The Corner

Passivity and Straw men

If you want to see a prime example of a straw man argument, check out Isaac Chotiner’s response to the issue of the passive voice in reporting.  In answer to your questions, Isaac:  Terrorists set off bombs and behead individuals.  Militias conduct sectarian killings.  Corrupt police are the problem we need to tackle.  Heck, I seem to remember writing about some of this in The New Republic.  The question of voice in writing is not a liberal versus conservative issue, and is a problem across the board.  Are you really defending the omission of subjects in journalism?

Michael Rubin is Director of Policy Analysis at the Middle East Forum and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
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