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Friday, August 5

Bob Novak: The Filth and the Fury

by Mike on Fri 05 Aug 2005 07:09 PM EDT

I run hot and cold with my feelings towards Media Matters for America. For one thing, MMFA is hopelessly entrenched in the defense of the Democratic Party. This often compromises their mission to remain "dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media." In many ways, MMFA epitomizes the classic critique of American liberalism as articulated by the late, great American leftist Phil Ochs:

"In every political community there are varying shades of political opinion. One of the shadiest of these is the liberals. An outspoken group on many subjects. Ten degrees to the left of center in good times. Ten degrees to the right of center if it effects them personally."

That having been said, one of the most redeeming qualities of MMFA is its continued archival of transcripts and clips that might otherwise vanish into the "memory hole" at the hands of right-wing censors and the mainstream media. My favorite recent example of this is the MMFA posting "Pressure Getting to Novak?" in which they include laugh-out-loud video footage of conservative pundit Bob Novak cursing and storming off stage during a live CNN broadcast. Novak was apparently upset by some ribbing he was receiving from Democratic strategist James Carville. Say what you will about Carville, he seems to have accomplished what special prosecutors and grand juries alike have failed to do thus far — Carville has gotten Bob Novak crack under pressure. CNN has apparently suspended Novak for his liberal (pun intended) use of profanity on the air.

If you ask me, there are many things that are worse than saying the word "bullshit" on television. But I mentioned above, Novak is a conservative pundit...One who caters to the likes of the same folks who raise hell over pop culture controversies like Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" and SpongeBob and Patrick holding hands. One has to wonder if Novak's nasty language will likewise make him a subject of scorn from his holier-than-thou brethren.

Somehow, I doubt it...