The Pocket Barack-itizer

Posted by on February 26, 2008 at 8:53 am. 15 Comments :

To hear the press tell it, Sen. Barack Obama just completed his first term as high school class treasurer and is trying to parlay that triviality into a bid to become Leader of the Free World. Innumerable pundits, most notable for how often they are wrong, are incessantly yammering about Obama’s allegedly slender resume. Had they bothered to do a little homework themselves, they would know that he has a stellar academic history, has unselfishly toiled for non-profit, public interest groups, and has ten years of legislative experience in the Illinois and U.S. Senate.

It occurred to me that pundits, and the citizens they misinform, might benefit by having convenient access to some basic facts about the man who may be the next President of the United States of America.

I created this web-site-in-a-widget to address the mischaracterizations in the media about Sen. Obama’s experience and readiness to be Commander in Chief. It contains biographical information as well as useful links for donations, voting registration, etc. In addition to that, when you install this widget you will have a handy rotating display of headlines from the Obama Blog. And all of these features will also be available to all of your site’s visitors.

The widget is easy to install on your blog, web site, or social network page. Just click the “Get & Share” button at the bottom of the widget and select a service from those displayed. Or you can select “Embed” to get the code to paste onto your page. That’s it!

This widget is offered free of charge to anyone who wishes to use it. If you like this widget, you can get one made custom for your own business, web site or blog. For that there is normally an exorbitant fee that will likely send you spiraling into bankruptcy and despair. But, if you act now, the exorbitant fee will be slashed to a much more reasonable amount that will allow me to enjoy a nutritious lunch and perhaps a decaf latte.

Technology like this can enhance the ability of alternative media to grow and compete with the corporate-dominated Conventional Media. It can spread important messages to the many corners of the InterTubesâ„¢. Given the state of the media, we all need to explore new ways to multiply our voices, and the creative use of widgets is one way to do that.

Widgets can be used for a wide variety of purposes – from advertising and promotion, to information distribution and announcements, to artistic projects and displays. Be creative!

For more information, send an email with your questions and/or ideas.

See also the News Corpse Headline Widget.

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Fox News Contributor Karl Rove Becomes The Story

Posted by on February 22, 2008 at 1:07 am. NO Comments :

This coming Sunday 60 Minutes will broadcast a report on Alabama’s former governor Don Siegleman. Siegleman is presently serving a seven year jail term for a bribery conviction that is considered suspicious by Democrats and Republicans alike. Many believe that the case was politically engineered by some familiar names in the Dirty Tricks business:

“A Republican operative in Alabama says Karl Rove asked her to try to prove the state’s Democratic governor was unfaithful to his wife in an effort to thwart the highly successful politician’s re-election.”

While the ethical underhandedness of a manufactured prosecution that lands an innocent man in prison is disgusting on its own, there are other questions raised that will likely not be answered by this scandal’s principal player. Karl Rove, Fox News’ newest contributor, has refused requests by 60 Minutes to comment, but he will continue to appear as an election analyst on the Fox News Channel.

What I want to know is: How can this guy appear on Fox air, with reporters questioning him about the presidential campaign, without being made to answer questions about the political controversies swirling around his own life? How can Fox anchors sit next to him, pretending these issues don’t exist, and still be called journalists? Yeah, I know…no one calls them journalists now, but this would be like hiring O.J. Simpson as a crime reporter without ever mentioning Nicole and Ron.

I probably shouldn’t be giving Fox any ideas. After all…

Karl Rove & OJ Simpson…it was the Murdoch- owned ReganBooks that published Simpson’s “If I Did It” and tried to air a shlockumentary based on it on Fox, before they were shamed into ditching the program. Judith Regan was subsequently fired as a sacrifice to protect Murdoch and others who had greenlighted the projects.


Bill O’Reilly’s Lynching Party

Posted by on February 20, 2008 at 9:57 pm. NO Comments :

In what seemed to begin as a defense of Michelle Obama, Bill O’Reilly still manages to stick his foot in his fat racist mouth.

O'Reilly Lynching Party

A caller to his radio program started to offer some uncorroborated gossip about Ms. Obama’s personality. O’Reilly stopped her, saying that whatever she was about to say was unfair because it had not been checked out by, I suppose, him. He proceeded to detail the precise circumstances under which it would be acceptable to spread uncorroborated gossip. Then he let loose with this:

“I don’t want to go on a lynching party against Michelle Obama unless there’s evidence, hard facts, that say this is how the woman really feels. If that’s how she really feels — that America is a bad country or a flawed nation, whatever — then that’s legit. We’ll track it down.”

How is this not worse than what David Shuster said? O’Reilly is saying flatly that he wants to go on a lynching party against Michelle Obama if he is satisfied with some vague notion of evidence of something or other. Of course, I don’t believe for a moment that he’s in his Long Island garage practicing tying nooses, but this comment is so repulsively insensitive that there is just no justification for it.

Will he be reprimanded by Fox News? Will he be suspended? Will Fox News even report on the remarks? I’m not holding my breath.

Update: O’Reilly smirked through a pseudo-apology last night. As usual, it was not an expression of regret for despicable remarks, but an excuse to placate those who were offended, as if it were their fault for being too sensitive.


Bill O’Reilly Brings His Freak Show To Los Angeles

Posted by on February 20, 2008 at 2:36 pm. 2 Comments :

O'Reilly Fear FactorBill O’Reilly is broadcasting his “O’Reilly Fester” from Los Angeles all this week. We don’t particularly want him, but hey, it’s a free country – despite O’Reilly’s best efforts to promote authoritarian rule via his bullying brand of demagoguery.

The question I have is, “Why is he here?” Seeing as Billo is unlikely to return my calls, and I don’t have a producer like Stuttering Jesse Watters to ambush him at his hotel, I’m left with speculation.

One possibility is that the Academy Awards are being broadcast this Sunday. O’Reilly, well known narcissistic attention whore that he is, may want to rub shoulders with the celebrities he is so fond of bashing. It would not be the first time he has attempted to skim off some glory from those he routinely disparages. Two years ago, at the height of the Dixie Chicks controversy, he tried to shmooze Natalie Maines at a Time, Inc. party. She smacked that down in short order, but the same parasitic tendencies may have brought O’Reilly to Hollywood this week.

Newshounds theorizes that O’Reilly may have come to attend the winter retreat of the Republican National Committee at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. This $15,000 (minimum) per head affair featured appearances by Party big wigs including Karl Rove.

It should also be noted that we are in the middle of Nielsen’s February sweeps, one of the most important ratings periods of the year. O’Reilly may be hoping to goose his program’s performance by glitzing it up with Tinseltown glamour. Of course, the Oscars and the RepubliFest could both contribute on this measure.

But if the foregoing isn’t enough to hype the Nein-Spinster, it appears he is planning another event that can only be described as deliberately provocative and profoundly insensitive. O’Reilly is scheduled to appear at the Brentwood Theater on the grounds of the West LA Veteran’s Administration. That’s right – the Veteran’s Administration. The federal agency responsible for, amongst other things, programs to assist veterans who are homeless due to finances, emotional or physical disability, substance abuse, or other hardships. The agency that reports that there are a couple hundred thousand such veterans who are homeless. Now O’Reilly actually has the gall to show up at a facility whose purpose is to aid people who O’Reilly is on record as saying do not exist.

If anyone is in the Brentwood vicinity tomorrow, you might want to visit the VA and give Mr. O’Reilly the welcome he deserves. I wish there were more time to organize a proper reception, but a spontaneous turnout of some patriotic Americans (and hopefully some vets) to let O’Reilly know how we feel would be great. Here is the information:

Thursday, Feb. 21, 2008 – 7:00pm (get there early)
The Brentwood Theater.
West LA Veteran’s Administration
11301 Wilshire Blvd
Brentwood, CA 90049
Tel: (310)479-3003


Pundit Population Explosion?

Posted by on February 20, 2008 at 2:03 am. NO Comments :

Paul Farhi of the Washington Post penned a column today that looks at what he describes as an overpopulation of political pundits on television:

“With the cable news networks ramping up wall-to-wall political coverage, the demand for people to analyze, comment upon and speculate wildly about the presidential race has expanded accordingly. The nation’s economy might be coughing and wheezing, but there is no shortage of employment opportunities in Punditland.”

I have to wonder what cave Farhi just crawled out of. The TV pundit infestation has been festering for years on the cable nets. Like cockroaches that have evolved to be pesticide-resistant, these blunder-tolerant vermin proliferate and endure. A year ago, I wrote in The Pep Squad about…

“…the clubby environment that embraces the fraternity of professional opiners. Amongst the benefits of membership in the PEP Squad (Perpetually Erroneous Pundits) is that, no matter how much you screw up, you never lose your seat at the table. Commentators who have been wrong for a half dozen years or more, are consistently invited back to deliver more of their bad advice.”

Farhi seems to be misinterpreting the problem entirely. The recruiting fest that he suggests is simply not happening. In his article he rattles off a list of pundits as affirmation of his thesis, but his own list proves the opposite. Take a look at some of the names on the list.

On MSNBC: Gene Robinson, Pat Buchanan, Tucker Carlson, Chuck Todd, Howard Fineman, and Richard Wolffe.

On CNN: Bill Bennett, Paul Begala, Carl Bernstein, Donna Brazile, Gloria Borger, David Gergen, Jeffrey Toobin.

On Fox News: Eleanor Clift, Fred Barnes, Morton Kondracke, Michael Barone, Dick Morris, William Kristol, Juan Williams, Newt Gingrich, and Karl Rove.

That is not exactly the roster of a new generation of commentators. To the contrary, it is the same old team of hackneyed veterans that have been pawning off their specious viewpoints for years. I’m not sure which of those old-timers Farhi thinks have just fallen off the TV news van. Perhaps the flaw in his analysis is that these well-worn faces, while not part of a hiring boom, are being given more time to misinform viewers. The result is the opposite of a population explosion. In fact, the senior denizens of cable news are squeezing out newer, fresher voices by consuming all the broadcast oxygen.

While the nation is in the mood for change, with both Democratic and Republican candidates battling for the crown, it is high time for the media embrace the concept. The public approval of the press is nearly as low as that of the president, and we’re getting rid of him. So as we prepare to introduce some new faces to Washington, we would do well to swap out some of the hacks who are still pontificating on TV.


Tucker Carlson’s New Election Analyst: Roger C.U.N.T. Stone

Posted by on February 19, 2008 at 10:12 am. 6 Comments :

Tucker Carlson RatingsIt is well known that Tucker Carlson’s program resides in the lowest lying, scum-ridden depths of TV punditry. He consistently loses to his competition and he is the lowest rated program on his own network (see Tucker Carlson: A Ratings Black Hole).

That may explain the trouble he is having booking guests who are not idiots or purveyors of profane filth, lies, and slander. Yesterday Tucker may have outdone himself by interviewing “Republican Strategist” Roger Stone.

C.U.N.T.Stone is the founder of Citizens United Not Timid, or C.U.N.T. Their stated mission is to “Educate the American public about what Hillary Clinton really is.” Tucker didn’t bother to disclose this affiliation. Apparently he doesn’t think it’s relevant to his viewers that the guests he presents as experts are actually political pornographers.

What’s more, Tucker is providing more evidence for those who already believe that MSNBC is brazenly anti-Clinton. It is mind-boggling that after both Chris Matthews and David Shuster have had to issue public apologies for derogatory remarks directed at Clinton, Tucker would invite this smear-meister to discuss election issues as if he weren’t a repulsive sack of vomit. Ironically, it was Shuster who, alone amongst the punditry, called out Stone for not revealing his part in C.U.N.T. Shuster, who fills in for Tucker on occasion, was unavailable to question Stone because he’s still on suspension for his “pimped-out” gaffe.

I thought Clinton’s reaction to the Shuster affair was overblown and calculated for political effect. But I wouldn’t fault her, or her campaign, for blasting Tucker for granting air time to Stone and the slime and maggots that come out when you turn him over.

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Chris Matthews Plays The Obama/Osama Card

Posted by on February 18, 2008 at 7:11 pm. 4 Comments :

This video is from the first minute of tonight’s Hardball. Is it really so hard to get this right?

Or is Chris Matthews sucking up to the Clinton camp? After numerous slurs, insults and misogynistic rants, perpetuating the Obama/Osama association may be Matthews’ version of an apology.


The News Corpse Oscar Nominees For 2008

Posted by on February 15, 2008 at 9:57 am. 5 Comments :

The News Corpse Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is proud to present its Oscar nominees for 2008.

News Corpse would like to congratulate the nominees and remind them that they are already winners.:

Atonement – The story of a country and a political party finally trying to make amends for a history of repression.

There Will Be Blood (Mud) – An epic tale of the destructive power of nature, and the even more destructive power of a corrupt and incompetent government.

Michael Clayton (Hayden) – Espionage, intrigue, torture, and deceit mark this political thriller that delves into the secret world of the CIA.

Juno (Repo) – This is the heartwarming tale of a family struggling to make ends meet in an economy ravaged by self-serving politicians and their cronies.

No Country For Old Men – Follow the adventures of a mysterious and foreboding figure who exudes fear and terror wherever he roams.

Also available on YouTube. (It’s my first YouTube video and is a little rough around the edges. I like this widget better).

For reference, these are the original posters for the Academy’s nominees:
Oscar Pix


The Clinton/Shuster Affair Winds Down

Posted by on February 14, 2008 at 1:16 pm. 2 Comments :

Word has it that David Shuster, who was suspended for using a common colloquial that is even featured in the title of a popular television show on MTV, will be returning to the air on February 22.

What’s more, Hillary Clinton, who has been railing about Shuster’s comment, and threatening to boycott MSNBC, has confirmed that she will participate in a debate on the network February 26 – the week following Shuster’s return. I always thought Clinton’s over-reaction was politically motivated, and I think this decision is as well. With her campaign teetering, she likely believes that the exposure of a nationally televised debate is more valuable than a few more days of righteous indignation.

Throughout this affair, Clinton has narrowed the scope of her rage to only MSNBC, despite the fact that Fox News has been a far worse offender. While she was considering whether to ditch the MSNBC debate, she had already accepted one on Fox (Obama did not accept and its originally scheduled date has passed).

C.U.N.T.It is unclear whether Shuster ever got credit for demanding that right-wing Republican dirty-trickster, Roger Stone, take responsibility for a profane anti-Clinton organization he founded called “Citizens United Not Timid,” or C.U.N.T. Their stated mission is to “Educate the American public about what Hillary Clinton really is.” Wow, those Republicans are really classy! Check out that logo.

Finally, Greg Sargent at Talking Points Memo has confirmed that Shuster was never really Clinton’s primary target:

“As dumb and clueless as Shuster’s “pimp” remark, this was never really about him. The Clinton campaign, while genuinely upset about what Shuster said, lashed out at the network because they were primarily irked by Matthews’ conduct…”

I still wonder when they will become irked by Fox News’ conduct.