Balt Sun Media Critic: MSNBC 'Pumping Irrational Fear' Into Viewers
There's a cable news channel out there operating with a single partisan voice, and doing its best to scare the pants off of viewers as the new Congress approaches. Listening to much of the media, you might think that network was Fox.
But in fact Fox has a wealth of opinions on air, though most of its prime time hosts are consistently conservative. And while certainly a number of critics try to paint FNC as "fear-mongers," it's been MSNBC that has really gone full force with the doom-saying this week.
Baltimore Sun media critic David Zurawik is absolutely livid about it, and has devoted considerable space this week to bashing MSNBC for its apocalyptic tone.
Zurawik wrote on Wednesday:
If you look at no other cable TV coverage of election night, you need to see this from MSNBC. It is the reaction of a the panel that spent the night at a desk analyzing the results for viewers.
Some might call it an anchor desk, but I would not debase the word "anchor" by putting it in front of a desk that includes folks offering this kind of analysis. The team includes: Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews, Lawrence O'Donnell and Eugene Robinson.
This is their reaction Tuesday night to the victory speech of Rand Paul, the new U.S. senator from Kentucky. Check out O'Donnell's words, in particular, against MSNBC's claim that Fox News, not MSNBC, is the cable channel trafficking in fear. O'Donnell says Rand is now "empowered" to "creat a worldwide despression."
Zurawik followed up with another column on the topic on Thursday:
But I do not think we should let the outrageous behavior that took place on MSNBC Tuesday night go by the boards after one day of ridicule. This is not just analysts gone wild for one night. This is the crossing of a line in the way that mainstream media engages government, the electoral process and the citizenry.
And the guilt goes beyond the five people on the set: Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, Larry O'Donnell, Chris Matthews and Eugene Robinson, hectoring and mocking politicians while pumping irrational fear into the audience about those politicians. It extends to NBC News and the highest levels of NBC management. I wrote about it yesterday under the headline "MSNBC embraces the fear factor on election night." Read that and see the video here of O'Donnell going off after the victory speech by newly elected U.S. senator Rand Paul.
I supposed some will say MSNBC's last-place ratings on election night are punishment enough. But that's not true. With MSNBC's business model, NBC will still make money off this kind of behavior, which cuts to the heart of our civic life. It isn't a laughing matter -- "oh, look, what fools they are."
Zurawik's own apocalyptic language about the damage MSNBC's election night coverage could do to "civic life" is a bit overblown. Less than two million people watched the channel's prime time coverage Tuesday evening, after all. And as James Taranto noted, in discussing the "Rally to Restore Authority", as he called it:
the vast majority of Americans do not watch the controversy-driven cable news shows [Jon] Stewart deplores. Even the most popular among them, Fox News Channel's "The O'Reilly Factor," draws considerably fewer viewers than the "CBS Evening News," the lowest-rated of the major-network newscasts.
That said, Zurawik is not the only one who has warned of the immense, even existential dangers of partisan rhetoric on cable television. The difference is that usually they're talking about Fox. Fox is hoping to start a race war, or Fox is trying to get President Obama killed, or Fox wants Osama Bin Laden to drop a nuke on American soil on the Fourth of July (seriously).
If those critics are not willing to concede the utter absurdity of those statements, perhaps the immense hypocrisy in singling out Fox will get them to moderate their own rhetoric.
The most oft-repeated claim is that Fox uses fear to promote a conservative agenda. If one accepts that point - I do not - is there any doubt that MSNBC is doing the same thing to take the new Republican Congress down a peg?
- Lachlan Markay's blog
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Comments
He's right
Submitted by RESTLESS 1 on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 6:29pm.
It is sad that NBC can somehow make a dime off this mockery of a "news" channel. The hyper-partisanship and childishness would turn off most eleven year olds, but sadly there seems to be enough adults wathcing this drivel to sustain it.
Sad.
Wow...
Submitted by Bass_Man on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 6:32pm.
Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, Chris Matthews, Lawrence O'Donnell and Eugene Robinson? No wonder MSNBS sucks. Just add George Soros and you'd have the Dirty Half-Dozen of nighttime reporting.
Let's hope Comcast sweeps
Submitted by Beukeboom on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 8:13am.
Let's hope Comcast sweeps most if not all of them out when they take over soon.
Perhaps MSNBC will cease to exist and be only a footnote in the history books a la Air America. It wouldn't surprize me if Comcast not only cleaned house internally when they take over MSNBC but totally eliminates the MSNBC brand altogether and completely recreates, reconfigures and revamps that network.
What is a thing in and of itself
Submitted by Thoreau on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 6:37pm.
What is MSNBC? Jeffrey Immelt signs their checks and holds their leash(80%). Jeffrey Immelt has bet the farm on selling windmills and industrial equipment. Jeffrey Immelt's future is dependent on leeching off of tax money via Cap and Trade because private industry can't afford it. Washing machine's and light bulbs aren't high net profit items.
So I can understand MSLSD's freak show after the election. They were insane before. They are not only insane now, but suicidal. Nothing makes me happier.
What they don't realize that they are helping the Tea Party more than anyone.
Why would that be? You call my veteran WWII Grandfather a terrorist and a racist, and I make it my mission in life to watch you burn.
You support every Communist policy and insult every Conservative woman because she has children and a job, and this is something I won't forget.
This is what you created MSDNC. Don't cry. You've earned what's coming.
I won't be happy until tears won't stop flowing from your bankrupt network's former CEO. To count the times your network has committed outright treason would be impossible. You are the Al-Jazeera of Communists. You are scum.
Apparently, even your dim-witted Liberal utopian friends are catching on. And from Marxistland of all places. The Baltimore Sun.
Don't QQ MSDNC. You broke it. You bought it.
You are right on target
Submitted by Redrowan2000 on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 8:41pm.
Thoreau:
Well Told
"Don't let the bastards grind you down."
Red
To tell you the truth, aside
Submitted by gopsteve on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 6:38pm.
To tell you the truth, aside from the vote results, watching those "anchors" (when I was not on FOX) agonize over the results, was the highlight of the evening!
Mr Z's email?
Submitted by DemsRFascists on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 6:59pm.
Be nice to send Mr. Z a big THANK YOU for pointing out the obvious, email. We REALLY need more people, especially in the so called "Mainstream" media, stating that MSNBC is bad news (so to speak).
I did a quick search, but couldn't find his email. If you can, PLEASE send him a 'THANK YOU' for me.
Zurawik's email
Submitted by Lachlan Markay on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 7:18pm.
david.zurawik@baltsun.com
"Do not make an argument if you cannot make it elegantly, and honestly." - George Will
Great Googally Moogally
Submitted by The_Pumpcrop on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 7:57pm.
For several years people out here has mocked and laughed at MSLSD and all their "stars", ESPECIALLY Obby and Spittin' Chris. My question is: Why now? Why is it others on the tube and print "coming to the light" in the last few weeks? Is it because they are so far gone mentally it's starting to show to even those in their camp? Everyone knows what to expect from MSLSD and THAT is why they watch. The rest of us don't CARE what they think. Let them self destruct. It's places like CBS and NBC we should worry about, don'tcha think?.
How often has Newsbusters said the same thing?
Submitted by ThisnThat on Thu, 11/04/2010 - 9:40pm.
And pointed out the obvious -- MSNBC carries water for the far left, and has an agenda. And their "anchors" have been selected strictly for their ability to spew hate and fear. NB has been pointing this out, and pointing this out -- is it finally becoming obvious to the dense people on the left -- the supposedly "smartest amongst us"? I'm not convinced this one person is a trend -- but perhaps it's at least a beginning.
About time!
__________
“Didn't win the Medal of Honor? Didn't even serve? Then lie about it. We'll support you." — 9th Circuit Court
You know he wants MSNBC to
Submitted by Chris Norman on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 1:28am.
You know he wants MSNBC to stay biased like the rest of the MSM (including his own paper) but in a more subtle -more viable - way.
He's probably toast
Submitted by fgmorley on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 2:58am.
David Zurawik has crossed the line as far as the libs are concerned. He dared criticize their biased attitudes and professionalism. I'll be interested to see how long he remains in his position at the newspaper. Odds are that it won't be long before he shown the door.
Dear David Zurawik, Why did
Submitted by Beukeboom on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 8:09am.
Dear David Zurawik,
Why did it take so long for you to finally catch up with the rest of us?
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