Kerry Spot    [ jim geraghty reporting ]
[ kerry spot home | archives | email ]

Kerry Spot reader Kevin reacts to Al Gore’s INdTV:

While I’m probably not the target demographic, either, it sounds like a pretty good idea. And sounds like some pretty good cable television.

However, will it influence voters? No—at least, not in a positive way for Democrats. Will it attract serious people looking for information in making their political decisions? No. Is it the “liberal answer” to talk radio and conservative think tanks? Not hardly. Another venue to explore the same tired ideas, but with cool graphics? There ya go! Well-run with a tight budget (not normally the case when a bunch of liberals get together, who normally pay themselves first and handsomely, then if there’s anything left over they run the business) it could succeed. Will there be cooking shows and extreme makeover shows in a few years? If it stays on the air, probably.

The thing the left doesn’t understand is that, in terms of communication with the public, they’ve long surpassed saturation level. Their ideas are widely available and often taught as incontrovertible fact. Their cultural sensibilities infuse television and movies and music. Adding liberal radio stations and television networks will not make any difference—if the current level of liberal-thought hasn’t turned a person into a lefty, adding a few more talk shows isn’t going to do it. Fox and talk radio have made a difference because conservative thinking and sensibilities were no where near saturation levels in the public square.

And the always-awesome Noemie Emery writes in, “That piece was serious? I read it this morning, and was sure that it was a spoof.”

Well, when reading the New York Times or watching CBS News, you often have to play a fun round of “Guess Which Story Is a Hoax.” But the Washington Post hasn’t run something like this since the Janet Cooke days, so I think the Gore programming list the real deal.

[Posted 01/04 05:23 PM]