The setting was a Topeka gathering of 2nd Congressional District Republicans. The topic was “Working With the Enemy (media relations).” The presenter was David Kensinger, Sen. Sam Brownback’s former chief of staff. The talking points included, according to the Lawrence Journal-World: The media are too powerful to be ignored. Reporters are biased; get over it. Make the bias work for you. Do not deny the undeniable. Share the sugar.
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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22 Comments
WHO IS THE REAL ENEMY?
Brownback’s former chief of staff states that the media is the enemy because it is biased. I disagree. I think that the media is the enemy because it is LAZY. However there are other threats to our civil rights and way of life that are more insidious than Bin laden’s terrorists and more prevelant than the swarms of illegal immigrants or just as repulsive as the abortionsit Tiller.
The real threats are:
FAILURE OF THE EAGLE OR OTHER NEWS ORGANIZATIONS TO INVESTIGATE DOCUMENTED CASES OF SRS OR JUVENILE COURT COVER UPS OF SEXUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN.
HYPOCRITCAL CONSERVATIVE GOP LEGISLATORS & JUDGES FROM SEDGWICK COUNTY THAT PROCLAIM THAT THEY PROTECT CHILDREN AND FAMILIES BUT ARE AFRAID TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE SCANDALS FOR FEAR OF RETALIATION OR BAD PUBLICITY FOR THE FELLOW GOP POLITICIANS. REAGAN’S 11TH COMMANDMENT FOR GOP POLITICIANS SEEMS TO BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN MOSES’ ORIGINAL 10 COMMANDMENTS.
CRONYISM & NEPOTISM IN THE KANSAS JUDICIARY, BAR ASSOCIAITIONS, PROFESSIONAL BOARDS (BOHA, BEHAVIOR SCIENCE, KANSAS LEGAL SERVICES), SRS AGENCIES AND THEIR SUBCONTRCTORS THAT KEEP CHILDREN UNNECESSARILY MEDICATED WITH PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGS AND LOCKED UP IN FOSTER CARE FACILITES.
APATHETIC, SELF-CENTERED OR MATERIALISTC CHRISTIANS THAT ARE TOO BUSY TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE HORROR STORIES OF THEIR FELLOW PARISHIONERS.
Who will protect us from these enemies that threaten our civil rights and the souls of our most vulnerable children? One or two courageous reporters, young politicians or judges that will demand that these stories are investigated and reported to force the other politicians, judges and church going Christians to acknowledge these problems. If any one has any ideas where to locate these heroes, please contact me. I haven’t found any yet at Sedgwick County GOP functions. This also includes you Dion.
Bill McKean kiakahahaha@yahoo.com
If anyting the media is biased TOWARDS the Republicans. The media is mostly owned and controlled by far right wing moguls like Rupert Murdoch and the people that run Clear Channel. If you don’t think they are biased towards the far right wing, look at what happened to the Dixie Chicks- a multi Grammy award winning group that was one of the top country sellers. They spoke out against Bush and Bush picked up the phone and called his buddies at ABC, CBS and Clear Channel and they were BANNED from US airwaves forever.
“If you don’t think they are biased towards the far right wing,look at what happened to the Dixie Chicks…”Posted by: Kev
Kev, surely you can post a better example. The Dixie Chicks go overseas and bad month the US; Right or Left, that is just plain STUPID.
Most people overlooked the name of the Brownback aide’s seminar: “Working with the Enemy.”
Are all right-wingnuts so paranoid? I thought the “enemy” was Osama bin Laden, not fellow American citizens who might disagree on policy matters.
But, no. Unless you’re a twice-born Loyalty Pledge-signing walk-in-lockstep-toward Armageddon Republican, you and I are “the enemy.”
It’s quite common for fundamentalist Christians to rant and rave and roll on the floor in defiance of “The Enemy,” i.e., Satan himself.
People ought to listen to so-called “Christian” radio sometimes. If you can suppress your gag reflex, you’ll learn all sorts of code words and phrases evangelical Republics use to communicate their goals of theocracy. Shrub mentioned “Dred Scott” in his 2004 presidential debates, a clear signal recognized by the twice-born. Brownback referring to anyone who’s not drunk the Kool-Aid as “The Enemy” speaks volumes.
I wish liberals would get enough sense of humor to understand tongue in cheek titles. It sure didn’t take long fore the knucklehead Christian bashers to convert this thread.
Got bias LTP?
But you do make a good point about those who would make the enemy their fellow citizens. Bad, short-sighted thing.
But really , the left is at least as guilty of this, and probably more, than the conservatives. You have demonstrated that with your anti-Christian rant. And it is daily demonstrated by the hateful comments against president Bush, “Repukes, “Reich wing” etc…
We need to decide who the enemy is. Sorry to say, I think you already have.
Sorry, “outlander” –
You’re not my “enemy.” We simply disagree.
But the twice-born have generally (and specifically) identified me and those who share my beliefs as *their* enemies.
Perhaps you expect us reasonable, rational, thoughtful liberals to just curl up and hope the attacks from Right Wingnuts will go away.
Nope. You guys identify me with Satan, and I’m gonna step up an fight you. Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not Satan.
Ah, but Brownback sends his staffer to Kansas to fight, “The Enemy.”
Everyone in the room knew who “The Enemy” really is to conservative “Christians.”
You know it. You didn’t refute it. You accept the characterization because the Republic Party absolutely depends on “Christian” extremists for their margin-of-victory.
If I’ve got bias, “outlander,” it’s bias for the teachings of Jesus. “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s.” Sounds pretty pro-tax to me. “Even as ye do it to the least of these my bretheren, ye do it unto me.” Sounds like helping the poor and oppressed and the wretched. “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Even if your neighbors are gay? Yup. “Turn the other cheek.” “Forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Jesus would feel far out of place in today’s Republic Party. So-called “Christians,” on the other hand, are the margin of victory for today’s GOP.
“Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s.” Sounds pretty pro-tax to me.”
Pro-tax?? Baloney.
Actually though, a good illustration of how Jesus refused to become involved in politics. That’s one reason the Jews rejected him. Because he did not fit their idea of the Messiah, who they thought would be an earthly king.
“The enemy”, LTP, was an “in fun” slap at the media. I have no idea what you are talking about otherwise. So I guess I don’t accept whatever it is you can’t come out and say. Not that it matters two cents.
There are two type of species that walk on two legs: Humans and Republicans.
Please. LTP’s got BDS (or ChristianDS) on the brain.
Sigh.
If you’re a public official, of any stripe, the media is, as a practical matter, “the enemy.”
Has always been so. EVERY president, EVERY politician has cursed the media at one time or another.
And for good reason. They are notoriously inaccurate, and driven not by truth, but by profit – selling papers and advertising (or commercials, as as the case may be). They are often also driven by agenda; how we see that agenda differs based upon our own point of view, but agenda nonetheless. We may decry that, but it’s simply a fact of life. Has always been so, will always be so. Get over it.
So: teaching techniques at working with the media, who will be with us, like it or not, and who can also be used to our advantage with some thought and planning, only makes sense. And calling it “Working with the Enemy” as a title fits perfectly with how most public officials see the media.
Duh. Hardly earthshaking news.
Christian Evangelicals have to give their people an ‘enemy’; otherwise there would be no reason for all the fellow sheep to give all their money towards their favorite preacher and line his pockets.
It is called marketing and the televangelists (ie Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell) have become masters of such deceit.
Jesus was a radical in his day but I do not remember Jesus calling anyone his enemies. But I do remember Jesus throwing out the vendors that were in the Temple. Now that is the most telling. With all the business conducted in today’s churches – I wonder if Jesus would make clear work of clearing out those vendors. The enemy is not the media but those Christians who profess to be holier-than-thou and then are found out to be the worst ones in the bunch.
One of the cornerstones of democracy is free speech and a free press. If there was nothing to hide from the public, then why denounce the media as an enemy?
Bush promised to restore honesty and integrity to the White House. As we have seen in the past year, several key members of Bush’s entourage has left under a cloud of suspicion.
If politicians were open, honest and their dealings were transparent, then there were would be nothing for the media enemy to use against them. So perhaps the problem is not the media but the way the politicians conduct themselves?
Holman need only look in the mirror to see why conservatives view the media as their enemy. Day in and day out it’s a steady drumbeat of hate-mongering that would have made the publishers of Der Sturmer blush with jealousy.
But the basic reason they’re hostile to conservatives isn’t ideological, it’s corruption. Kansas is awash in corruption, and the media not doesn’t report on it, they support the politicians who are up to their ears in it.
Corrupt politicians, corrupt journalists. Welcome to Kansas.
You forgot corrupt preachers and the lackeys who serve them.
“Actually though, a good illustration of how Jesus refused to become involved in politics.”
The second part of the verse goes, “Render unto the Lord, what is the Lord’s.” And is widely considered consistent with our seperation of church and state in this country. A seperation that GW Bush and Osama bin Laden disagree with. Since OBL doesn’t purport to be a Christian, I can’t see where we can hold that against him, but GWB on the other hand…
I haven’t been around for a while, but there are some new, “out-there” posters, aren’t there?
Holman’s columns tend to attract “out there” posters because she’s “out there”. Holman is a bigot writing for a bigoted rag. What would you expect, rational discussion?
Heheheheh Steven. So true.
The sock puppet chorus is tuning up even as we speak. I love the writers who think no one knows their new identity….
They are so BUSTED!
Of course, it could also be the insane whining of someone who actually got their ass banned…
If politicians were open, honest and their dealings were transparent, then there were would be nothing for the media enemy to use against them.Posted by: maidmarion | August 28, 2007 at 08:59 AM
True words.
Illustrating use of the media for one’s own purposes:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/27/AR2007082701917.html
About half-way down the piece, there is contained an allegation from a senior military intel official that General Petraeus was successful in “softening” the conclusions of the latest NIE (paraphrasing here) to reflect the success of the last three months. I offer this not as “proof of the matter asserted” but to show how some folks, for whatever reason, use the media to put forward their own position. Whether General Petraeus did or did not have a voice in the final NIE conclusions, I cannot say; but there’s someone out there who, IMO, has a bone to pick and wanted it known.
Some answers on Clinton/bin laden
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JuH1xwLUnbg
“Kev, surely you can post a better example. The Dixie Chicks go overseas and bad month the US; Right or Left, that is just plain STUPID.”
The Dixie Chicks did NOT bad mouth the USA. What Natalie Maines said exactly was “just so you all know it, we are ashamed that Bush is from Texas”. That is all she said. She didn’t say anything bad about the United States while in the UK. And I agree with her. In fact I am ashamed Bush is from the United States of America and I would not hesitate to say that overseas.