The Globe and Mail’s Lawrence Martin has convinced himself that the 24/7 news cycle is the reason why the Canadian public is not listening to him and his fellow Harper-hating Media Party members. Here’s a sampling:
Much wonderment has been expressed recently on why stories of abuse of power don’t seem to hurt Stephen Harper’s government. The stories don’t stick, it is said. The reason may well be, to cite Mr. Thomson’s cautionary words, because we in the media don’t stick to them. It’s episodic journalism. We report one story, then move on. We don’t probe deeply. If a Watergate was happening, the public would never know it.
Chris Selley has a somewhat different idea.
They’ve just worked out no-one is listening except besotted liberals in the Tranna burbs. Does a newspaper exist when no-one reads it?
There is no deluded fool like a self-deluded fool.
Maybe we can all chip in a few bucks and buy Lawrence a mirror.
Perhaps we should fix his words for him…
It’s “gotcha” journalism. We report one “side of a” story, then move on. We “have never really done any sort of probing” deeply “into any truth – “ever”.
Now that explains their problem!
A few reasons as to why people are no longer paying attention are:
the ability to recognise BS,
an intolerance for spin and propaganda and
a preference for straight news.
Thank heavens for the internet and now Sun News.
If a Watergate was happening, the public would never know it.
Too true.
Example: ClimateGate November 20, 2009.
Oh, and it’s still not too late for you Legacy Media CAGW shills to report on it and the coverup that followed.
*crickets chirping*
And the nation paused for a moment to consider what Lawrence Martin had just said…
The Internet with social media, tweets, Email, blogs etc. plus talk radio … plus the fact that many are waking up to realize that we are at war politically in the Western world to try to hang on to our way of life … that includes, liberty, prosperity, security and so on.
The more hard-working, self-reliant conservative types are taking a greater interest in the news cycles and realizing that we have to participate more if we are to stop the socialist hordes from ruining everything we have worked so hard for and that so many have DIED for.
Yes, the MSM is not as salable as it once was it’s dregs are not happy about losing their clout.
The news media in Canada has fully discredited ITSELF, by being superficial, elitist, grossly partisan and LAZY. It’s in love with itself, which puts normal, sensible readers and viewers OFF. Case in point: CTV’s Craig Oliver, during the election campaign, STATING that Harper has contempt for journalism. Oliver and Sandy Rinaldo appeared to be perplexed that poll results weren’t reflecting all the gov’t ‘scandals’ and ‘abuses’ offered up to the public by a salivating press, like olive-stuffed cheeseballs at an Ottawa cocktail party. The old media has gone stale.
We’re tired of fabricated scandales from Consensus media, their over the top reporting turns people off period. Over saturating Canadians with their anti-Harper hysteria has turned off the public. Frankly I don’t believe a thang the Liberal Media reports.
Funny how the Journos themselves cannot figure out their problem but commenters here at sda have the situation aced – in no time flat !!
I can never get enough of the “it’s all about us” media stories which, by its persistence, proves the media’s tenacity for sticking with a narrative.
The MSM doesn’t stick with a scandal long enough for it to stick? Uh-huh, they beat to death wafergate, Helen Guergis, Lisa Raitt, census and other ‘scandals’. At this point, I suspect that the public accepts that politics is shady, dirty business and no party is immune to this disease. Therefore the reaction to the scandal of the day/week/month is a shrug unless it involves stealing vast amounts of money or gross incompetence. Forget “tenacity” , once you’ve reached the saturation point for scandals increasing the amount of coverage has no effect.
No, dear media genius, voters looked beyond the headlines and decided that most of the election coverage was unimportant BS. They voted according to larger, more immediate concerns than who got kicked out of a rally or how many questions journalists were allowed to ask. I know it is horrifying to imagine that idiot voters might have sorted through all the VIP issues brought to our attention by progressive journalists and still voted Conservative.
If a Watergate was happening, the public would never know it.
Well, perhaps if stopped trying to make EVERY issue a Watergate, we wouldn’t tune out your partisan asses. We can tell when something is serious. When that happens, you’ll know it.
Fool.
Lawrence who?
From the comments & personel experiance we all know why we don’t listen to the Liberal biased press. The nutty stories about PM Harper. The out right lies & evasions. To be simple we don’t trust you anymore, since you sold your souls to socialism.
Trying to prop up idiots dosent help either.
JMO
Episodic journalism and not sticking to the story — do they mean stuff like the Mulrooney-Schreiber thing????
Poor old Larry is really losing it.
“The (US) media would blow the roof off. Here, the story passed in a day or two without further comment.”
I suppose it’s been a while, like about four or five decades for the Martin. He doesn’t seem to realize that in the US politics is a blood sport. Accusing Ignatieff of helping with war planning is about as mild in US terms as fabric softener.
But at least he’s coming clean about what his motives have been all along.
“In a majority government, particularly one headed by an all-controlling Prime Minister, one of the few checks on power is strong journalism.”
What he neglects to mention is that if a Liberal government is in place he’s a cheerleader. Jack and the Dippers must be feeling just fine about all this. Larry and the Ottawa press thingies are HM Loyal Opposition evidently, not Jack and the high school kids.
Best line in Selley’s article:
“Geoffrey Simpson and fun go together like mustard and Oreos.”
I think that there are two main reasons for the growing disregard of MSM in Canada:
1. We want hard news, not opinions. I would like reporters to report facts. I don’t want to read some one else’s opinion of events, I want a report of the events that I will interpret myself. There is too much unacknowledged partisanship in an industry that pretends objectivity. The MSN in Canada, especially the CBC, has a vested interest in supporting socialist parties, like the LPC and the NDP. Socialist policies support state funded media. I think that Canadians are more and more paying attention to the influence this has on MSN reporting.
2. The availability of alternative news media. The internet has not just changed the news cycle, it has exponentially increased accessibility of news sources, even traditional ones. We are no longer serviced only by local, regional, or even national news services. We can, with the click of a mouse button, access news sources traditional and otherwise, globally.
The one thing in the election that did stick with those friends of mine who do not use twitter or read these sorts of blogs, was “Vote Compass”. Non political people were posting that on facebook and they were quite shocked. No doubt that Martin wouldnt be able to figure out why this was the case.
So how many SDA bits don’t include stories\facts\pieces originating from this dreaded MSM? Let’s be honest, this is a (usually) good link farm with some editorializing tossed in. It’s about as revolutionary as a whoopee cushion.
And if an Adscam happened, the public would never know about it either. These typist people are too much.
It’s the wolf who cried boy.
One incident illustrating the consensus media’s recent tumble into the boy-who-cried-wolf black hole is the Oda faux scandal.
For at least a dozen “24-hour news cycles”, in conjunction with house of commons opposition, leftist NGOs and the gender-neutral people who love them, our venerated journalists decried Oda as, among other things, a document forger. There were even mocking t-shirts printed (btw who’s laughing now, rabblers?) After realizing that anyone with an attention span longer than 20 seconds would see that Oda did nothing wrong beyond being sloppy with paperwork, the attackers shifted to contempt. So there we were watching prolonged coverage of a parliamentary inquiry into “who knew what when” about incorrectly filled out paperwork. I don’t think many people bought it, despite sustained media efforts. But it may have created the unintended consequence of pulling the curtain from the bureaucrat-libleft-media troika.. and it may have pissed a good number of people off.
Lawrence Martin tries to explain why people wouldn’t pay attention to a Canadian Watergate today, further exemplifying commonplace journalistic contempt for customers. People will pay attention just fine to a watergate, less so to missing-stapler gate, or extra paperclip gate.
I like to think of the Oda affair as the point where the tide turned against the consensus media. It’s probably just my bias though. At least I admit it, unlike Lawrence Martin. Perhaps he should lobby the NDP to add regulations to the party platform which would ban this malignant “24-hour news cycle” threat to democracy.
When an elite issues a command or voices an opinion and no one among the masses heeds it, has it ceased to be an elite? I think so.
Lawrence Martin and at least a dozen other hacks that still get paid by newspapers and magazines to write ‘stuff’ are largely tuned out or more likely no longer read because they are the journalistic equivalent of an appendix – we have evolved out of needing or having to depend on what they offered.
Martin and simpson et al remind me of a hack who finally did retire (or was he pushed?) Allan Fotheringham. I came across one of his books (in paperback) at a garage sale a few years ago and paid the ten cents to make it mine. I refer to it from time to time to remind myself of how self-righteous and completely out if touch he and almost certainly the other journos of his era were.
And finally, somewhat sadly I think we have the makings of yet another hack – someone whose opinions and reportage i once had a lot of respect for – Andrew Coyne. Seems he’s lost the plot completely of late.
Only Liberal scandals may be buried, not Tory ones.
It’s good to hear that newspapers are going under.
“Journalists of the baby boomer generation who were anti-establishment back then are old and more passive now, co-opted if you like”
ummm…NO, they’ve simply grown-up, like most people do.
What the “youth” always fail to recognize, is they too will grow-up and vote Conservative or Republican if the “have a brain. If all the “youth” that at one time voted ‘hippy’ never grew-up, we’d have had our socialist Utopia for some time now.
I take great solace knowing that most of the “know-it-all youts” WILL grow-up and vote for responsible small “c” conservative governments eventually. The rest work for Public Sector Unions and never grow-up.
I knew the Lib media was out to lunch, but this is a whole ‘nother level of it. If Count Iggula had actually been an Iraq war planner it would have been a resume -enhancement- with voters.
The Lawrence Martins of the world still don’t understand the New Media Universe. In the old days, Martin was the guy who set the agenda. These days he’s the guy we all point and laugh at.
Propaganda doesn’t work when the peasants point and laugh. Wrecks the whole thing.
If a Journ speaks and no one is there to listen, is there any sound?
Here are some stories for our brave journalists to be “tenacious about”
Climategate (as others have mentioned)
Who is Maurice Strong and what’s he doing?
What is the relationship between Power Corp and the GOC pre-Harper?
Oil-for-food
Caledonia
There’s a start, Mr Martin: dig in.
Max at 3:29pm and Sean P at 3:02pm are jointly bang on!
The consensus media is dumbfounded that the public can see through their imagineered scandals and the internet has helped enormously to facilitate this.
PET Cemetery Report.
We agree with Blair. Martin & his cronies covered up our Liberal Party Ad$Cam for 8 years.
Even Our CBC was in our bag.
This is a shoutout to Martin/MSM; kudos from PET Cem to Martin, et al. Merci.
“If a Watergate was happening, the public would never know it.” (Martin)
From Selly’s article: ““If a Watergate was happening, the [Canadian] public would never know it,” Lawrence Martin argues in The Globe and Mail, because the media are “more passive” than in the good old days and are under tremendous pressure “to move on to the next story without due diligence on the one that just happened.””
That’s the trouble with the media. They’re still looking for their Carl Bernstein and Robert Woodward moment in the sun and when they can’t find it on the Conservative side of the fence, they feel compelled by their over bloated egos to invent it. And they wonder why Canadians are turned off.
PET Cemetery Bulletin and all youse CSL Martin ships at sea.
This just in:
“*Liberals go underground to pick interim boss”.
Cerberus is run off his paws. The sifting and sorting of bones is continuing, however.
We have reached Row 3, Aisle 16, Section S (Liberal Senators); no prospects yet.
*Underground:
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Politics/2011/05/24/18186661.html
Tell Lawrence to shine his “media” spotlight a little longer on Obama. Maybe compare his statements while trying to get elected, with his performance after gaining office? Or contrast his statements about policies employed by GW Bush, with his continued use of the same?
Or you could just continue to tell us about the public outrage over Harper’s use of prorogation, a legal parliamentary option. Or continue to tell us how our military seems to be abusing detainees, by handing them over to the proper authorities in the country they were caught in.
Or continue to ignore Caledonia, or the native occupation of High Park, or the useless Human Rights Commissions.
The short answer for me is simply I stopped listening. From the Liberal planted scandal de jour to non revealing revelations. Harper is dictatorial duh that is why he wins while the others chase their tails. No one called Ig on his flip flops and no one called reality on Jack. We got one is an intellectual and the other leads a massive peasant revolt called the Orange Crush. Both being in the end meaningless.
hey “oldfart”
In case you didn’t notice, the “tranna suburbs” voted overwhelming for the Tories.
But don’t let your pinhead preconceptions cloud your judgement.
Gord Tulk: “And finally, somewhat sadly I think we have the makings of yet another hack – someone whose opinions and reportage i once had a lot of respect for – Andrew Coyne. Seems he’s lost the plot completely of late.”
Yes, Andrew Coyne’s gold-plated knickers seem to be in a knot these days. He’s gagging on his silver spoon.
In Maclean’s, on April 28, Mr. Coyne wrote a column entitled “A price must be paid—but by whom?” The sub title was “Andrew Coyne decides his ballot question, and who he will vote for.”
http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/04/28/a-price-must-be-paid-but-by-whom/
So, we read the column with baited breath until the last paragraph which announces, “If we return the Conservatives with a majority, if we let all that has gone on these past five years pass [emphasis mine], then not only the Tories, but every party will draw the appropriate conclusions. But if we send them a different message, then maybe the work of bringing government to democratic heel, begun in the tumult of the last Parliament, can continue. And that is why I will be voting Liberal on May 2.”
Huh? Liberal government = “bringing government to democratic heel”?
In which universe does Mr. Coyne live? Or, what planet is he from?
‘Must rankle that Andrew Coyne’s reasons for voting Liberal weren’t shared by a significant number of Canadians. ‘Must rankle that Mr. Coyne’s voice isn’t persuasive enough to sway Canadian voters to his way of thinking — and voting.
I figure the Liberal perks, parties, punks, and policies must be more fun.
Coyne was co-opted by Herley and the rest of PMPM’s thugs when he was libel chilled during Adscam. Coyne hasn’t found his twig and berries since.
And Lawrence Martin? Puhleeze. Chretien was a “street fighter” and Harper is a “dictator”. I wonder if he’s got the taste of Chretiens member out of his throat yet. If Martin were any more self-absorbed he’d implode.
The MSM just haven’t figured out yet the you can’t win people over by continually telling them that they are racist, uneducated rednecks etc. The more they do this the worse their results have been. But they can’t stop themselves from doing it.
Reminds me of the old pirate saying “the beatings will continue until moral improves”.
How’s hide adscam for Liberals and make one up for Conservatives workin out for ya Larry?
While at the coffee shop this AM I saw one of the local newspapers on the stand. At the top of the page it said Tuesday May 24, 2011. I verified the information by checking my watch. Yes I trust the Media Party that much.
PET Cemetery Warning: Ici Not Our CBC.
“RECYCLING DAY 5”.
H/T Dat Sandbagger Taliban Jacques Bloc/ndp.
…-
“Feds turn down request by Quebec gov’t to have military help with flood cleanup”
“The federal government has refused Quebec’s request to have the military help with cleanup after a devastating flood.
A letter from Public Safety Minister Vic Toews suggests that placing sandbags might be part of the military’s role — but removing them isn’t part of the job description.
The Quebec government, which received the letter dated May 20, forwarded the correspondence to reporters Tuesday.
It was released on a day of growing anger and finger-pointing over the emergency response to the floods, which have affected 3,000 homes and forced 1,000 people to be evacuated.
The release of the correspondence was meant to prove that the Quebec government — which is being questioned for its performance — had actually requested federal help in a timely manner.
In the letter, addressed to Quebec’s public security minister, Toews wrote that he would not even take the formal steps to transfer the Quebec cleanup request to Defence Minister Peter MacKay.
Toews wrote that he and MacKay had already chatted and agreed Quebec’s cleanup request was inappropriate.”
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/canada/breakingnews/more-troops-go-to-flood-zone-in-quebec-to-help-with-relief-effort.html
Dear Mr. Martin where did the Liberal Party in Ontario get the money to buy ten helicopters from CHL for Air Ambulance? You don’t know neither do the taxpayer’s perhaps you could like investigate Orange or what ever they call themselves and Macslippery? I hear there’s an alleged audit being done at the company above, care to report that story Sir? No what I can’t hear you?
If a dead Tree media falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a squealing sound?
Despite KevinB there are still liberals lurking under every rock in Tranna. Less than there once were in Trudeau’s glory days, but still far too many. We ain’t wiped the supercillious sneer off their stupid faces, because they can’t believe they’re beat. You can always tell liberals by their arrogance, insolence, ignorance, incompetence, stupidity and downright sneering rudeness. The other Ontario hotbeds of liberal ignorance are Guelph, Kingston, and the civil service domitory Ottawa burbs. All places to avoid like the plague.
Poor crazy Larry Martin, doesn’t understand his, and his fellow media party dipshits irrelevancy, and impotence at shaping the agenda. Crazy Larry and other media party hacks can whine about their impotency as much as they like, but their irrelevance is entirely self inflicted. The MSM no longer sells their collective consensus narrative in a vacum. The internet has changed how people digest the “news”, and Liberal salesmen like Coyne and Crazy Larry are living in denial. The MSM have little or no respect for the Canadian public, and that complete lack of respect shown by the MSM has come back to bite them. Message to Crazy Larry and his media party comrades… inventing and co-ordinating “scandals” with the Liberal party does not make it a “scandal”, perhaps that is one of the reasons for the MSM’s collective impotence, and furthering irrelevancy.
Let us see now,
Why is it that few are listening to what those in media say, write, talk.
Maybe it is because they are not directing their “reportage” (using the term ever so loosely) to the public
Maybe it is because they are directing their “reportage” to other “journalists” to get approval for their creative stories the informed public don’t care about.
Maybe it is because they have an ideology that prevents them from telling the part they omitted.
Maybe it is because they write stuff that anybody that is informed knows as, to put it prosaically, bullexcrement.
Maybe it is because they write stuff that is full of hot air without anything solid behind it. Like this from the present article “voter-suppression tactics by the Tories”, “barring people from rallies”, “there was a seeming attempt”, nothing but air. The author does not recognize that those are not arguments? That those are light talking points, lighter than air?
On the day after the last election, on the CTV’s morning show, the pretty boy, or as Adler would say “you are cute”, said this, word for word, “I don’t know anybody that voted for the conservatives”.
Don’t they recognize that they live separate lives, out of touch with the real world? Maybe it is the nature of being cloistered in the corridors of their offices, having other people serve and feed them the stories that they regurgitate, nonetheless, that is not journalism. You don’t have to go to school for a long time to recognize that.
Lawrence Who??? Chris Who???
Schadenfreude …. It’s like a good beer.
Andrew Coyne endorsed the liberals prior to the vote.
It was a tacit endorsement of a coalition government.
He’d criticised the minority government all the way along the past five years for its fiscal performance.
When he got the chance to champion the stability of a conservative majority over an unstable and profligate left wing coalition he didn’t.
Instead, he said the conservatives had to pay for their circumvention of parliamentary process and the damage they had done to our democracy.
Now he’s got nothing left to sell.
Its been my observation for some time now. Most people fish for the real news on thier own.
Gone are the days of trusting people who get degree’s from fishy schools with Marxist leanings.
Thats why there is a push by Liberals to restrict internet access, or only allow socialist commentary. Look at the facebook scam & you can bet gates whos an obamite with most of these aging hippies are trying to stop what they started. Independant thougt must be stopped is thier motto.
JMO