. [But see the Note, July 26 - she initiated the second face-off, said something, and turned away; he tapped her on the elbow, and she turned back for the last blast.]

In addition, the video shows her remarks in which she uttered the "un-Amearican" phrase. She pauses for several seconds, searching for words, before saying "un-Pennsylvanian and sometimes un-American traits that are coming into some of our politics". It was not a chance remark. Not memorable to her, perhaps, but not unconsidered.

A commenter at Oliver Willis's site makes a good point - since Mr. Willis now works for a left wing media watchdog group, and has put up a post contradicted by his own evidence, should we apply the same principles to him that he applies to right wing commentators, and simply ignore him? Seems like a shame.

As they put it - how is the paycheck over there, and how is the kool-aid?

UPDATE: Excellent news - the Media Matters folks have turned this into a full column, which will use as my all-purpose rebuttal to anything anyone ever tosses at me from that group. Bit of a timesaver. Oliver posts separately, and seems to concede one of my points - he thinks I am looking for media bias in the Sunday funnies; I say NY Times. Same thing?

Comments

[J_Crater]

Queen .. er .. Ms. Heinz Kerry has made herself obnoxious in Pennsylvania politics since John Heinz died in am airplane crash years ago. When Rick Santorium ran to replace John as Senator from Pennsylvania, Queen Heinz complained that Santorium hadn't gotten her approval to be her husband's replacement on the Republican ticket. What gall. What a pain in the ass.

[Paul Zrimsek]

That last point becomes even harder to answer when you recall that Willis is not working for just any old left-wing media watchdog group, but one run by David "Trust me, I lied" Brock. Though I'd prefer to ignore Willis on grounds of banality and witlessness rather than guilt by association.

[RW]

Looks like par for the course for Brock followers.

Based on my experience, Tom, you're more likely to get a Kennedy to vote for Bush than you'll ever see Oliver even acknowledging his f-up with an apology. It'll be someone else's fault.

Pretty funny, though.

[ed]

Hmmm.

Is it me or does Teresa have exceptionally thin skin, a serious ego problem and a hauteur worthy of Louis XIV's court? She certainly responded pretty strangely to repeated questioning.

That and some of her previous, largely unreported, negative statements about America leads me to believe she can be manipulated into completely blowing her stack. All you'd probably need is 3 to 5 reporters insisting on clarifications of some previous outrageous statements.

I'd like to see the video of that.

[Steve Barton]

The most generous interpretation of Mrs. Kerry's behavior comes from one of the things she said in the encounter, essentially: "He said I called this gathering un-American!" No she didn't say that, but that isn't what the reporter attributed to her and he was enquiring about. So, maybe she blew her stack over mis-understanding what the reporter asked.

Nonetheless:

Thin skin.
Behavior directly refuting her main point for the gathering.
Not ready for the big leagues, although she may well be a "big time" something or other...

[Crank]

Good job here and in Oliver's comments. Don't hold your breath waiting for him to admit that he's all wet here.

Nearly everything I've seen from MediaMatters shows it to be a colossal waste of money and only barely recognizable as an effort to expose conservative bias (chortle) in the press. Half their stuff seems to be pointing out arguments between lefty and righty pundits and declaring the righties wrong on the authority of the lefties. It's cargo-cult media criticism; they see right-wing outfits do it, but they just don't understand.

[MD]

Of course you're all conveniently overlooking the fact that Heinz-Kerry has a personal beef/history with this particular reporter -- he has a history of attacking her, her husband, and her family. It was a stupid comment to make, but it wasn't just "thin skin."

[RW]

What?
You didn't think their exposing of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh as being slanted was a good use of money, Crank? :)

[TM]

Whatis being conveniently overlooked is that, in their fistmeeting, Ms. Heinz Kerry adamantly denied having said "un-American", but did not give any sign that she knew the reporter OR his newspaper.

During her chat with the Governor she apparetnly found out who he was - then she came back and eventually told him to shove it.

But she was in full denial (or memory repression) before she knew who he was.

[The PrecinctChair]

Her return engagement is what makes it clear that this was a calculated plan to create a story. But what I find amazing is that a billionairess born and raised in luxury as one of the colonialists oppressing black Africans in Mozambique would be viewed as the victim when she abuses an American working stiff just doing his job as a member of the First Amendment protected media. It smacks of an arrogant elitism, as surely as the references to personal wealth on the part of Hildebeast and Billzebubba in their speaches last night did.

I have more to say on this matter on my blog.
http://precinct333.blogspot.com/2004/07/heinz-kerry-to-reporter-shove-it.html

[HH]

She specifically denied saying "unAmerican" not just "activities." She is a liar and the charm offensive is now a dissemble campaign.

We all know that Michael Moore has a long history chasing down George Bush but if Bush lies and tells him to shove it, that's bad on him.

[RW]

I think the sunday funnies moment was a shot across the bow in my direction.

Talk about your ultra-thin skin.

Go figure.....it's not like he'd accuse someone on the right of being a liar should they have screwed up so badly.

[TM]

Since Atrios works there, in his honor I have a new post rehashing this and pounding on Media Matters.