Howard Fineman Leaves Out A Crucial Component Of The Bush Machine: Himself

[Presstitutes]

http://www.presstitutes.com/presstitutes/2005/10/howard_fineman_.html

Fineman's at it again, proving that no matter how low Bush goes in the polls and how many policy disasters he presides over, the media simply can't let go of the standard Bush narratives.

But first, some background (from our F.A.Q.): "A Pre$$titute is a member of the press who uses his or her media presence to support the Bush administration. Our emphasis is on "non-partisan" mainstream reporters and media outlets who continue to provide cover for the administration despite a litany of scandals . . . Wolf Blitzer, Chris Matthews, Paula Zahn, Dana Milbank, Howard Kurtz, Kyra Phillips, Bill Schneider, Tim Russert, Howard Fineman, Norah O'Donnell, Elizabeth Bumiller, Adam Nagourney, the Bush apologists at ABC's The Note and others with a similar veneer of neutrality exert a more insidious influence on the public debate than rabid partisans like Limbaugh, Coulter, and Hannity."

Now here's a perfect example of how a conventional wisdom-creator like Fineman deceives his audience and promotes an insidious pro-Bush narrative:

"George W. Bush rose to power on the strength of a disciplined, aggressive, tightly-focused, leak-proof spin-machine — one that took issue positions and stuck to them, divided the world (including the media) into friends and enemies, and steamrollered the opposition with ruthless skill while the candidate remained smilingly above the fray. Sure of his social skills but not of his speaking ability (let alone his ability to speak extemporaneously), Bush (and Karl Rove) learned to stick to their bullet-item talking points, to operate through surrogates, all the while steering the initial course they had set for themselves."

Umm, Howard, aren't you leaving out the most important part of this equation? It's craven journalists like you who have enabled Bush's "rise to power." Would Bush have "remained smilingly above the fray" if people like you had done their job? Would the Bush machine have "steamrollered the opposition" without brown-nosers like you?

No, my friend, it's years of Bush ass-kissing and pass-giving that has allowed what you describe as a "disciplined, aggressive, tightly-focused, leak-proof spin-machine" to flush America's credibility down the toilet.

Thanks for nothing.

[underpants]

1. Well said

It only took a few journalists (in New Orleans) to simply state the obvious truth and their whole house of cards came tumbling down.

A simply straght forward article on W's actual BIO would have done the same back in 1999.

Fineman and others (Miller especially) have a lot of blood in their hands.

[Supersedeas]

13. I'll second that...nominated too

[AlinPA]

2. Exactly. Thanks. n/t

[NYCGirl]

3. Seems to me he mentioned himself in this phrase:

"divided the world (including the media) into friends and enemies"

and then again in this part of his article:

What, if any, classified information was floating around at WHIG meetings? What, if any, of it was “put out,” as they say, or used in other ways? What, if any, info might some of the more enthusiastic WHIG members have tried to cadge on the side, perhaps for their own somewhat freelance use? Who leaked what to whom among the Judy Miller types in the national media?

These questions were not asked for the most part at the time, either by the media or the Democrats who now oppose the war. But in American politics we tend to replay every cataclysmic political issue in the courts: Nixon’s reelection in 1972 in Watergate, Clinton’s in 1996 in Monica Madness.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9751606

[wordpix]

4. Howard and "happy Iraqis"

Howard coined the term, "happy Iraqi" in facetious, black humor regarding BushCo's vision of being received magnanimously by the population as the "Coalition" forces invaded. He is no Hume, Pat Buchanan or Rush. I've heard him plenty of times when he's criticized BushCo but he tries to ride the moderate line. I repect him.

Why do you think he's so pro-Bush? I've never gotten that impression.

[MADem]

5. What CRACKS ME UP is how half of these assholes are "reporting" on this

entire disgraceful, shameful, story as IF they are actually JOURNALISTS!!!!

It isn't simply that they enabled the administration; they actively participated in a government effort to subvert national security, by eagerly pushing a story and at the same time waving the Novak bloody shirt, like he was some sort of exception to the rule. And NONE of the whores who testified have had the stones to ADMIT it. Russert, especially, should recuse his rotund ass from interviewing anyone having anything to do with Plame. Hell, they should toss that putrid potato over the side and replace him with David Gregory...

[WiseButAngrySara]

11. Could nor agree with you more r.e. Russert. He should be banned to the

"R-hole" for eternity. Also, Tweety, Andrea Mitchell and etc...

[MADem]

12. I loved Colbert's R hole reference--cuz Timmy is really major league! nt

[WiseButAngrySara]

15. ROFL! I was hoping that I didn't have to explain that one. You just had

to be there! Timmy in the "R-hole"

:rofl:

[marbuc]

6. I like Fineman

I don't read Newsweek, but the commentary I've seen has always been fair. He certainly doesn't deserve mention in the same group as Kyra Phillips et al.

[indepat]

7. Well said. Should Fineman be a craven, brown-nosing ass-kisser,

think of the mendacity, duplicity, sanctimony, and hypocrisy that accompanied all that craven, brown-nosing ass-kissing.

[marylanddem]

8. Fineman's "amused" air of superiority

has always irritated me. I think mainstream journalists like Fineman who tried so hard to remain "neutral" have poorly served their profession.
Even his clever little thing about how Bush "rose to power" stinks of brown-nosing and tries not to give offense to the people he undoubtedly parties with...I'm presuming, of course...

[WiseButAngrySara]

9. Pressitute indeed. Thanks for the analysis and link. K & R. .....n/t

[Armstead]

10. Exactly...But they'll sing the usual "mea culpa"

If anything does come of all of the potential scandals and real world mess we're facing, the presstitutes will have endless panel discussions about how "We should have seen this coming, and done a better job in our role as the watchdogs of democracy. We'll do better in the future. We promise."

But once they've finished their hand-ringing, they'll go back to their usual elitist gasbag ways, and ignore reality in favor of whatever new myth they choose to create on the Beltway cocktail-party circuit.

Such empty soul-searching happened after OJ, Mocicagate, 9-11, the Iraq War, Katrina....It's part of the spin cycle.

[Kurovski]

14. K&R(nt)

[gulfcoastliberal]

16. seconded, nt