Stephanopoulos' divided we fall '20/20' special (a lump of BS)

All the blogs and bloggers are the same. Hillary Clinton just hired the "polarizing" Peter Dauo.

Questions for Stephanopoulos:

When is the media going to start doing its job, and stop blaming blogs for being divisive?

Does this co-called blog divisiveness impair network/cable journalists' judgment and cause them to become complicit when it comes to reporting real news?

That is not the purpose of all blog. It's not secret, to me, that the media has gone out of it's way to marginalize blogs and bloggers.

Politics is divisive, always has been. Labeling all blogs extremist is BS!

If you don't agree, fine!

Did he label all blogs "extremist?"

Apparently.

You don't agree with the OP, fine!

For example, I wouldn't call KOS an extremist, but he sure does demonize.

You're looking for confirmation of an already held belief.

...you'll defend your opinion in the face of all logic.

Some of the bloggers are doing a better job of reporting the news than the traditional media. Bloggers report without the impediment -- or caution -- of a huge bureaucracy. The traditional media claim their reporting is better researched and reliable. But, if the traditional media reports are so well researched and reliable, why did they miss the Iraq boondoggle? And why are they missing so many stories on the corruption and misdeeds of the Republicans in congress and the Bush administration? Why don't we know more about what is going on behind the scenes --- the real dirt, not the cleaned up version printed in the Wall Street Journal -- in big business.

The traditional media ignores too many stories. Bloggers dig out the dirt. Of course, when you first start to clean house, the house gets even messier than it was before. That's part of the process.

We are more divided as a nation because we (or at least some of us) are waking up to reality, filling the dustbins with dirt that has been hiding in the corners for decades. When you clean a very dirty window, the sun's glare enters the room. It can be quite a shock. In the bright sunlight the rest of the dirt in the room becomes more obvious. That is how it works. That is what is happening in the world of blogs. Bloggers are cleaning their windows -- waking up.

But out of the discord, one theme is starting to unite Americans -- disgust at the lies and the cover ups. The right sees different lies and cover ups than the left, but eventually the two sides will agree to certain middleground facts, and we will, as a nation, start cleaning up. A few diehards on each side will hold on to the disproven ideas of the earlier time, but they won't prevail.

This happened with Nixon -- and as Democrats we should not forget, and we must admit -- Nixon is the symbol of corruption and lying and cheating in American political life -- but Lyndon Johnson, for all the good things he did, was about as corrupt as they come. I haven't heard that he violated American's civil rights to the extent that Nixon did, but he was very corrupt when it came to using public resources for his friends' and backers' profit. Bush's form of corruption is very much like Johnson's. Interestingly they both administrations are closely tied to Halliburton and both presidents are from Texas.

Nearly 80% of the country agrees that the Bush administration is a failure.

http://mediamatters.org/issues_topics/search_results?qstring=stephanopoulos

Results: for stephanopoulos

ABC's Shipman on Gore: "Just look at his face. I don't think any of us ... could take him at his word"
Sunday, June 4, 2006 4:10PM

ABC's Gibson, Stephanopoulos repeated GOP spin on "pretty good" economy, ignoring that wages are barely keeping pace with inflation
Thursday, June 1, 2006 11:49AM

Network morning news shows ignored critical gaps in new Iraqi government
Monday, May 22, 2006 3:36PM

ABC, NBC continued pattern of ignoring Hayden's misleading 2002 testimony
Friday, May 19, 2006 7:20PM

Twisting logic, Stephanopoulos spun Bush's anemic poll numbers as "an opportunity"
Thursday, May 18, 2006 1:57PM

Wallace, Stephanopoulos, wires did not rebut first lady's false claim that Bush's high poll numbers were never "on the front page"
Monday, May 15, 2006 7:33PM

On ABC's This Week, Stephanopoulos let DeLay spin away on oil production
Tuesday, May 9, 2006 1:05PM

Media ignore Hayden's misleading 2002 congressional testimony, contradictory responses on NSA program
Monday, May 8, 2006 5:11PM

Media touted Bush's routine at Correspondents' dinner, ignored Colbert's skewering
Monday, May 1, 2006 3:54PM

On ABC's This Week, Stephanopoulos and Shipman touted Snow's walk-in access, but Snow said predecessors had it, too
Monday, May 1, 2006 1:13PM

NBC News, CBS News failed to note Bush flip-flop on fuel-efficiency standards
Friday, April 28, 2006 6:51PM

Fox's Gibson falsely claimed NY Times wiretapping story "may have tipped off Al Qaeda"
Tuesday, April 25, 2006 12:15PM

Will and Novak misled on climate change
Friday, April 7, 2006 4:15PM

If It's Sunday, It's Still Conservative
Tuesday, April 4, 2006 9:32AM

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for the manufacture of consent, and the manufacture of division, i should add.

See, the OP left out information from the original article that conflicts with his theory.

The article plainly states:

The second experiment was done by the University of Pennsylvania and puts a lot of the blame on the media and singles out shout TV as a big part of the problem.

Our nation has always been divided. It has never been any different. The examples are too many to discuss in detail. Blogs are simply forums in which we express our divisions -- and agreements. I agree with many DUers on issues. Before blogging we just as divided as a nation, but individuals were isolated from others who agreed with them. The blogs have made it possible for us to communicate more easily with those segments of the population who agree with our individual opinions. Journalists and political scientists are so arrogant. They are supposed to report and study the political reality not control or condemn it.

OK -- some examples of the divisions of the country in the past
Recent:
1. Vietnam War
2. Civil Rights movement
3. Women's movement

Further back
1. Union movement
2. Populist movement
3. Abolitionist movement
4. No doubt the American Revolution itself-- many, many people opposed it.

There are many more examples.

bogus demographic analysis.

But he could surprise me.

HOLY CRAP!!!!! :scared:

I don't completely agree with his premise, but I do think he is partly right.

Let's see, the MSM cheers Bush into Iraq and the American people are supposed to trust the MSM? The press runs countless stories on Bush's 'big' 2004 win which was actually one of the narrowest margins ever for a 're-elected' president. The MSM ignores the Ohio vote fraud. The MSM ignores the oncoming catastrophe of endless Republican red ink. The list goes on and on, George!

Sorry, George S. The price of admission is credibility.

telling us how bad off we'd all be if it wasn't for the rich. :eyes:

That's another popular water cooler point as well.

Bloggers are dividing the country, but Bush can stand up at a fundraiser and say that the 'opposing party' is waving the white flag of surrender!

George, you could have devoted this entire show to the divisive policies of Bush, Cheney and Rove and been right on the mark. Instead you target blogs - silly and pathetic. Put the blame where it belongs.

In todays busy age blogs/message boards like DU have become the new local pub or gathering place. But now instead of 3 like minded souls you have thousands.Is that a good thing? Well I could see where it could put you in a box and shelter you from other opnions I can see that.

At the same time though the media has come under such corporate control I hate to think what the world would be like without some outlet for information.

Howard Dean, anyone?

Little Georgie Snuffaluffiguss hasn't been watching any of the political talk shows, either, if he doesn't believe FU(X) News doesn't "demonize and divide" anyone who disagrees with Pretzeldent.

Snuffie is the biggest whore on TV. THE BIGGEST.


This is just an attempt by ABC to revive and justify their sinking ratings. Hopefully nobody will pay it any mind. The American public is sick of the media making themselves the story. This is gonna backfire big time.

I don't have an opinion about blogs, but the part about like minded people pulled to extremes is correct. It's the echo chamber effect. Think: Bush, Fox viewers.

Listen to the names we call each other. They say liberals are baby killers, support the terrorists, hate America etc. Do you think any of those describe you? Not me. So you have to think; are the terms we use to describe them any more accurate? How would we ever know unless we actually knew these people.

I think we are drifting further apart but I don't think that its unusual. Happened for sure in the 60s. The more important question is why? Why would people turn to a NEWS program that only said things they agreed with?

I read andrew sullivan's blog everyday. When I say that here, or post something he has said here, some DU posters treat me like I'm the enemy. Or an idiot. If you can't even read a post about a VERY moderate conservative who hates Bush, Rummy Cheney AND the whole of the religious right and think they are destroying America, then I think you ought to consider which one is the extreamist?