The Majority Of Americans Are Idiots
Wingnutters are quick to accuse us lefties of being woefully out of touch with what the “majority” of Americans think and/or feel.
With that in mind, consider this from Salon:
According to an Annenberg poll conducted this spring, about 40 percent of Americans consider Fox News talk show host Bill O’Reilly a “journalist” — while only 30 percent of the people surveyed said they considered famed Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward to be one. … Meanwhile, more than a quarter surveyed said that another champion of judicious reportage, radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, was a journalist.
People are stupid. I can live with being out of touch with these waterheads.
O’Reilly is no more a journalist than Sean Hannity, Alan Colmes, Gloria Alred, or Larry Elder. They are all commentators. Woodward on the other hand is what most journalists would like to be.
You cherry-picked the report. Here’s more:
“The survey also asked about six other news media figures. Seventy-nine percent of the public said Peter Jennings, the ABC News anchor, was a journalist, 64 percent said Mike Wallace of CBS’ “60 Minutes,†was one, and 48 percent said Katie Couric, co-host of NBC’s “Today Show†was one. Forty-two percent said Brian Williams, the new anchor of the “NBC Nightly News†was a journalist, 37 percent said Larry King, the CNN interviewer, was one, and 33 percent said Chris Matthews, host of MSNBC’s “Hardball,†was one.”
It doesn’t look like it’s only conservative commentators who are thought of this way. So how do you get “a majority of Americans are idiots” out of this data?
He “cherry picked” the only facts that were pertinent to his point.
21% did NOT think Peter Jennings was a journalist. 36% did NOT think Mike Wallace was a journalist. That’s pretty scary. If those guys aren’t journalists, who is? While those facts may not prove that a majority of Americans are idiots, it shows that 36% of them are.
Tim, do you think Jennings is a journalist? Do you think Rush Limbaugh is a journalist?
The results on Katie Couric, Brian Williams, etc. don’t really support or contradict Chuck’s point. Nor do they support yours. Is Katie Couric liberal? Who knows and who cares?
Butcher,
I am simply showing by illustration that Chuck’s point isn’t valid. According to the part of the survey he left out, 33% of respondents thought that Chris Matthews is a journalists which is similar to the 40% score for Bill O’Reilly. Now those two definitely aren’t of the same political persuasion.
It could simply be that people make a distinction that the professional journalists do not. Folks may simply think of commentators like Mr. O’Reilly or Peter Jennings for that matter as “TV journalists” for lack of a better term. Who knows?
One thing’s for sure, whatever the percentages it doesn’t make people “idiots” for expressing their opinion either way. I think too often people simply pass judgment on others based upon ideology.
It’s not the expression of opinions. It’s the matter that a lot of the same people who think O’Reilly is a journalist also believe things that are demonstrably not true. Like that Iraq was linked to 9/11 and such. Believing things that are demonstrably not true qualifies one as an ‘idiot’.
From Merriam-Webster online dictionary:
Main Entry: jour·nal·ist
Pronunciation: -n&l-ist
Function: noun
1 a : a person engaged in journalism; especially : a writer or editor for a news medium b : a writer who aims at a mass audience
2 : a person who keeps a journal
And to make sure here’s their definition of journalism:
1 a : the collection and editing of news for presentation through the media b : the public press c : an academic study concerned with the collection and editing of news or the management of a news medium
2 a : writing designed for publication in a newspaper or magazine b : writing characterized by a direct presentation of facts or description of events without an attempt at interpretation c : writing designed to appeal to current popular taste or public interest
By those definitions they could all be journalists. Hell, we’re even journalists by that definition. Maybe commentator isn’t really the word I wanted. Maybe it’s opinionist. That’s what the others really are. Woodward trys to keep his bias out of his reporting. He’s not always successful but I think he trys.
Btw, Maxine Waters thinks Gloria Alred is a journalist.
Good point, Don. Although the thought that I’m a journalist makes me feel like I have to be … ugh … responsible. (LOL).
But Bob Woodward is definitely more of a journalist than Rush OR Matthews. Thus the puzzling results of the survey …
I think most of us who maintain the distinction think of definition 2b: writing characterized by a direct presentation of facts or description of events without an attempt at interpretation.
Go figger.