The inquiring minds at Salon: The so-called democratization of media has taught us many lessons.
Elite gatekeepers are no longer there to censor and sift the things we can hear. Each separate tribe now gets to have its own say.
This morning, the corporate “liberal” tribe was saying the things shown below at Salon. These reports were all sitting there when we clicked to a site which started out as an intelligent liberal org:
The right’s Lena Dunham nonsense just won’t stopThe right’s Lena Dunham nonsense won’t stop? Pseudo-libs, let’s heal ourselves!
Imputing predatory notions and alleging "abuse" is really an attempt to silence and victimize courageous women
EMILY GOULD
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 06:22 PM EST
What Dunham’s defenders are missing: Her story about her sister could have been a teaching opportunity
The National Review piece is vitriolic and offensive. But it should still be a starting point for more conversation
CAROLYN EDGAR
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 04:09 PM EST
“People narrating their own experiences”: Lena Dunham allegations overlook her sister’s perspective
Sex abuse and white privilege are real. But that doesn't change the facts or importance of Grace Dunham's position
KATIE MCDONOUGH
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 02:54 PM EST
Lena Dunham reportedly threatens lawsuit over sexual abuse allegations
The conservative website Truth Revolt issued a fiery, misguided response to the star's cease and desist letter
JENNY KUTNER
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 03:59 PM EST
Lena Dunham’s sister responds to “sexual abuse” allegations
"I'm committed to people ... determining for themselves what has and has not been harmful"
JOANNA ROTHKOPF
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 12:46 PM EST
The right’s “abuse” claim against Lena Dunham is deeply misguided
Her childhood anecdote may be sketchy, but the way it's been twisted is disgusting
MARY ELIZABETH WILLIAMS
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 10:15 AM EST
This latest deeply delicious flap concerns an anecdote in Dunham’s book which pretty much couldn’t have happened in the way it’s described. To her credit, Edgar was able to spot this apparent problem in her piece at Salon.
Elsewhere in the culture, the ability to spot an apparent absurdity has pretty much gone by the board.
We don’t mean to suggest that Salon was pursuing no other hard-hitting topics this morning. We were also invited to click on these thoughtful “think pieces:”
Emma Watson dedicates prestigious acting award to her late hamsterWho decided to create this new Salon? Has the approach worked out on a financial basis?
The film star gave a different kind of invigorating speech in honor of her deceased pet, Millie
JENNY KUTNER
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 10:54 AM EST
Ann Patchett sends New York Times correction, clarifies she is not married to her dog
"While my love for my dog is deep, he married a dog named Maggie at Parnassus Books last summer," the author wrote
JENNY KUTNER
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 01:31 PM EST
Strip clubs! G-strings! Sex work! The GOP tries to sell a new “war on women”
Forget the assaults on reproductive rights. The GOP is attacking Democrats for accepting "dirty strip club cash"
TRACY CLARK-FLORY
MONDAY, NOV 3, 2014 07:01 PM EST
For someone with investigative skills, those questions beg to be answered. In the meantime, we all continue to learn a lesson from the democratization process:
For the first time in human history, we’re finally getting a chance to see how remarkably dumb we all are!
Just a guess:
The plutocrats are counting on this as they tighten their grip on the world.
Yesirree! "Musings on the mainstream press corps" which these days seems to consist entirely of:
ReplyDeleteThe New York Times
MSNBC
Salon
It is quite amusing to watch Somerby rant about other people focusing on things that don't really matter.
If you think this media doesn't matter, why are you here?
DeleteBecause there is obviously great value in a so-called media criticism site that can't possibly grasp how "media" has changed over the 16-year life of this blog.
DeleteWhat happened to the annual fundraising drive?
ReplyDeleteNo update on how it's going? No report on its overwhelming success? Not even a public thank-you to the throngs who donated. not to mention thank-you e-mails to the donors?
You don't want much for your money, do you?
DeleteWhat can you write about if you are Dunham's age, massively crave attention and haven't really done anything much with your life yet? Of course she made stuff up. On the other hand, it isn't fair to blame conservatives for taking her seriously either. I think someone should point out to her that this kind of thing doesn't affect everyone the same way (or in the way she perhaps intended) because people differ -- if that has to be conservatives, they are performing a useful function, in my opinion. And it doesn't matter if her sister is not upset or even thinks this is funny. Some kids who truly were victims feel that way about genuine abuse -- it doesn't make it OK.
ReplyDeleteAnd who is a better expert on beating a "story" beyond the point of death than Bob Somerby?
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure which plutocrats are tightening their grip on the world. the only plutocrat I knew personally was the late Henry Singleton. He was content to grip his company Teledyne. To make as much money as possible by selling quality products at high prices and paying his employees as little as possible.
ReplyDeleteI doubt that anyone is running the world. Maybe that's why things are so screwed up in so many places
Yes, let's long for those good ol' days when Mussolini had those trains running on time, by golly!
DeleteStop yearning. The trains didn't run on time under Mussolini.
DeleteYes, but Dave's old pal Henry would have made them run on time!
DeleteBut Henry's dead, so there aren't any plutocrats to pay slave wages and make enormous profit, although the world would be in better shape if there was.
DeleteHenry's dead? So that's why the quality of products has gone down!
DeleteCongrats to David in Calif. In an election where Republicans won all across the country, only Democrats won in California!
DeleteEvery single Salon story that Somerby seems to object to and hold up to ridicule was written by a woman.
ReplyDeleteWhat are the odds?
Bob really needs to get out and meet some women. He might discover that they aren't all icky and full of cooties.
DeleteThe problem with B.S. is he only knows liberal women like Maddow, Diane Rehm, Candy Crowley, DWS, etc. He needs to mingle with conservative women such as Kimberly Guilfoyle, Angie Harmon, Bo Derek, Megyn Kelly, Heather Locklear., etc.
DeleteSomerby has never been critical of Diane Rehm. She seems to be universally respected because she does an excellent job. She is what Maddow should aspire to.
DeleteDiane Rehm is not a political pundit. Or political entertainer. If she were, odds are Bob would be critical of her.
DeleteShe is part of the media.
DeleteIf Rehm ever gets a gig on MSNBC, or an op-ed in the NYT, or writes regularly for Salon, then and only then will Bob take note of her.
DeleteRehm has somehow deluded herself that she conceals her liberal bias while on air While she has nearly 40 years on Maddow, if one imagines Maddow doing her same schtick at 80, the difference between the two blurs. .
DeleteOn the long ago cancelled CNN show "Sonya Live" Rehm was asked in 1994:
SONYA: "Should people feel confident about what they hear? Is it the truth? Should they feel more informed, or is somebody trying to manipulate them and put them on a track?"
REHM: "It depends on which talk show you're listening to. If, in fact, you're listening to a talk show hosted by perhaps someone with a political agenda, then you've got to be careful.. On my daily talk show, what I'm trying to do is offer a variety of points of view, to have listeners hear all of the information about a particular topic, and then make up their own minds."
SONYA: "Are you suggesting that if I listen to you, I would not know what your political agenda is or what your point of view might be?"
REHM: "For the most part, that's absolutely right."
I think, Bob, some of us understood we humans aren't all that bright many years ago. That's why we advocate strategies that try to appeal to more kinds of people than those who are so high and mighty that the sight of Rachel Maddow smirking away doesn't both ruin and make their day.
ReplyDeleteTo put it differently, you can't attack Maddow for dumbing things down, while complaining that she isn't trying to appeal to "average voters." Not if you're being honest with yourself.
An experiment.
ReplyDeleteWho wrote this?
A few things here. As much as we do not like reading thinkpieces about feminism and Salon, we like writing them even less. So we are not going to do that. After reading the articles, we did not leave with the impression that Dunham was a predator who was grooming her sister for sexual abuse. We left with the impression that she was a curious, sometimes dark kid with self-identified boundary issues that, as was made clear in the book, she has been working her entire life to address through therapy and in dialogue with members of her own family. Some people feel differently about what was represented in the book based on their own experiences, and that’s their right.
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ReplyDeleteName:faith
Country USA
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ReplyDeleteRose
Germany