They never learn.
It’s been a little over two years since Andy Birkey of the Minnesota “Independent” first sniffed that Rep. Michele Bachmann “only does sympathetic media”.
Of course, it makes perfect sense for Bachmann; she represents a conservative district; talking with hostile media (and when it comes to the Twin Cities media, “hostile” is not just a rhetorical term) makes as much sense as a frontrunner looking at a comfortable 30-40 point margin agreeing to debate a non-entity opponent.
Still, let’s accept at face value the proposition that candidates talking with media that oppose them is a good thing.
Two years ago, after Birkey wrote his grand attack on Bachmann, I figured I’d see if the pancake was brown on both sides. I contacted RT Rybak, Chris Coleman, Dave Thune, Keith Ellison, Betty McCollum, Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, and asked them to come on the Northern Alliance with Ed and I – and wrote about the experience.
Summary: Except for Rybak – with whom Ed and I had an excellent, civil, respectful, serious-yet-fun discussion focusing on actual issues rather than the “ambush the bad guy” crap that Bachmann can usually expect – none of them did us the courtesy of so much as a brusque brush-off.
The Clark campaign must be getting desperate to make something stick, or at least to get donors in the Twin Cities to pony up; the story’s baaaaaack. According to Paul Schmelzer at the Mindy, Bachmann snubbed CNN:
“She says God called her to run for Congress, so rushing to the media outlets that transmit her views without question is a priority, but for members of the press who might have some harder questions? Different treatment — because Bachmann thinks some in the media are out to get her,” says Tuchman.
“Speed-walking in heels through political mud,” Bachmann is shown rushing between interviews with conservative media including KTLK’s Jason Lewis, Christian radio station KKMS and The Patriot.
So they got completely shunned?
CNN is shooed away by Bachmann’s handlers, but later she agrees to an interview, but only two questions.
Ah. So Bachmann, who leads Taxin’ Tarryl Clark by nine points and will likely win by at least ten, didn’t shut CNN out; she merely didn’t treat them with the deference to which they’re accustomed.
But in the interest of getting the whole story out there: during the run-up to the Minnesota State Fair and our long string of extra weekday broadcasts, I contacted the DFL about getting Mike Hatch Mark Dayton, Yvette Prettner-Solon, Mark Ritchie, Mike Hatch Lorie Swanson, Rebecca Otto, Keith Ellison and Betty McCollum on the show, for the same, exact, respectful-but-pointed interview we gave RT Rybak.
The DFL roundly turned us down at every turn.
So let me get this straight; the GOP is wrong for not facing hostile media, but Democrats are…
…well, still universally just as gutless as the Mindy and CNN want people to think Bachmann is.
So Schmelzer simply repeats the accusations of a CNN reporter.
Who cares? They have no authority to determine which candidates should talk to which media outlets.
At one point in the CNN piece “journalist” Tuchman says that Bachmann is in lock step with socially conservative Tea Party activists & demonstrated this by attending Glen Beck’s rally in DC — but the Tea Party is not particularly socially conservative & Beck is in favor of same sex marriage. Bachmann is against SSM so CNN misrepresented the facts in order to push their narrative. Tuchman spends a short time talking with Tarryl Clark. He asks Clark no challenging questions. Immediately after this softball session, Tuchman accuses Bachmann of ignoring those who do not agree with her.
I wish that that the independent, “unbiased” folks at CNN would spend as much time obsessing about Obama’s religious views as they do Bachmann’s.
Don’t hold your breath waiting for it.
Mitch, I look forward to your Saturday NARN interview of Tarryl Clark with breathless anticipation.
Well, maybe I had best breath.
Seems to me that the Barry and his spurious crew shunned certain elements of the media at one time. I don’t remember CNN crying to much at that time.
Remember this: http://hotair.com/archives/2009/10/12/fox-news-wh-told-us-last-week-obama-wont-do-any-interviews-with-us-this-year/
Deegee to start the BDS spittle in 4… 3… 2…
Remember Cindy Sheehan? Anti-war activist and goldstar mother?
The last story CNN has about her is dated 2007.
http://articles.cnn.com/keyword/cindy-sheehan
Sheehan ran for congress (unsuccessfully) in 2008. In 2009 she led a group of protesters outside ex-president Bush’s neighborhood and outside of Martha’s Vineyard while Obama was vacationing there. In 2009 & 2010 Sheehan and a group of anti-war protesters were arrested outside of the White House, while demonstrating against Obama’s wars.
No coverage from CNN.
At least the NARN is upfront about its biases.
K-Rod, Deegee’s missing in action…we think (hope) that she’s in rehab, but it may just be an extended Victory gin binge.
I was on vacation for a week+ in Glacier National Park… it is absolutly beautiful there.
I didn’t see any ginned up liberal with a pack of dogs… anyone check Hazelden?
After the media (90% of whom donate to and vote for Democrats) admiration of the sharp elbows the ’08 Obama Campaign wielded against any non-conforming-reporter or unlicensed plumber who posed a question deemed hostile to The One – their effort to paint Bachmann as unique in her avoidance of hostile media is as an amazing display of chutzpah as I’ve ever seen. The Obama Administration attempted and failed (thank goodness) in their efforts to target and/or freeze out non-conformist media, yet Michelle Bachmann not giving low rated CNN an exclusive to ask loaded, ill-premised questions and debate her on the issues is considered hostility to the media. As Yakhov Smirnoff might have said – What a Country!
anyone check Hazelden?
She might be in the Mark Dayton wing.
Didn’t Michelle Bachman get sandbagged late in the ’08 race by Chris Matthews and a silly dispute over whether Obama was patriotic or not? She then backed off and declared Obama was patriotic. It turned out she was right in the first place. Anyway, I kept wondering “Why did she go on with Chris Matthews late in the race? What did she hope to gain by that? Reach out to a few hundred thousand liberals?”
Don’t make the same mistake twice.