Why the PI Sucks:

[Peter_Puget]

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer deliberately mangling a quote from Congressman George Nethercutt. He'd just returned from a tour of Iraq and, like so many others, reported a much more optimistic scenario than many in the media have been reporting. He gave a talk in which he said,

 

"So the story is better than we might be led to believe – I'm – just – indicting the news people – but it's a bigger and better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day which, which, heaven forbid, is awful."

 

The Seattle P-I chopped off the quote so that it said in its subhead: "It's a better ... story than losing a couple of soldiers every day." They added in their own words: "He added that he did not want any more soldiers to be killed." But that is not an accurate rendition of the full quote. It's a device to protect themselves in what is clearly a hit-job. Nethercutt complained, "I requested that the Post-Intelligencer correct the record. They refused. And they even refused to at least run my full quote. But the P-I didn't stop there. They then wrote an editorial condemning me, repeated the quote they had deliberately distorted, and put my 'quote' next to the name of one of our fallen soldiers. To do so was completely heartless." But not unexpected. Here's how the Seattle P-I responded :

"It's a better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day," the would-be senator gaffed at a gathering Monday. The family of Pfc. Kerry Scott of Concrete, who buried their young hero Tuesday, likely would not share Nethercutt's news judgment.

 

Charming, huh? What they implied with their first story is now explicit in their editorial: that Nethercutt doesn't give a damn about the military casualties that have taken place. And once the quote is in the database, you can't escape it. Guess what? Maureen Dowd ran with it! Dowd's insinuation is particularly unfair. She wrote:

 

On Monday, Representative George Nethercutt Jr., a Republican from Washington State who visited Iraq, chimed in to help the White House: 'The story of what we've done in the postwar period is remarkable. It is a better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day.' The congressman puts the casual back in casualty.

 

Well, he would have put the casual back in casualty if he hadn't added, "which, which, heaven forbid, is awful." Doesn't that elision completely undermine Dowd's cheap shot? Dowd is not personally guilty of deliberately distorting the quote; the Seattle P-I is. But it behooves Dowd and the NYT to run a correction exonerating Nethercutt from the charge of insensitivity to the troops.

 

I guess the PI figures never let up today they ran this:

Cartoon

 

Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for this.

 

PP

 

[Dr_Flash_Amazing]

This isn't about 'Magnum, PI', is it?

[Dru]

Hey PP; next can you do some research exposing similar bias with regard to the Gore 'I invented the Internet' misquote? or don't you care about that bias huh?

[cracked]

That's disgusting. Seems like all media's been going to hell lately, anyway, but this is particularly bad.

[catbirdseat]

Would you mind cutting out the italics? It is very hard to read. Next time, I won't bother.

[Peter_Puget]

Once Gore starts operating his cable news network he can take care of himself.

[jon]

The PI is garbage, I hope they rot in hell. Mr. Nethercutt was a friend of my grandfathers and I got to spend some time with him in DC, he is a very nice and sincere person. He did a lot to support disabled veterans bills so this is bullshit that the PI is pulling this crap.

[Jopa]

jon said:

The PI is garbage, I hope they rot in hell. Mr. Nethercutt was a friend of my grandfathers and I got to spend some time with him in DC, he is a very nice and sincere person. He did a lot to support disabled veterans bills so this is bullshit that the PI is pulling this crap.

 

Can anyone quote me a newspaper that is not garbage?

[AlpineK]

The only thing I read in the Times or the PI is the cartoons and maybe the want ads.

 

I look at the picture on the front and the headlines too sometimes.

[Ursa_Eagle]

well, if you care about sports at all, it's harder to skew a report on a game (the score was ..., so-and-so scored twice, this-person threw two touchdowns, Joe Somebody hit a home run, etc.)

Being in Oregon (and thus reading the Oregonian), I read the Fry's ad three times a week and "The Edge" (fully realizing that it's very liberally biased, but it's not a serious thing anyway)

[j_b]

is there any independent proof of what he said?

[scrambler]

“The newspaper that is true to its highest mission will concern itself with the things that ought to happen tomorrow, or the next month, or the next year, and will seek to make what ought to happen come to pass…the highest mission of the press is to render public service.”

–Joseph Pulitzer

 

You can interpret Pulitzer's quote however you want it.

[j_b]

and today's PI:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/145809_nethercutted.html

 

Wednesday, October 29, 2003

 

Slice the words, story's the same

 

SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER EDITORIAL BOARD

 

Consider Rep. George Nethercutt's media condemnation over six words. He wants to be quoted in full, instead of a reporter's paraphrase that said: "He added that he did not want any more soldiers to be killed."

 

Let's concede that Nethercutt believes the death of U.S. soldiers is, heaven forbid, awful.

 

But that does not change the notion that Nethercutt wants the news media to concentrate on painting Iraq in wonderful pastels. We're making progress, don't you know? (Please ignore today's headlines.)

 

Sorry, George. You want it both ways. You want citizens to know that you care about their sons and daughters who are overseas in harm's way -- but the story you want told is not about the dangers and chaos troops face. No. You want the news to report the steady progress in Iraq as reported by the Bush administration.

 

Consider, again, the quote in question -- fleshed out a bit more.

 

"The story of what we have done in the postwar period ... is remarkable," Nethercutt said, because the coalition has been rebuilding power plants, police stations, schools and other infrastructure, as well as taking early steps toward self-governance. "So the story is better than we might be led to believe in the news. I'm indicting the news people. It's a bigger and better and more important story than losing a couple of soldiers every day, which, which, heaven forbid, is awful."

 

A bigger and better story? Thank you, George, for clarifying your callow, shallow position.

 

[allthumbs]

Thanks guys. I've canceled my subscription to the newspaper. I get all the news I can stomach right here at cc.com