Click Your Heels Three Times.......

Just an observation to start the week. We seem to be constantly bombarded by the words "Liberal Media" from the folks on the right, usually followed by a comment that "they" lie and/or spin the truth, which is why Faux News serves America by providing "the truth."  To check this assertion, I just took a look at "Punditfact" (a subset of the conservative fact checking, "Politifact" which fact checks talking heads from many sources. The first page has statements from 21 sources and the truth ratings thereof.  Five of the statements are apolitical, and rated “true” or “mostly true”, but don't  have identifiable partisan points of view.

 Of the 16 remaining, seven are statements from either centrist or liberal pundits, from Rachel Maddow to Wolf Blitzer. Of these seven, four are rated “Totally true”, two others “mostly true,” and one “half true”. Interestingly enough, the last one, a statement about chained CPI budget increases, is only rated half true because of a difference in opinion regarding amount saved, not the principle involved.  So, in plainest terms, none of the “liberal media” pundits was untruthful or deceptive, as charged by the far right.

On the other hand, of the remaining nine statements, four,  by Far Right sources, from  Bill Kristol,  to Kai Ryssdale, Ralph Reed and Rush Limbaugh are rated “totally false” (lies);  statements from several conservative bloggers and Ted Nugent are rated “Pants on Fire” (lying sons of bitches), two (Dick Cheyney, and Michael Reagan) are rated “mostly false” (deceitful), and the only one rated ‘half true” was from Sarah Palin, and the part of that statement which was false, was, of course a backhand slap at President Obama.  When the most reliable you have  is Palin, you are truly mired deep in the swamp of misinformation!

All this raises the valid question, if you as a political conservative claim that the “liberal media”  lies about and spins issues, why does the Pulitzer Prize winning and self proclaimed “conservative” fact checker prove that your statement is, in their words, “Pants on Fire?” It feels like Dorothy trying to get back to Kansas, by hoping that wishing it to be  true will make it so. How pathetic.

 On a personal note, I am aware that several self styled conservatives read my posts, and sometimes offer differing opinions of their own, which is cool, but why do I never hear anything in mitigation, contradiction, or explanation on this particular topic? It's almost as if the "liberal media" construct is just a dirty little conservative family secret, sort of like: "Yeah, we know it's bullshit, but some of our adherents are dumb enough to believe it, and that's how we keep 'em on the team."