Failing Grade...License All The Pundits.

[maddezmom]

By Alan Bisbort Can you name one mainstream media expert who has been right (er, correct) about anything of importance in the past six years? I can’t. (Well, OK, Paul Krugman is so consistently correct that we almost take him for granted). Sure, there are those who are consistently wrong because they are borderline insane: Charles Krauthammer, William Kristol, Hannity, O’Reilly, Coulter, Novak, etc. You can practically see the drool dribbling from the corners of their mouths when they speak.

But then, there are those who are considered more civil, thoughtful members of the Beltway Punditry Class, like Thomas Friedman, David Broder, Juan Williams, George Will and any of the interchangeable parts on the PBS NewsHour . For the past three years or so, these pundits have insisted that the “nation is divided” and “the nation is torn.” But that’s a false narrative, on its face. It reflects no-longer-functioning brains, lazy habits, or their own insulated chit-chat on the D.C. cocktail party circuit. It bears little resemblance to reality beyond the Beltway. The only thing it proves is how ridiculously easy it is to be a pundit these days.

The truth is that never, in my lifetime, has the nation been less divided. Nearly 8 of every 10 Americans are against Bush and his war. That’s a landslide of consensus. The dangerous extremists are the ones in power. “Divided” would be 50 percent for something and 50 percent against something. Bush’s approval rating is 28 percent and Cheney’s approval rating is, as Sen. Harry Reid recently said, 9 percent. We Americans are pretty much on the same sheet of music here. We all agree that these two criminals — and the party that enabled them — comprise one of the worst blights in our nation’s history.

Something is needed to bring more honesty back to political reportage and commentary. Since no member of the mainstream media would willingly change their tune — and thus jeopardize access to Laura Bush’s fascinating disquisitions on libraries or Georgie’s Crawford barbecues — licensing might be a good start. That is, all pundits must apply for licenses, correctly answer basic true-false questions about our system of government, pay a modest fee and then be reviewed periodically. If they’re so profoundly wrong about something that people get killed as a result, they lose their pundit license permanently. If they’re so profoundly wrong about something and don’t admit it, apologize and correct themselves, they lose their license for one year. If they disseminate false narratives and White House talking points, they must move to Texas. And so on.

more:http://www.ctnow.com/custom/nmm/hartfordadvocate/hce-hta-0517-ht21nc2bisbort21.artmay17,0,6487945.story?coll=hce-headlines-%27%c3%83%83%83%83

[Jade Fox]

1. This is a good idea.....

The Punditry mess on the media needs to be stopped, somehow. This is the only concrete idea I've heard from anyone. It might not work, but at least it's a proposal.

Where else would a nearly perfect record of failure not get you fired? The media pundits are out of control.

[monmouth]

2. Timmeh should receive a copy of this along with David Broder..n/t