CNN's Obama Drama

Now I Know Why They Call it the Clinton News Network!

CNN and the Race

I'm sitting here watching Wolfie's Gabfest this morning and have to sit back and chuckle a little bit.

Continuing CNN's obsession with racial politics, he has Jesse Jackson, Jr. and Gregory Meeks on, talking about the state of the Democratic primary.

He's pulling up some of the apparently-inflammatory stuff said this week about how African-Americans will vote in the fall, given different ultimate candidate outcomes.

Predictably, Meeks and Jackson expressed outrage at the divisiveness expressed by folks on the right with whom they don't agree.

The sham here is almost breathtaking. Neither of these two politicians have ever shown the least aversion to mobilizing black voters to join together to advance their agenda. There's nothing wrong with this. It's perfectly American and reasonable to do.

However, the moment that someone else takes a look at the slice of the pie they've created, and sees it from a slightly different point of view, they're being 'divisive.' As if the fence were erected solely by others.

I can only think of it if I put up a big fence in my backyard. From where I sit, it makes my yard look beautiful, comfortable and predictable. But is it absurd for my neighbor, who has to look at the fence from his window, to have a different viewpoint of the walls I've put up?

More Idiocy at CNN

This time, the dopes down in Atlanta have three people who appear to not know a damned thing about the Black Crowes, waxing on about their career.

Seriously, not remembering (or never having known them) is not a sin. But acting like you know something you don't just looks really bad.

CNN's Race Obsession Continues

As I've gotten older, I've also gotten less tolerant of people exploiting race for commercial and power gains.

I'm all for a good Polish (or other protected class joke) as long as it's shared between people who get mutual enjoyment from it. But this kind of bullshit out of CNN is just annoying.

Unfortunately, like politicians who run sleazy ads, they're probably not doing it because they're mean.

They're doing it because it accomplishes the goal of getting doofuses like me to spend higher minutes in my visit reading it...with steam coming out of my ears.

CNN Fesses Up

Well, apparently I was not the only one who found CNN's race/gender conundrum article last night to be offensive.

They got a lot of angry emails about it...within minutes of posting.

Thanks for the tip, GB.

CNN: Black Women Don't Have Brains

CNN's wonderful headline writers are at it again.

In their attempt to make a valid point, they make another one.

No mention is given in their article tease to black women actually thinking about which candidate is actually better for the office on their merits.

Rather, CNN believes that black women are reduced to morons, incapable of operating outside a race > gender calculation.

Happy Martin Luther King Day, brought to you by your friends in Atlanta.

The Ragin' Cajun

It's a truism that intra-party (family, country, neighborhood, department.....intra-anything, really) are much more fun to watch than inter-party ones.

Checking in today, I find that it remains true and DailyKos et al are a little hyped up about it.

When I was listening to the debate wrap up the other night from Sin City, I didn't think they were quite up-front enough about James Carville's relationship with the Clintons when he gushed over them (and expressed an albeit justifiably negative assessment of Barack's performance).

It's become the standard on the financial networks to disclose holdings before making recommendations and shame on CNN for not being diligent enough in making Mr. Mary Matalin's position more clear.

CNN...The First Name in Cable News

I think next spring, CNN will be asking if the Easter Bunny really exists....thanks for the note, GB....

Larry King Is Such an Idiot

While I do love the show, Seinfeld, after watching enough Curb Your Enthusiasm (which doesn't have Jerry's involvement), I think it's clear where the genius really is.

I've always found Seinfeld, outside his role on the show, to be quite a bore.

But I have to hand it to him for handing Larry King's nonsense right back to him the other day.

Tony Harris...A Newsreading Fool

Tony Harris is probably a nice guy. I bet he's a good husband, family member, provider and neighbor. He probably goes to church on Sunday, doesn't forget birthdays and eats his asparagus.

But his presence on CNN weekend does little but inspire me to spit my coffee at the Philips TV.

In the embedded clip below, you get the full range or Harrisims that should entitle him to a weekend of listening to nails being scratched on a chalkboard. We have the fake stutter, the pause implying a deep thought is being formulated (yet nothing deep comes out of this clown's mouth) and the staccato speech usually reserved for things like, "Ask not what your country can do for you..."

As much as I hate to goof on a former Clevelander, he's our newsdoofus of the week.

Isn't That Illegal Over There?

See...first come the ankle then it's all uphill from there!

A Reason to Start Tuning in to CNN

I give CNN a hard time now and then, but here's a reason I might have to consider tuning in now and then.

Campbell Brown is jumping from the Peacock to the Peachtree Network.

Who is Jon Klein?

Funny you should ask.

Jon Klein, according to the corporate website, is "president of CNN/U.S., responsible for management oversight of all programming, editorial tone and strategic direction of the network."

Here's what Jon has said publicly about the quality of CNN's programming, compared to its competitors (presumably MSNBC and Fox):

"Our editorial chops are alive and well. We're kicking butt everyday. The American people want serious news -- and they're not getting enough of it from cable…We are the most essential source of information for Americans. We've aligned all of our day parts to be the newsy alternatives."

Klein in 2005

"Sizzle is out – audiences expect substance and we deliver that in a way no one else does. We are feeling very good about the momentum we have gained and the fact that we are showcasing our reporting. Our gimmick is news."

Klein in 2006

Be sure to check out Paris Hilton on CNN for the full hour starting at 9PM tonight.

(Nod to Miami Herald's blog, linked above, and TVNewser for putting this out there.)

Kyran Chetry Shows Why She Makes the Big Bucks

What a dummy...

CNN.com Trys a New Look

Check out CNN's beta view on the new page. Cramming more stories above the scroll is a nice touch.

I can do without the Anderson Cooper Saves the World ad, though!

Democrats to Debate Tonight in New Hampshire on CNN

The Democrats take the stage tonight at 7PM EST on CNN.  Pregame coverage comes on at 5.  While the debate should be over at 9, I'm faced with the dilema of watching the wrap up and then catching Sopranos on On Demand later this week, or skipping the analysis and going over for the 2d-to-last episode right away.

These are the times that try Dan's soul.

While I'd love to hear them press Edwards to stir it up a bit on some of the Shrum accusations recently (family fights are so much more entertaining than ones with the outsiders) I won't be holding my breath.

I don't expect too much jabbing between front-runners Obama and Rodham-Clinton yet (spare getting someone to finally nail her down on what "I take responsibility for my war vote" actually means), but one has to wonder if this will be the last big spotlight for Li'l Denny K. and Mike Gravel if they don't get their collective act together.

Rare Praise of Anderson Cooper from Me

I'm usually not the biggest fan of the current state-of-the-network at CNN. Their obsession with fluff race controversies has really gotten on my nerves. Anderson Cooper's role, since Katrina as our de facto, only-slightly-more-masculine Mother Theresa is little improvement over Paula.

That said, he did a really interesting piece for 60 Minutes the other night on attitudes towards "snitching" to the police, particularly in black America and hip hop culture, specifically.

Describing a phenomena that is not much different from the Mafia's code of omerta, or silence, he reports on a trend in music and culture that discourages any assistance to the police even if one has knowledge of the commission of a crime.

It's worth a quick view if you have the time. Hats off to 60 Minutes for remaining relevant after all these years.

Shame on the News Media

I know that I don't have a Drudge-like following here ;-) so am fully-cognizant that any editorial decisions I make on which pictures I post have no measurable effect on how the world operates. But that said...

Shame on the media outlets who insist on showing picture after picture of the VA Tech killer and his video. While one of them might be sufficient, the excessive use of them adds no new information to the reader/viewer.

Furthermore, CNN was running one of the more disturbing ones (assuming that these horrific images can be rank ordered) as their main picture, but right next to it was an item about Sanjaya being voted off of AI last night.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer's print edition this morning was just pathetic.

Here's a cool resource of what daily print editions look like.

Newt Gingrich and Another Chapter in the English-preferred Movement

If-you-really-think-I-should Presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich has above-the-scroll billing on CNN.com this hour for a speech he gave yesterday in favor of English-only/preferred when it comes to the printing of government documents.

What grabs the headline, of course, is his conscious decision to equate bilingual education with "the language of living in a ghetto."

When reading this snippet, I was reminded of an old Dennis Miller bit in which he said that he never got into drugs not because he found their use to be particularly troublesome, but rather the people you had to do them with.

The English-only movement, as well as other political causes seem to be to be doomed by the same phenomena. It's hard to make a case that it really is in one's self-interest to know how to speak English in this country without being branded an Archie Bunker (or worse!) type.

The marijuana legalization movement, in my opinon, falls into this group, too. The so-called war on drugs in this country is fraught with problems from top to bottom...ranging from what qualifies as a "drug" to the way in which it is enforced.

However, when the luminaries of the movement are folks like the Black Crowes, it makes it a litte more desirable to just stay out of the way.

If the folks in the English-only crowd are actually serious about making a positive difference for people in this country (rather than just exploiting the issue solely for political gain), they might be wiser to rely more heavily on economic and sociological research that shows why this might be a good idea.

I won't hold my breath...lest my dear readers wonder what I'm smoking.