Watch this ‘interview’ by CNN’s Soledad O’Brien and then we’ll talk.
This kind of biased, prejudiced and bullying excuse for journalism has more in common with The National Enquirer than it should ever have with a news organization that claims the credentials of CNN.
Ms Obrien was not interested in covering the story, she inserted herself into it as if somehow she is part of the story and her opinion is as important, if not more important, than that of her interview subject.She had so little objectivity she even talked down to and over some members of her celebrity panel of ‘experts'.
Indeed, I found it interesting that only one person on the celebrity panel of talking heads actually got it right. She criticized the media for the uneven job they do as gatekeepers of the information that is fed to the public and suggested that it wasn’t the media’s role. Ms Obrien, clearly didn't agree and was quick to talk over her ‘guest’ because she didn’t like the criticism.
In fact it was self-evident that Ms O'Brien came to the interview prepared to shoot down the claim being made by Joel Pollack and it quickly became even more clear that she wasn't interested in anything Mr. Pollack had to say. Her conduct had more in common with the Rush Limbaugh's of the world than anything even remotely representing professional and objective journalism.
Ms O’Brien exemplifies the worst in modern mainstream media. She was demeaning, rude, lacked objectivity, was poorly informed about Critical Race Theory (the actual topic of the interview) and argumentative. I respect a journalist being aggressive in their search for the truth but I resent this kind of arrogant partisanship posing as journalism.
I don’t happen to think the President Obama is a racist nor do I think he should be held accountable for what he may or may not have believed when he was in college. We all hold different opinions over the course of our lives and those opinions often change as we gain more life experience.
For that reason, I don’t happen to believe that the video in question is all that revealing or even important in trying to determine President Obama’s suitability for office. He has a record in office, judge him favourably or not based on his record. The constant search for extraneous nonsense from his past is nothing less than a desperate attempt by some to try to discredit him because they are either unwilling or unable to debate him on the issues or his record.
It is equally abhorrent to watch his supporters conduct themselves like cult followers who block any attempt to criticize him, especially in the media. I found Ms O'Brien's obvious bias as disgraceful as anything I've seen on Fox News. I think the president has a sufficient record from his first term in office that is all that is necessary to help people decide whether or not he deserves a second term.
It is equally abhorrent to watch his supporters conduct themselves like cult followers who block any attempt to criticize him, especially in the media. I found Ms O'Brien's obvious bias as disgraceful as anything I've seen on Fox News. I think the president has a sufficient record from his first term in office that is all that is necessary to help people decide whether or not he deserves a second term.
Having said that, I have no issue with people like Mr. Pollack voicing their opinions no matter how much I may disagree with them. That is democracy and that is what we all purport to believe in. There is, however, something distasteful and inappropriate in watching a ‘journalist’ mock, lecture and denigrate the subject of her interview as Ms Obrien did in this video clip. It betrays her bias and a belief by too many in the mainstream media that they know more than anyone else and are not only the gatekeepers of information but the gatekeepers of what we should be allowed to see and believe.
That isn’t the role of the news media and if Ms Obrien is incapable of understanding that, one would have hoped that the executives at CNN would have understood it. I think there is something dangerous about media acting like government when it comes to the dissemination of information.
Freedom of the press is a highly-prized and valued right in most democracies but with great freedom comes great responsibility. Too many in the mainstream media have lost sight of that as they turn their reporting into entertainment or platforms for their own biased beliefs.
Whether it is John King with his ridiculous question to Newt Gingrich during a Republican candidate debate (a question clearly designed to embarrass Mr. Gingrich), the daily rantings of Fox News or Ms O’Brien’s complete lack of professional objectivity during this interview, the state of a journalistic standard that was once the envy of the world is clearly deteriorating. Too many who work in the media today are arrogant, elitist and less interested in presenting the story than they are in presenting their opinions of the story.
It’s small wonder that more and more people are turning their backs on the media celebrities and elite and searching for their information from other sources.
It’s small wonder that more and more people are turning their backs on the media celebrities and elite and searching for their information from other sources.
The bottom line is that when the media makes itself part of the story, it is no longer qualified to cover the story. After watching this embarrassing interview, one is forced to wonder if some media personalities will ever be able to get past the arrogance of their own celebrity to understand that.
© 2012 Maggie's Bear
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Wikipedia overview of Critical Race Theory
Scholarly articles on Critical Race Theory
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