Musings …

Category: Media

  • We Must Expand Our Decency and Goodness to Include the Victims!

    In yesterday’s Facebook post I said:

    “Giuliani has Covid.”

    “Please media, if you are disinclined to say, in light of the people who have died because of him and his ilk, and in light of the heartbreak of countless friends, associates, and relatives, “Maybe there’s justice in the World,” just say NOTHING!

    This morning I was pleasantly surprised:

    Apparently my words, or sentiment, or cosmic coincidence, have reached some in the media. This morning, Stephanie Ruhle said that Giuliani had Covid. She and members of her family are recovering from Covid and she is doing her show from home. She mentioned Giuliani to introduce her opening segment on the devastation of the disease and continued with an explanation of her situation and all the “right” things she and her family have been doing and are continuing to do. Saying Giuliani had Covid was ALL she said about him. THANK YOU STEPHANIE!

    It is not necessary to go on to say the considerate and empathetic things that decent people feel the need to say, and that their inherent goodness compels them to do. Our compulsion should be to express our decency, goodness and empathy by ALWAYS INCLUDING our consideration of the victims, and by ALWAYS TAKING INTO ACCOUNT that the people who are responsible for promoting a carnage have disqualified themselves from any soothing.

    Earlier, Mika Brzezinski, responding to a tweet from Giuliani went much farther. She said, “Well isn’t that nice for him!”

    Media, if you can’t bring yourself to be like Mika, then do as Stephanie did. Just say NOTHING!

  • Please Media, Don’t Shortcut the Facts – Trump Broke the Law – He Did NOT Admit To It

    Dear Media,

    Stop saying that Trump admitted that he broke the law. He did NOT do that. He admitted that he DID the things that ARE against the law. But these are not the same.

    Please! Say what he did, explain the law and the significance of that law, and then say that he acknowledged doing those things.

    Saying that Trump admitted that he broke the law can be countered successfully with a plain denial. Reiterating what he did, making clear the wrong, and then his admission to that, will keep the whole story in context. When you raise the subject, the public will be fully informed. It is the whole story: what he did; that it broke the law; that it was a critical law; that he said he did that thing, that will have the best chance of being understood, appreciated, resonate, and be remembered!

  • Trump Did Not Admit That He Broke the Law

    Dear Media,

    Stop saying that Trump admitted that he broke the law. He did NOT do that. He admitted that he DID the things that ARE against the law. But these are not the same.

    Please! Say what he did, explain the law and the significance of that law, and then say that he acknowledged doing those things.

    Saying that Trump admitted that he broke the law can be countered successfully with a plain denial. Reiterating what he did, making clear the wrong, and then his admission to that, will keep the whole story in context. When you raise the subject, the public will be fully informed. It is the whole story: what he did; that it broke the law; that it was a critical law; that he said he did that thing, that will have the best chance of being understood, appreciated, resonate, and be remembered!

  • Three Strikes and Your Out Rule For Rude Guests

    This morning, spoken with desperation and a quaver in his voice, so rapidly it was hard to make out, Jake Tapper said to Jim Jordan, “AIl right, Congressman Jordan, we appreciate your appearance. Thank you so much for being here. My next guest …

    Those are the perfect words for releasing a guest, but they were spoken far too late. I like Jake Tapper, but he puts up with much too much. How about a three strikes and your out rule. The guest doesn’t need to be told the rule in advance. If Jake and other hosts applied the rule, we would still suffer, but for just three strikes.

    Three outrageous statements and you’re out: ONE for an outrageous statement; TWO for the second after being called on the first; and THREE for ignoring the call on the second.

    A host could then calmly say, “All right, [whomever] … My next guest is …” in a normal voice, without the quaver.