Neither attack was outraged or outrageous enough to create a new political conversation — let alone a tangent. This imbalance has caused some soul-searching and second-guessing in newsrooms, as reporters realize that they are being successfully manipulated by the McCain campaign. “Stop the madness,” said TIME’s own Mark Halperin, in an appearance on CNN to discuss the controversy. “I think this is the press just absolutely playing into the McCain campaign’s crocodile tears.”
By the weekend, many news organizations had mounted a backlash of their own, running prominent pieces accusing the self-branded “Straight Talking” McCain of deceiving voters. “The “Straight-Talk Express” has detoured into doublespeak,” announced the Associated Press, while the New York Times blared, “McCain Barbs Stirring Outcry as Distortions.”
I don’t buy the press “playing into the McCain campaign’s crocodile tears.” Is this some sort of Schmidt-Jedi mind trick that only works on the feeble-minded MSM?