we just came across a great post from 20 february 2007 on viva la blog.
heres a snip:
Tony Snow and “real journalists” finally agreed on something tonight at a roundtable held for very serious people at the National Press Club: Blogs suck. They’re mean. And … and … and … they actually expect reporters to do their jobs!click the link to read more.
We’ll skip Tony Snow. Who cares? But via Think Progress, a couple of journalists had some interesting things to say, kind of opening a door into the higher minds that are raised so far above the rest of us.
NBC News’ David Gregory bemoaned how political coverage has “become so polarized in this country…because it’s the internet and the blogs that have really used this White House press conferences to somehow support positions out in America, political views.”
Can you imagine that? The nerve! People actually use White House press conferences to form and support political views! And then they write about those views! Where anybody can read and see and respond and argue and fact-check them! And they haven’t been seen – not once! – at a cocktail party in DC. Next thing you know, they’ll start thinking regular old ordinary people have a right to opinions or something.
And then there’s this:
Newsweek’s White House correspondent Richard Wolffe added, “[Bloggers] want us to play a role that isn’t really our role. Our role is to ask questions and get information. … It’s not a chance for the opposition to take on the government and grill them to a point where they throw their hands up and surrender.”
That’s it? Ask questions and get information? No context, no analysis, no pointing out that what Tony Snow says this morning was contradicted by what he said last week? Gotcha. I guess that relegates any role beyond being a human tape recorder to the blogs.
