Elizabeth Edwards Discusses “Presidential Idol”
As this season’s installment of Presidential Idol continues, Elizabeth Edwards checks in with a New York Times op-ed that laments the superficial media coverage of the real issues that confront Americans. While Mrs. Edwards hits the nail squarely on the head, and will be applauded on both the left and right, her frustration comes out about 8 months too late…
If there’s one great lamentation that I have about John Edwards no longer being in the Democratic Party primary sweepstakes, it’s that we don’t get to see or hear much from his wife, Elizabeth. She’s a true national treasure, and would have been a wonderful First Lady.
This morning the NYT published an op-ed from Mrs. Edwards which blasts the legacy media coverage of the 2008 presidential campaign. And though her words will certainly ring true with progressives (and even many conservatives), unfortunately, she’s not covering any new ground.
For the most part, press reporting on campaigns in both the Democratic and Republican parties has been as shallow (and as annoying) as a bad bowling score. While I think that we’re all conditioned to expect the 30 second soundbite in candidate commercials, anyone who truly wants to make a more informed decision based on actual policy positions will simply not get the information they need from either print or broadcast legacy media outlets.
There are three key issues on which most Americans will be basing their decisions when electing the next president:
- Healthcare (Obama, Clinton, McCain)
- The U.S. economy (Obama, Clinton, McCain)
- The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (Obama, Clinton, McCain)
The above links provide more information on each of the candidate’s positions on these three top issues than anyone will receive in 18 months of campaign rhetoric and press coverage. And yes, Elizabeth, it’s indeed depressing. She writes:
News is different from other programming on television or other content in print. It is essential to an informed electorate. And an informed electorate is essential to freedom itself. But as long as corporations to which news gathering is not the primary source of income or expertise get to decide what information about the candidates “sells,” we are not functioning as well as we could if we had the engaged, skeptical press we deserve…
“Engaged”? The legacy media controllers have been infinitely more fixated on Presidential Idol. “Skeptical”? How can the legacy media be skeptical when they’re snarfing down BBQ and beer at John McCain’s place?
While we can certainly appreciate Mrs. Edwards’ concerns, and applaud her for raising the issue of superficial press coverage on the New York Times op-ed pages, it would have been a whole lot more strategic (and impactful) had she spoken out back when the heathers in the media were spending more time on the phony issue of her husband’s haircuts than his positions on healthcare. But of course, had she spoken out when John was still in the race, no doubt she would have been characterized as “shrew-ish” on those same op-ed pages.
I like John Edwards and his wife Elizabeth. The election primary has been the best political civics teaching action for me to understand a lot of the total bias and deception capabilities of Mainstream Media towards the candidates. An incredible of wasted time is projected in the media about John Edwards his hair cuts, rich style that was constantly pounded. This was a hard issue to deal with for Edwards because the Media labored on it relentlessly, all the while, Edwards was making claim Hillary was the Status Quo, where he himself was exactly that. Now seems that very Status Quo is in flight to Obama.
Elizabeth should just cut to the chase and suggest that the Media bears down when it wants to with relentless, daunting, disgusting, polarizing gaming rhetoric, with expert skills in a contextual mix that condemns what ever target they choose.
Now as an example both Hillary and Obama are feeling the fire of deceit and smear. Mainstream Media is charging in a mild way towards Obama. Hillary is being charged as race baiting, when in fact it is the Media that is doing it. More over, all the first line Journalist across the spectrum know that Obama has delegate numbers from caucus Red States that are spiked numbers due to Republican cross overs. These states that have never voted Democrat in forty years are now going to vote a Black Democrat as president? Not going to happen.
It is wildly incredible to think Obama does not realize this with all the intension to exploit it everyway he can believe in, to make it will work for himself. What is happening in a more important way is a thrust for the Democratic leadership in an open revealing way beyond anytime. Blacks are showing America what they are made of. Because many Blacks do not understand the situation, but ignore the reverence and grace that is needed to reflect a core grievance they always had. Yelling and hollering to an audience is not the change America will invest in. Many white people know the difficulties that must be endured by Blacks that are self aware of the transitions they are making. If I was a Black man and realized the changes that God would be making me go through, I would be angry too.
But blaming all that is happening on white supremacy is not the right thing to do. Black leadership will not be accepted with wag the dog approach where America has the head of Obama and the tail that can go off anytime from a wild Reverend Wright.
As I recall, Ms. Edwards was portrayed as a crazy whiner by various media when she did speak up. And then, when they got pushed back, they complained that somehow she was ‘off limits’ because of her health.