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Frontline: Divided States of America
sneakypete:
The PBS tv show "Frontline" recently ran a "Independent Lens" series titled "Divided States of America" that I recorded,and just got around to viewing. This is a VERY balanced piece of video journalism that covers and explains the events that came about as a result of Obama being elected President with the apparent help of what passes for a Republican Party.
It starts with the lame alleged (MY word) attempt of McLunatic to run against him,and shows lots of examples of McLunatic sounding more like a Obama supporter than opponent. At times it sounds like he is actually campaigning for Obomber.
It also takes a VERY fair and unbiased look at the emergence of Palin and how this came as a surprise and horror for McLunatic and his backers,as she became more popular than him.
To ME,one big highlight,and one I had forgotten,is that Palin was probably the one person most responsible for the desertion of the rank and file conservative Republicans from the Party of Bush and McLunatic,and the creation of the Tea Party. This happened IMHO because so many of her supporters were disgusted by the way she was treated and her conservative messages were demeaned as being idiotic by the political leadership of both parties,as well as the media political "intellectuals".
It also takes a VERY fair look at how the Party People of both the DNC and the RNC panicked at her popularity,and how they worked with the media to destroy her credibility via Kommie Katie and SNL skits. Palin had the northeastern and left coast elites terrified.
McLunatic certainly played a role in demonizing Palin,also. He spoke more harshly about her on the campaign trail than he did Obama,and more often.
Yeah,she did herself no favors by playing to the stereotype created by Tina Fey on SNL after the election was over,but I remain convinced to this very day that if SHE had been the presidential candidate and McLunatic had been the VP candidate,that Obomber would have never been elected.
Then they go into what a colossal failure both Obama terms were,and how if was rife with black racism and how destructive Obama Care was to the typical working-class American. The Rev-Rund Jerry Wright is given a prominent place in this segment.
It takes 3 hours to watch all the episodes,but I found it all to be very informative as well as entertaining.
Hondo69:
I occasionally check out Frontline but find myself analyzing the way in which they present their stories instead of paying attention to the actual information being presented. Doing so is a bit of a Catch 22. If my impression turns out to be that the piece was relatively balanced then I kick myself for missing out. I don't really remember what they said.
In reality this is a "me" problem. Going in with an open mind is almost always a better approach. Kind of like checking out a comedy on Netflix, if I like it and it is entertaining I'll keep watching. But by making the assumption the Frontine episode is more than likely tap dancing around the truth I'm never really giving them a chance, until it's too late.
DB:
Is there a link to it?
I find your report a bit shocking!
sneakypete:
--- Quote from: Hondo69 on March 22, 2017, 09:46:37 am ---
--- Quote ---I occasionally check out Frontline but find myself analyzing the way in which they present their stories instead of paying attention to the actual information being presented. Doing so is a bit of a Catch 22. If my impression turns out to be that the piece was relatively balanced then I kick myself for missing out. I don't really remember what they said.
In reality this is a "me" problem.
--- End quote ---
@hondo68
There are a LOT of us that are members in that club. Hard to not be a little jaded and on guard after a lifetime of being manipulated and lied to by the media.
--- Quote ---Going in with an open mind is almost always a better approach
--- End quote ---
Yeah,it is,but being imperfect is being human. It may even be what humans do best. Recognizing that is the essential step to overcoming it and approaching new things with an open mind. After all,you can always watch the whole thing and if it is slanted you get to feel proud of yourself for being right all along.
--- Quote ---But by making the assumption the Frontine episode is more than likely tap dancing around the truth I'm never really giving them a chance, until it's too late.
--- End quote ---
On the other hand,you can also watch things with an open mind and hoping to be pleasantly surprised,and then be proud of yourself for giving it a chance.
Win/win either way.
Some "wins" can even be a little painful. For example,watching a episode that supports the leftist POV,but going into it in depth and explaining WHY they take that POV can sometimes cause us to admit that SOMETIMES they just MIGHT have a minor point to make. It's never easy to give up your personal biases,regardless of who you are,but it does give you an opening to honest debate with someone from the left that has only taken a "surface look" at the situation. You can agree with them that IN A PERFECT WORLD that POV MIGHT be for the betterment of mankind,but that it goes against human nature and will be corrupted and fail if it is ever implemented,and explain to them how and why this will happen.
After all,a good idea,no matter HOW good an idea it may be,is a bad idea if it doesn't work because it ends up being counter-productive.
--- End quote ---
Hondo69:
--- Quote from: sneakypete on March 22, 2017, 11:51:47 am ---After all,a good idea,no matter HOW good an idea it may be,is a bad idea if it doesn't work because it ends up being counter-productive.
--- End quote ---
You definitely make some good points. Getting closer to win/win situations as often as possible keeps my brain from hurting so often.
----
Shows like Frontline can have value in that they pull out a magnifying glass to examine events we have all experienced. An episode about Enron, for example, might detail how the State of California was desperate to buy electricity on the open market. And they might also detail how California felt they were being overcharged for what was the "going rate" on the open market. But they fall short in that they will skip over the reason why California was forced to go outside the state and buy their electricity in the first place. It is the equivalent of telling a joke but omitting the punch line.
In short, they may do a good job on the Who, What, When and Where, but leave the Why out of the picture completely. I find this troubling.
On one hand, these types of shows are doing the job journalists are supposed to be doing anyway, but they don't anymore. So you could say they are filling in an information gap, territory abandoned by traditional journalism. Their magnifying glass would never be needed if we had true widespread journalism in this country.
On the other hand it irks me that that do not connect all the dots. If they are going to go through all the trouble of presenting an "in depth look" at a subject they should use their magnifying glass to the full extent. But they don't.
--- Quote ---It also takes a VERY fair look at how the Party People of both the DNC and the RNC panicked at her popularity,and how they worked with the media to destroy her credibility via Kommie Katie and SNL skits. Palin had the northeastern and left coast elites terrified.
--- End quote ---
It's one thing to point out that Palin had the power elites of both parties terrified. Doing so inches a step closer to the truth. But why were the elites terrified?
I know why they were terrified, the producers at Frontline know why they were terrified, but I'll bet good money they magically omitted that tasty little morsel from their piece. And I haven't even seen the show. Yet I'm willing to put my own money on the line that they stopped short of connecting the dots.
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