Tuesday, January 17, 2006
A Few Kittens Leave their Catteries...
Progressive bloggers rail against biased mainstream media that pegs pundits according to their pedigree rather than clear thinking, good judgment and well-thought-out ideas. In the latest clamor, progressives came to the defense of Dan Froomkin, Washington Post blogger, when he was publicly derided by the paper's ombudsman.
As a one-time sociology major, I am more than a little familiar with stratification and status; in any job, there are always the "fat-cats" and "little-cats," usually based on power. The news business is stratified by alma mater, alliances and readership.
So the new boys and girls in town, by way of blogs, profess to dismiss ad revenue, Peabody and Pulitzer Prizes. The pure honor is only to inform readers and then laying claim to viewership currency, by virtue of wide popularity and recent Web log awards.
And it is this new medium of currency that from time to time, IMHO lead some astray. A few months ago, bloggers criticized recently elected Gov. Tim Kaine for dropping an ad from a progressive blog. And today, another blogger berates an aspiring, un-elected official for crossing his path by sending an uninvited press release, vowing to forever block any future e-mail.
Indeed, whether a would-be official pulls an ad they think might hurt their future campaign chances or sends an unsolicited press release, we are all working towards a more progressive and liberal society. Newbies should be treated by established bloggers the same way they wanted to be treated when they first started posting on their Web log.
And by the measured support from the progressive posts for the miscreant political aspirant/spammer who just so happens to be an Iraqi veteran, at least one major difference between liberals and conservatives is evident. Not everyone drinks from the same kool-aid dish; liberals can and do think for themselves. When a fat-cat is leading the litter astray, sometimes kittens go a-cat walking.
Progressive bloggers rail against biased mainstream media that pegs pundits according to their pedigree rather than clear thinking, good judgment and well-thought-out ideas. In the latest clamor, progressives came to the defense of Dan Froomkin, Washington Post blogger, when he was publicly derided by the paper's ombudsman.
As a one-time sociology major, I am more than a little familiar with stratification and status; in any job, there are always the "fat-cats" and "little-cats," usually based on power. The news business is stratified by alma mater, alliances and readership.
So the new boys and girls in town, by way of blogs, profess to dismiss ad revenue, Peabody and Pulitzer Prizes. The pure honor is only to inform readers and then laying claim to viewership currency, by virtue of wide popularity and recent Web log awards.
And it is this new medium of currency that from time to time, IMHO lead some astray. A few months ago, bloggers criticized recently elected Gov. Tim Kaine for dropping an ad from a progressive blog. And today, another blogger berates an aspiring, un-elected official for crossing his path by sending an uninvited press release, vowing to forever block any future e-mail.
And like good little kittens worthy of some O'Reilly, Limbaugh or Hannity catnip, a number of bloggers supported the public flogging. Fortunately, more than a few brave souls also dared to say, hey, get over yourself. Meow, meow...I just got spam from some Democrat running for Congress in Pennsylvania. He felt it very important that I know that he helped rebuild some house today...
[W]hen Patrick Murphy's assistant sends me a press release telling me he helped rebuild the home of a disabled Marine, I want to rip the head off small kittens...
Send me a press release on any topic and you die...
Mr. Murphy's entire campaign is now permanently in my spam filter, no email from anyone there will ever see my in-box ever again.
Indeed, whether a would-be official pulls an ad they think might hurt their future campaign chances or sends an unsolicited press release, we are all working towards a more progressive and liberal society. Newbies should be treated by established bloggers the same way they wanted to be treated when they first started posting on their Web log.
And by the measured support from the progressive posts for the miscreant political aspirant/spammer who just so happens to be an Iraqi veteran, at least one major difference between liberals and conservatives is evident. Not everyone drinks from the same kool-aid dish; liberals can and do think for themselves. When a fat-cat is leading the litter astray, sometimes kittens go a-cat walking.
// posted by Howling Latina @ 4:30 PM 
