Just yesterday, I was complaining about the way Media Matters has contributed to the distortion of John McCain's comments about staying 100 years in Iraq. And then today (Via Matthew Yglesias) I learn that David Brock, the head of Media Matters, is leading an independent group planning a $40 million attack campaign against McCain. It's all starting to make sense.
PS Doesn't Brock realize that his leadership of this effort will hurt the credibility of Media Matters? The group has succeeded in large part because its articles are written in a neutral style and provide documented support for their claims. By contrast, paid advertising is almost inevitably unfair and poorly documented -- often by design since the ad's creators often want to generate controversy to ensure attention from the press. In other words, Brock is likely to be leading a smear campaign against McCain at the same time he's decrying a smear campaign against Obama. Good times!
written in a neutral style and provide documented support for their claims.
So, the backer's bias completely trumps well written information with documented support?
Posted by: Patrick | April 11, 2008 at 12:11 PM
Nyhan, literalist as you are, do you understand that McCain has made lists of the horrible things that face our country in the other "WARS" that McCain has expressly said we will be in? You're giving McCain a free pass on one (repeated) line while missing that he's clearly explained that he foresees "more wars".
It can be fairly expected that McCain is comfortable with at least EIGHT years of war under his administration. If you want to pretend otherwise by using literal language, remember that literal language in 2000 had Bush saying America would have a restrained foreign policy.
Please don't help McCain spin his comments into something innocuous, McCain's told you literally and clearly that there will be more wars.
Posted by: McCain Years | April 11, 2008 at 10:10 PM