Although author Zev Chafets responded "Absolutely" when Snerdly asked him as he entered the EIB control room, “Are you the guy who’s here to do the hit job on us?” this ended up being anything but a hit piece.
Quite the contrary, Chafets did a marvelous job of opening up Rush's world to his faithful listeners who certainly aren't impartial concerning their praise of the EIB host, but also, and maybe more importantly, to liberal NYT readers around the country who might just come away with a little more respect for the man they consider Public Enemy Number One.
Think I'm crazy? Couldn't be in a Times piece? Well, consider the following paragraphs before eschewing this article:
Limbaugh’s program that day was, as usual, a virtuoso performance. He took a few calls, but mostly he delivered a series of monologues on political and cultural topics. Limbaugh works extemporaneously. He has no writers or script, just notes and a producer on the line from New York with occasional bits of information. That day, and every day, he produced 10,000 words of fluent, often clever political talk.
There was nothing he said that was startling — he spent parts of the show mocking Obama’s “change” mantra and excoriating those who believe in global warming and talking about foreign affairs. But if you think it is easy turning ancient Greenland, the influence of the teachers’ unions or changes in E.U. foreign policy into polemical comedy that will hold an audience for three hours — try it for 15 minutes at your next cocktail party.
Limbaugh entertains, but he also instructs. He provides his listeners with news and views they can use, and he teaches them how to employ it.
Would such praise be in a hit piece? I think not.
Read the whole thing. You won't be disappointed.
