What's Your Name Again, Honey?

-
Put aside the considerations about free speech and commercial political speech. Recognize that there are no losers when enemies from opposite ends of the political spectrum mud wrestle. By the way, the clearest winner is always the feral beast, of course. Score one for MSNBC, which cracked the Ann Coulter lightning and stole a lot of thunder from CNN's get of that other tabloidly blond.

The question is: will you have any impact when you "politely ask" a leopard to change her spots? Should you even bother? (remember, we're putting aside commercial political speech. It always make sense to raise money by demonizing your enemies.)
The best-case scenario for accountability zealotry is that everyone will then know Coulter for what she is. Trouble is, her fans already know, and love it.

We Can't All Get Along? OK.

Some people can't be ignored because of the damage they may do. But Elizabeth Edwards v. Ann Coulter isn't Joseph Welch v. Joe McCarthy. Reuters told its readers it didn't cover Coulter's "faggot" remark at a Republican event earlier this year because she is not an "accountable political person." Good call. Here's the slapdown verbatim from Paul Holmes, (former) editor for political and general news:
Ann Coulter is not an accountable political figure and what she says is not really newsworthy so I am satisfied that we took the right decision to ignore the story rather than lend further life to the slur.
Ouch.
Accountability Zealotry

The best-case scenario for accountability zealotry is that everyone will then know Coulter for what she is. Trouble is, her fans already know, and love it. She will likely get more fans from the publicity. You might get some credits in the bank of your choice by taking her on. And the shift in the political dynamic in any election will be ... none.

I can't stand Coulter. I wish she would just go away. I wish her pal and my hero Bill Maher wouldn't give her one second more of air time. But I'll get along by continuing to ignore this "not really newsworthy" person.

Now, Paris Hilton news -- that's another story.

Technorati Tags:

Comments

nicole said…
i really hate her and wish she would go away, too.
5:59 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Reuters Opinion 1.0

-
Image
R euters last week quietly ended a 156-year tradition which, more than any other, defined its character. The walls did not come tumbling down. And while for some the change might have come sooner, and for others not at all, I think it could not have come at a better time. In a blog entry Editor-in-Chief David Schlesinger announced that Reuters had begun publishing commentary written by editorial staff (Reuters also announced this change with an obligatory but quaint wire advisory). The ubiquity of "debating" partisans on cable news networks and the vitriole in what is still sadly called "the blogosphere" may make this change seem less than revolutionary. Or, for that matter, not even particularly newsworthy. But for Reuters, whose dedication to the principle of unbiased reporting stems from its desire to be an honest broker of news from every boardroom and battlefield, this is big news. It comes despite an unambiguous editorial policy about the sanctity of im
Read more

I Want My Mmmmm ... TV

-
Image
Update, Feb. 19, 2010: I review the Slingbox iPhone 3G app on Epicenter: " Hands On With the Slingbox 3G iPhone App: Ahhhhhhhhh… " For me Independence Day came a day late but not a day too soon: like my forefathers I have exercised my right, my duty to throw off the shackles of terrestrial television. That is to say, I finally got my Slingbox iPhone app working. It took a long holiday weekend to get to this task, even though I was among the first to buy this shamelessly overpriced bit of software. My love affair with the Slingbox and all that it represents began at the discount table of a Staples many years ago, where I scored what is now an ancient device which seemed to offer greater freedom than proprietary alternatives which were in great numbers then, particularly one from Sony. My model SB220-100 has served me well, as has the company (in the main); last year, when the device was well out of warranty (even if it ever was for me) they sent me a replacement power supply
Read more

Run, OJ — Run!

-
Image
Apparently the presidential election is over and the Iraq War has ended. Rejoice one and all! OJ is a criminal defendant on cable TV news again! But a funny thing happened on the way to the docket: All that pre-hearing blather about a battle royale between an over-zealous prosecutor and the famously cocky unconvicted criminal failed to materialize. Despite kidnapping and armed robbery charges that could potentially land Simpson in jail for life, the D.A and Simpson's attorneys got together and made nice and have nothing but sweet praise for each other. So OJ got bail. Bail that I could make. Bail that I would lend him — but only if he promised to skip out on it. OJ's gotta take it on the lam again. And this time he has to mean it. OK — OJ has to turn over his passport, so leaving the county would be a little problematic and that Mexican equivalent of Miami Beach might be a bit out of reach (note to self: check out CNN B Roll footage for video of holes in the fence). Bu
Read more