Two photo ops show how obvious the media bias is against Obama.

[pdxmom]

Obama has a photo op at the bowling alley. He bowls a 37 in a 7-frame game with a child bowling some of those frames. The media response is to mock and deride and lament about how this is going to cause him trouble with the blue-collar worker. We hear about it for days and days.

Hillary has a photo op at a gas station, where she doesn't know how to pump gas, can't operate the coffee machine and then whips out her credit card to pay, while millions of people out there are suffering from the credit crunch. The media's response is basically "Oh, how quaint." They make the excuses for her and nary a word about the blue-collar worker or this photo op's impact on her campaign. It will be a one day story.

This isn't about how "out of touch" either of these candidates are. This is about how the media is definitely biased against Obama in their coverage. These two exact situations and the difference in how they are covered proves the point perfectly...the media is holding one candidate to a different standard than the other.

[casus belli]

1. Ready at 3am...

"Now if I can just get this damn coffee machine to give me coffee..."

[mattclearing]

9. How's she going to be awake at 3am if she can't get the coffee machine to work?

I'm starting to think that whole Colbert screen fixing thing was scripted.

[yourguide]

31. HAHAHAHAHA...

nice!

[snooper2]

2. They figure if they can tear him down..

the longer it will drag out and the more people will tune in to their side show...

Fuck-em..I don't watch CNN, MSGOP or Faux any more...

Top Chef was greatness last night though!



GOBAMA!

[Occam Bandage]

3. Same reason they were biased against Clinton several months ago. The media loves a tight race.

[Kali]

4. yep - think of it as a way to tell who is in front

[PVnRT]

8. You're right

The media desperately want a floor fight at the convention. Think of the ratings!

[superkia]

29. The races have to be close in order for them to be stolen and get...

away with it. This is why I feel Clinton is running such a dirty campaign, if she doesn't get in she has to damage Obama enough so that her elite boss' can still steal the close election and give it to McSame.

[bcoylepa]

5. read Rabbi Lerner's take on media

Note from Rabbi Michael Lerner

I think that the real culprit in all of this is the media and its systematic distortions of the political process in the U.S. We are in the midst of a war in which over a million have been killed and millions left homeless, many of them wounded or even scarred for the rest of their lives. We are facing the 21st century possibility of an end to human life on our planet either through nuclear war or most likely through environmental crisis. We have an economy that is collapsing around us. We are in a world in which twenty to thirty thousand people are dying of malnutrition-related diseases every day.. It is in this reality that we face major choices about who understands all this and who has the vision and the courage to provide us a path toward peace, environmental sanity, economic well-being, and a world in which kindness and generosity replaces violence and hatefulness. In the midst of all this, the media has switched the attention to the nut-case rantings of an otherwise quite intelligent preacher whose recent teachings are distorted and rejected by the candidate on whom they seek to pin responsibility.

This entire reality is so crazy and so destructive that we need to speak out in anger at the distortions the US media have fostered by focusing away from the discussions so badly needed in the U.S. today. And since this point would appear to be self-serving if made by Obama, then certainly it should be made by spiritual progressives and other rational people who haven't themselves gotten so caught up in the fun of mutual destruction that the media loves to foster as entertainment parading as news. Can't we just say "no" to this kind of stupid and quite evil media and refuse to let our attention be switched in this manipulated way?

[e-mail]

[pdxmom]

6. Thanks. I agree completely. I'm waiting to hear the media actually report

some facts regarding this gas tax holiday. If they would do that, it would be pretty obvious where the correct answer lies in that issue. But it's more fun to talk about bowling, coffee machines and Rev. Wright.

[TahitiNut]

16. Yup. Read ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x5753094

[stillcool]

7. And why should we expect anything different?

After all, they lied us into a war. Every day, it seems to me, the media by their own tactics prove how unreliable they are. The more ridiculous it gets, the further down they descend into making themselves totally irrelevant. It is a soap opera.

[tridim]

10. And notice how his b-ball pickup games are rarely shown on the MSM

Simply because he looks good on the court. I think I've seen the footage once on MSNBC.

[cottonseed]

27. Compare that with the Bush clown tour of the last few days.

I don't know if the coverage of Bush has much to do with Obama, but this clown's been on a 2 week dancing, joking, and concert playing gig and the media just LOVES it!. This is the guy that's responsible for many 100s of thousands of dead Iraqis and over 4000 dead young Americans and he gets to go out like some sort of comedy act! Crazy and Sad.

[moondust]

11. He's being Gored.

This is what the corporate media did to Al Gore and John Kerry. They paint (virtually) everything their chosen candidate says and does in a positive light or give them a free pass while painting (virtually) everything the opponent says and does in a negative light and keep hammering it into people's consciousness. A sad state of affairs.

[Quintana-Jones]

22. Hillary was also Gored

Pundits even said she became a Yankee fan only just before running for NY senator;when in fact she said she was a Yankees and Cubs fan as far back as 1993. See Media Matters. Also Drudge said without evidence her campaign circulating the Obama-Somali picture. And many more lies.

[TragedyandHope]

12. The media bias is pro-Rethug

They'll spin their coverage of Dems both ways to get what they want.

:kick:

[Mabus]

13. There's more to it than that

In the media Democrats are more often portrayed as being weak, confused about their gender and unable to relate to the "average American" while Republicans are portrayed being strong, confident and are able to communicate with the "everyman". Visuals and iconic behavior help bring home certain images and beliefs in the American public about the person being reported on.

So, in the end, both Democrats are being shown as "out of touch" with the Average American despite the lip service the media gives a story. By showing both Democrats in situations in which they appear uncomfortable, unsuccessful or having to explain themselves gives them the appearance of being weak and comedic fodder.

Obama can't bowl. This means that he doesn't relate well to the average American (even though many of them don't bowl themselves). It also means that he's incompetent because he can't do something as simple as roll a bowl and knock down some pins. Then Obama's lack of bowling skills gets blown up into a full fledged story and is talked about for days. It becomes a lasting visual that the GOP will capitalize on later if Obama is the nominee. The people who remember seeing it don't actually remember what any of the pundits said at the time but they do remember it as an iconic moment in which a Democrat fell short, again.

Hillary can't pump gas, get coffee and pays with a credit card. This means, or the Republicans will use it to show, that Hillary is incompetent because she doesn't know how to pump gas, use a coffee machine at the gas station and pays with a credit card. Her lack of getting around a gas station and paying with a credit card becomes a story for a few days. Even when they are letting her off, the pundits are still letting people know that she is out of touch with the average American. The press may blow it off now and go easy on her but the visuals are what people will remember and what the GOP will capitalize on later if Hillary is the nominee. People will remember seeing but won't remember what the pundits actually said but in their minds the whole photo op becomes an iconic moment in which a Democrat fell short, again.


In the end, it is the same type of treatment. They are just doing it from two different angles. Either way, the Democrat loses. How can we trust either of them to answer the phone at 3 a.m. when neither of them can do things as simple as bowl or pump gas? Or maybe I've become too big a cynic.

[Kaylee]

15. You are spot on with your analysis.....

The goal is to make both democratic candidates look the ass. Meanwhile, McCain is going senile before our very eyes and no one says anything.

[hfojvt]

23. not being able to pump gas is more telling IMO

Because bowling is optional, but for the average American who owns a car, pumping gas is mandatory. Most of us have 35 years of experience in pumping gas and in paying attention to gas prices. Hillary, however, has had servants or staff do her menial work for at least the last twenty years. She doesn't pump her own gas, she doesn't shop for her own groceries, she doesn't cook her own food, she doesn't wash her own dishes, she doesn't vacuum her own carpet, she doesn't do her own laundry. She doesn't live the way most of us live, and hasn't since at least 1992. The same is probably true of McCain for a long time.

Yet we pick these people to represent us, when they are not one of us. It's not a government by the people, or of the people. Is it for the people?

[Mabus]

26. Depends on where you live if you can pump your own gas

People in New Jersey don't pump their own gas (see for example: http://elsasbuzz.blogspot.com/2006/06/self-serve-gas-stations-are-illegal-in.html). Note the comment "HAHAHA we get fullserve at self serve prices. and honestly, i am terribly spoiled. the last time i had to get gas out of state, i was clueless what to do." I'm not sure if Oregon is still the same way or not but recently there were no self-serve stations there either.

And, since we moved from (Lawrence) Kansas earlier this year, we're seeing a lot of people who use public transportation and don't own cars. Our recently acquired roommate is from the San Francisco area and the first things he did here was get maps of the public transportation system (the bus and metro) and a bicycle. He hasn't owned a car in years because one of the things he looks for is accessibility to public transportation and close proximity to his work.

As for the rest of it, you're right. The media and the GOP will talk a lot about how out of touch Hillary is if she gets the nominee. And yes, it is a government for the people, it just isn't for all of us.

[crimsonblue]

14. The media isn't doing this to destroy Obama. That's giving them too much credit..

The media is simply greedy. They have had a huge influx of viewers (and therefore advertising revenue) and they want to prolong that as long as possible. From a business stand point it makes total sense. I'm confident that this is exactly what the framers had in mind. :sarcasm:

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

17. ROFL!!!! Biased Against Obama.... ROFLMAO!!!!!!!

GDP is HILARIOUS these days!!!!!

:rofl:

[pdxmom]

18. Instead of rolling around there, why don't you disprove my point. I gave

two specific and exactly related examples - photo ops by each candidate - and how the coverage was different.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

19. Your Points Were Dumb.

And if you think taking two wee little examples and claiming bias gives you some strong case somehow, then I find that even more hilarious!

:rofl:

[pdxmom]

24. Cogent and well thought-out response. I appreciate such deep thought. N/T

[democracy1st]

34. best to ignore that childish behavior from that poster

[Nedsdag]

20. No kidding!

Ed Schultz had it right on his show today. They might as well call MSNBC, the MSNBClinton Network.

Hillary is the elitist. After all, remember when she wouldn't send Chelsea to the predominately black D.C. public schools? Hello? Who's the elitist?

[Quintana-Jones]

21. Nobody denies the media is biased against Obama

But it was biased against Hillary when it mostcounted. The anti-Obama bias has started recently, and it won't cost him the nomination.

[onenote]

25. actually, I think it shows gender and racial stereotyping

HRC is female -- not expected to know how to pump gas.

Obama is a male -- an African American male -- he's supposed to be a naturally gifted athelete in every sport he tries (and a good dancer as well).

[high density]

28. "Biased" Olbermann showed the coffee clip

She was acting like my grandparents, and they're in their 80s.

Paying for gas with a credit card isn't exactly an elitist thing, though. Our newspaper recently did a report that said 85% of people around here (Maine) pay for gas with a credit card. Given that most pumps require pre-pay with cash, I don't find that's terribly surprising.

[dsc]

30. Too bad APwrote a snark filled article about this

and BTW who doesn't use their card to pay for gas now. I nearly never see anyone pay in cash anymore.

[zulchzulu]

32. EVERYONE WHO CARES! Do your duty NOW!

Go here.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=5771678&mesg_id=5773985

[krkaufman]

33. But it's not just the media, acting alone. Another factor ....

... is the degree to which one's competition is willing to exploit such events for political gain, and even going so far as to distort and exaggerate them.

[Jamastiene]

35. Last time I checked, the average blue-collar worker

was either:

a. good at bowling
b. not good at bowling
c. didn't bowl at all

What difference does it make that Obama sucks at bowling. Sfw? I do too.

I don't care if my president can bowl. I care if they want to take action to make my wallet quit hemorrhaging though. Hillary does. That's why I'm voting for her. :shrug:

[2rth2pwr]

36. Front page of Drudge = buried?

[laugle]

37. I admit it, I have a

credit card and damn I use it.....LOL

It must be a slowwwwwwww news day.................

[dogday]

38. You should be more concerned at how the media shapes our beliefs

It is obvious they can shape the outcome of a lot of situations and that makes them so dangerous...