Joe The Plumber Fights With Israeli Reporter

[meegbear]

Joe the Plumber has been reporting from Israel in his new position as Pajamas Media war correspondent.

The campaign trail celebrity went to war to correct what he saw as a glaring oversight in the journalism field: "They're supposed to bring the news to you unbiased. They're supposed to actually report it and then let you make your opinion ... What I can provide are actual real questions and get real answers. I'm not talking manufactured answers, I'm not talking soundbites...And uh, not giving it any kind of slants."

Talking to reporters in Israel, Joe went even further, suggesting that journalists shouldn't be allowed anywhere near war zones: "I don't think journalists should be anywhere allowed war (sic). I mean, you guys report where our troops are at. You report what's happening day to day. You make a big deal out of it. I think it's asinine. You know, I liked back in World War I and World War II when you'd go to the theater and you'd see your troops on, you know, the screen and everyone would be real excited and happy for them. Now everyone's got an opinion and wants to downer-and down soldiers. You know, American soldiers or Israeli soldiers."

It's not clear how this philosophy jibes with this exchange, transcribed by Firedoglake, where Joe tries to force an Israeli reporter to judge whether or not the country is "bad."

JOE: The story here is people are being killed and the media's slanting it and trying to make it Hamas is, uh, as far as, that Israel's being bad. Do you believe Israel is bad?

REPORTER: Do I believe it?

JOE: Yeah, do you?!

REPORTER: I'm Israeli, so...

JOE: So answer the question!

REPORTER: No, I don't think Israel is bad.

JOE: Do you think Israel has every right to protect itself?

REPORTER: Yeah.

(pause)

JOE: You do?!

REPORTER: Yeah.

JOE: Have you said that on air?

REPORTER: I'm just a reporter.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/12/joe-the-plumber-fights-wi_n_157239.html

[el_bryanto]

1. What journalistic Insight

Why hasn't Joe the Plumber been reporting for years?

Bryant

[calimary]

2. Oh for the Love of God...

As a retired reporter myself, my reaction, with rolling eyes, is - "there goes the neighborhood."

[RoseMead]

20. Right there with ya

I have a jouralism degree, and worked as a copyeditor for several years. This Joe the Journalist shit makes wanna spit.

On Joe.

Over and over and over.

[NJmaverick]

3. Joe the Plumber sounds (and has sounded) like your typical nutcase freeper

[maxrandb]

17. Who graduated from the Hannity Debate School

Joe: "Yes or no, have you stopped beating your wife?"

Reporter: "I neve......"

Joe: "I didn't ask that. Yes or No, have you stopped beating your wife?"

Reporter: "But I neve....."

Joe: "Can you answer the question?"

:eyes:

[patrice]

4. Yeah, Joe, we should always just let GOVERNMENT use O - U - R People for whatver,

no questions asked.

[Fleshdancer]

5. oh dear Goddess. He's the male version of Sarah Palin.

I'm glad we got Obama out of all this because the 2008 election year was full of right wing stupid...more so than usual.

[Peacetrain]

6. Reporters have been killed, maimed, tortured, .. and you have

this yahoo putting his big backside out there to trade on his 15 minutes of fame. What an embarrassment

[TheCowsCameHome]

7. It's a mating ritual. He wants Palin to leave Toad and run off with him

This guy is so pathetic.

[RoseMead]

21. Ewwwww!

Now I want to poke out my mind's eye.

[Winterblues]

8. So Joe thinks Opinion is to be treated as real news

What a "journalist" he is. Typical of the Republican (FOX News) mindset..

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

9. Yeah, back in WWII when Joe was -23 years old.

downer-and down soldiers

Is this some kind of newfangled kid slang? I don't understand it at all.

[InternalDialogue]

14. Not only was he -23, but he was seeing pictures of soldiers he could cheer for

that were apparently being broadcast to him magically -- not brought to him by journalists, because they shouldn't be allowed near war.

If I follow his logic (what there is of it), and I think I do.

[baldguy]

19. "...you'd see your troops on...the screen and everyone would be real excited and happy for them."

Why do I get the feeling he was more impressed by "Triumph Of The Will" more than "Why We Fight"?

[mtnester]

29. Here is some more magic he believes in

[maxrandb]

22. "Uppers and Downers

Either Way Blood Flows"

Thanks Pete!

[Jello Biafra]

10. When is Joe the Plumber.....

going to join the Faux News lineup? He could be on w/Hannity?

[Sebastian Doyle]

11. So how long before FAUX puts this moran on the air?

"Hannity & Weaselfucker" maybe?

[polly7]

12. self-delete. wasn't nice.

[beac]

13. Joe is really raising the art of assholery to a WHOLE new level.

Though I do hope the Pentagon is negotiating with him for the rights to his amazing Do-Over Technology that keeps re-setting his 15 minute clock back to zero again and again and again...

[gratuitous]

15. "Joe the Plumber reporting for Ugly American News"

You know that once he high-tails his worthless carcass out of the Middle East, everyone who encountered him there is just going to shake their heads and wonder what the fuck that was all about.

[maxrandb]

23. Hell

82% of Americans who've ecountered him go away shaking their heads and wondering :wtf:

[gratuitous]

24. I'm in the other 18%

The portion who think that Sacha Baron Cohen did it first and better in Borat, but that it wasn't especially good or funny then.

[SidDithers]

16. From unlicensed plumber to amateur journalist...

doesn't this idiot realize that some jobs (most jobs) aren't just hobbies, and that people study and train for years to excel in their professions?

Sid

[Hubert Flottz]

28. Joe of all trades, master of none.

He reminds me of Mr Clean.

[Warren DeMontague]

18. My God. If these people get any dumber...

I don't know. Maybe they'll hit some sort of idiocy critical mass, warp the space time continuum, that kind of thing.

[Swamp Rat]

25. Joe the Slug better be careful.

He might replace the 'Moran' guy as America's official village idiot.

[radfringe]

26. does anyone know which "conservative" group is

'funding' joe the distorter on his insightful, hard hitting, journey into journalism?

I haven't heard any group named specifically - it's just been reported as a "conservative group"

[Hubert Flottz]

27. Joe might be a plumber but he don't know Jack Schitt!

Fighting Joe The Hooker needs to sign up for boot camp and take his turn in the Army if he wants to really help out.

[spanone]

30. he's an insult to people who do this for a living...get the low-life mofo outta there

[treestar]

31. Why should we be happy and excited for soldiers?

Shouldn't we be more like, I don't know, worried for them?

[spoony]

32. Sounds like he learned the art of interviewing from Nancy Grace

And I think it's high time to make the whole "fifteen minutes of fame" thing a law, to keep these turds from bobbing back to the surface all the time!