Dan(Rather) and Tom (Brokaw): Enough Reagan

[RamboLiberal]

http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/22590.htm

DAN Rather and Tom Brokaw work for dif ferent networks but agree one thing — coverage of Ronald Reagan's death has been excessive, they say.
"Even though everybody is respectful and wants to pay homage to the president, life does go on," Rather told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

"There is other news, like the reality of Iraq," said the "CBS Evening News" anchor. "It got very short shrift this weekend."

<snip>

"Once the herd starts moving in one direction, it's very hard to turn it, even slightly," Rather said. "Nationally, the herd has grown tremendously."

"I think just about everything is over-covered these days," said Brokaw, who anchors the "NBC Nightly News." "The spectrum is so crowded. With all the cable networks, it begins to have a 'video wall' feeling to it."

[frank frankly]

1. idiots

lying idiots

[saigon68]

55. BEDTIME FOR BONZO

[Kid_A]

2. Why do Dan Rather and Tom Brokaw hate America so much?

Hmm?

[northzax]

41. jeez, they must have spent too much time with that

commie canuck on the other network.

[Beetwasher]

3. Bwhahahahaaha! Get Yer Reagan Toilet Paper and Suppositories Here!

We got everything w/ Reagan on it! Step right up! Reagan boil lancers are 4 for a dollar!

Gee, whoda thunk it? The Reagan Beatification Ultimate Whorefest Extravaganza is making people gag? How could that be?!? Are these people un-American?

Wait until they see the Chimp's euology when he literally flays Reagan's corpse and dons his skin Buffalo Bob style, then everything will be ok again!

[UpInArms]

4. so when do Brokaw and Rather

cease to cover the whorefest?

Who do they think they are kidding? They are corporate puppets and will dance however their masters bid them.

Same bat time, same bat channel.

[Lavender Brown]

5. Notice nobody asks for Jennings' opinion

Freepers would flip if he said we should be moving on from Reagan. :eyes:

[Voltaire99]

32. Jennings' game is to appear skeptical

For all his eyebrow arching, he is remarkably docile in the face of power.

He's not quite the toady that Jim Lehrer is, admittedly. But why bother with milquetoasts when there are good critical alternatives like Newsworld International and Democracy Now?

[Lavender Brown]

45. Yeah, he's not that great

I was just referring to the criticism he got for being a Canadian in that Toby Keith Fourth of July special (or whatever it was) brouhaha. I pretty much think everyone on network news is worthless.

[playahata1]

40. Is that SUPER Mario Cuomo in your sig line?

n/t

[Lavender Brown]

44. Yes it is.

Love him.

[THUNDER HANDS]

6. there's only one reason they're doing this

TV, I mean - conservatives watch tv news and to a conservative, Reagan's death is like the Superbowl. They can't get enough coverage to satisfy them.


All i have to say is when Bill Clinton dies, there better be a freakin' MONTH of coverage.

[htuttle]

7. "I think just about everything is over-covered these days," said Brokaw

Tom,

If you've run out of ideas for stories, I can easily give you 10-20 important topics that you've completely ignored this year alone.

I'll have my agent call your agent, yada, yada.

Ciao,
htuttle

[Catfight]

8. I guess viewership has dropped since people have shut off TV

because they don't agree that Reagan was all that and a bag of lies. Keep it up DU'rs...turn off the radio and TV until we hear the truth in news.

[rumguy]

9. I'm watching Good Morning America right now

It's all Reagan and Laci Peterson...

:eyes:

[Gin]

10. here's a thought..........those comments were made to appease the folks

calling, emailing and faxing in their opposition to wall to wall RR coverage.

Pure smoke and mirrors...let the sheeple think somone is listening.... and they will shut up.

Kennedy, having been assasinated in office, did not get this much attention. That was a real heart breaker.

[Carolina]

26. I know, my beloved JFK

at the ripe young age of 46, promise unfulfilled, was MURDERED by their sort of RW pigs on a beautiful Friday afternoon and interred at Arlington on the following Monday ... FOUR awful, heartwrenching days. But it was enough.

These idiots want this distraction pageantry to go on and on for a 93 year old who did much harm and whose dreadful legacy continues to fuck-up this country today. They want to (but could never possibly) outdo the class act that was the Kennedy funeral. But less is more and as usual they've blown their wad. Enough already.

[Stuckinthebush]

11. What is the freakin' deal with the Peterson case????

Is it because a cute white woman was murdered by her upper-middle class husband? Doesn't murder happen all of the time and aren't there a number of cases that could be covered that aren't? Why this one? What is the big deal?

[LizW]

14. Good question

Pregnant women are killed all the time by their husbands or partners. I think you hit it on the head with the cute white thing. Also, the husband is cute and the media loves a charming handsome murderer.

[barbaraann]

17. It's a pro-life thing.

They are trying to establish a precedent that two people were murdered, Laci and her child.

[ElectroPrincess]

20. Agreed & Family-Fun Suggestion

Yes, the Laci Peterson case has reached ad nausea. Because the Corporations (owned by the radical right) run the USA media TV/Cable channels, I also know we will continue to learn every tawdry detail of this case.

However, our family is taking those bloated media owners on in a fun way: Every time the Peterson case is mentioned on the TV, we all race to turn the channel. It's a form of family entertainment and helps us in our quest to know *absolutely nothing* about this so called National News Story.

P.S. The same rules apply when a Kobi Bryant new item airs. <eg>

[Carolina]

28. agree but we already had this crap with

Charles Stewart... though I guess that doesn't count since he did the right thing and killed himself.

Anyway, enough already with Laci & Scott, Kobe & Skank .... :eyes:

[gvi]

47. What is your opinion?

I'm stumped by the case. Deep down inside I feel whoever killed Lacy should be punished for two deaths. I know that it will easily be abused, however. I guess we could always say that Lacy made her choice to keep the pregnacy so therefore the killer should be charged twice.

[Liberal Gramma]

19. There's a political agenda too

It has been an opportunity for the Right to have a fetus recognized as a "person." Thin edge of the wedge.

[Retrograde]

50. At least our media have the excuse it's local

Just how do the national media decide which cases are Big News? Number of blonde hairs divided by the ages of the victims?

I'm actually surprised the Peterson case is still getting such wide coverage, considering the lack of fine restaurants and night life in Redwood City. Throw in the special media parking rates that city put in place and ....what, you mean the motion to move the trial to LA (aka the media circus capital of the universe) because of "excessive publicity" in sleepy San Mateo County had another motive, like ratings? My faith in the System is severely shaken.

Sarcastically,

linda

[Raenelle]

24. I haven't turned on any news station since I heard Reagan died

I knew it would be over the top, so I figure I'll give them a week before I test out whether it's safe to go back. Thank God we have the net and now radio, so not watching any news or TV talk hasn't been that big of a deal.

[HawkerHurricane]

12. Great, guys...

now that you've given "evidence" to Rush and company that the "media is liberal", I suppose now you'll dive harder right to make up for it. Again.

[baby_bear]

13. I was pleasantly surprised by Rather last night

His news show started out with a story about Iraq, and Reagan was mentioned only fairly briefly mid-way through the half hour, in an appropriate manner and time.

s_m

[Upfront]

16. Rather Has Inproved

He is the only nightly news I watch. I can't gag any of the morning news. I would rather learn the real news on the web.

[Carolina]

30. I know, aren't Katie and Matt

disgusting. I exercise to Lifetime channel and get dressed to Designing Woman ... so much better for piece of mind and I don't leave the house PISSED OFF.

[young_at_heart]

21. Dan Rather has the best "real" news!

I refuse to watch Brokaw. Jennings has my vote for 2nd place.

[Carolina]

31. you mean ... Brokejaw!

[young_at_heart]

48. Give him a break!

When you compare the content and "hard news" that he is trying to convey, your complaint isn't that important. Just watch Fox News for a while and then go back to Dan........you'll never complain again!

[Carolina]

52. Why should I ?

I can complain all I want; they're all fucking sell-outs to their corporate owners but I'll concede that Dan is the lesser of all evils, like that's some big whoo!

American TV news is the worst which is why under the tutelage of a colleague who fled Ceaucescu's Romania, I get my news from all over the world, thank you.

[Voltaire99]

33. Why do you bother watching that silliness?

Don't you tire of sifting the corporate effluvium for some trace of insight?

For God's sake, turn Rather and his idiot lot off and watch a meaningful broadcast: get the European news shows on cable (from NWI) along with the brilliant Democracy Now.

[Piperay]

51. Rather's news is the best

of the three major networks, then Brokow's. I used to like Jennings better than Brokow but lately find Jennings absolutely worthless.

[GinaMaria]

15. The man was 93!!!!

People (Conservatives) celebrate that he had a long life and accept that his family feels relief that their and his decade of suffering is over.

What is the benefit of dragging this out? It doesn't benefit Reagan or his memory or the people who cared about him. Who does it benefit? The media if they can keep people from moving on, they will have viewers tune in and * may or may not get a blip in his numbers by keeping the focus on RR and not on his screw ups.

It's time to move on. He couldn't live forever and no one who truly cared about him would have wanted him to continue 'living' like that.

This beating of the dead horse is by people who didn't truly care about the man and they expose that through their behavior.

The American people can see that.

[Lorien]

36. Amen!

I've mostly stayed out of the Reagan discussions, but you just putinto words exactly how I've been feeling about all this!

I'm glad Brokaw and Rather said what they did. Yes, they pander to the Right and corporate interests, but by speaking out, perhaps it will give others in the media the courage to do the same.

[agingdem]

18. The way I see it is this...

the longer Reagan goes unburied (sorry if this offends anyone) the more his "legacy" come under scrutiny. I had more respect for Reagan as an Alzheimer victim (my dear friend, age 62 has recently been diagnosed with this horrific disease) than I do for Reagan the leader of the free world.

[saigon68]

22. Reagan was and is a Clueless Sock Puppet (CSP)

Now he's a Dead Clueless Sock Puppet (DCSP)

[koopie57]

53. me too!!

I had forgotten what ugly policies he put forth and all the ugly things he did cuz I felt bad for the old fart suffering the way he was, but the more I heard them talk about him, the more I remembered what a cold-hearted sob he was.

Today at work it was all we could get on the tv during lunch. Most generally they like to watch the news. And people watched a little bit of it but mostly ignored it, except for one person. So that was about 1 out of 10.

I think the media picks stories and goes with them irregardless of what interests their audience. This Scott Peterson thing I think is similar to a soap opera. I wonder if people realize it is real life they are talking about?

[jmcgowanjm]

23. Bush hated Reagan: Watch for Bush41 actions/statements

on Reagan. Just the mention of Reagan seems
to bend Bush41 out of shape.

[Dulcinea]

27. too bad he won't give the eulogy

eom

[anarchy1999]

25. See this thread for media contacts and start making phone calls...

Let all the media and Congress know we are fed up and want them to do their respective jobs. The press and media are the 4th estate, right? It is their responsibility to hold our elected officials accountable, right? At least that is what Amy Goodman says???.....

Rather and Brokaw don't hold a candle to Amy.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=1747559&mesg_id=1754006

[Francine Frensky]

29. Once Reagan is buried, can we finally speak the truth about the man?

Like, for example, that his foreign policy blunders in the 80's (giving money to Osama, selling WMD's to Saddam) are causing all of our problems today?

Or, that Doonesbury was right and something WAS wrong with Reagan's brain when he was president , and the republicans were lying and denying and covering up the problem????

I thought when he was ill it was poor form to speak of these things, but now, maybe it's ok to let the truth out.

[BiggJawn]

39. Why wait?

Is it any more true with 6 feet of dirt between him and us?

[playahata1]

42. I have already spoken my piece about Ronnie.

So feel free.

[electricmonk]

34. At work this morning

I heard them say on CNN Headline News something like 'coming up an update on Ronald Reagan' and I said to someone else in the breakroom, "What did he do? Wake from the dead? How the hell can there be yet another update?"

News Flash "Reagan Still Dead! Film at 11!"

[area51]

54. still dead

electric monk said:

"News Flash 'Reagan Still Dead! Film at 11!'"

I think the '70s Saturday Night Live TV show used to have Chevy Chase say during the newscast, "This just in, Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead."

[mike1963]

35. Bullshit. He's doing "special coverage" of a goddamn parked 747

right now.
:grr:

[ronnykmarshall]

37. New York Post?

That about says it all.

[DrBB]

38. I can think of LOTS of stories not being "overcovered"

"I think just about everything is over-covered these days," said Brokaw, who anchors the "NBC Nightly News."

True only if you don't count stories that reflect poorly on the Chimp. Those get token coverage and then dropped for the Next Big Celebrity Story.

[Zolok]

43. Brokaw thinks the coverage is excessive??

Oh Why is that?
Cause he was hoping for a mad phat pay day on the sixtieth anniversary of D-Day with his "Greatest Generation" franchise!

Hell the coverage is excessive but I don't see why Tom Brokaw has cause to complain doesn't he get paid enough to read and WRITE maudlin piffle???


www.chimesatmidnihgt.blogspot.com

[PROGRESSIVE1]

46. Dan and Tom are RIGHT!!!!

[ramapo]

49. Just say no

I haven't seen more than a glimpse of the Reagasm monopolizing the media.

I glance at the front-page article in the newspaper, leafed through the Newsweek celebration edition, and keep the TV away from "those" channels.