Our Lapdog Media. OUR LAPDOG MEDIA….Patrick Nielsen Hayden has a good post about the difference between the American media and the British media when it comes to interviewing politicians. Short version: their reporters insist that politicians actually answer their questions, ours just accept… [CalPundit]
And Patrick Nielsen Hayden also provides this comment, that I believe is right on target:
I think Claude Munsey nails it: The British system requires ministers, including the Prime Minister, to regularly and publicly face hostile questioning from the opposition. As a result, the ability to handle one’s self under such a barrage isn’t just desirable; it’s something that ambitious politicians go out of their way to flaunt. When Tony Blair goes on TV to be grilled by a Dimbleby, he isn’t saying ‘I recognize that I owe a debt of accountability to the citizenry.’ (Indeed, accountability isn’t really one of Blair’s strong suits.) Rather, what he’s saying is ‘I am now going to remind all of you that I am one tough son of a bitch.’
A Man With A Ph.D. 