Overkill Sunday, June 15, 2008
Had I met Tim Russert, we'd have talked about sports, upstate New York and maybe some rock concerts we both attended back in the day. Russert seemed an amiable, affable fellow. He was clearly a man who valued being liked. That's why he'd have been as cordial as possible as he fled from me as soon as I changed the subject to Daniel Patrick Moynihan and benign neglect or the police/prison industrial state or the plight of workers everywhere or genuine green activism or the putrid stench of corporatism that permeates the mainstream media and the politicians upon whom journalists are supposed to be reporting.
Tim Russert stayed busy, frenetically directing our attention toward every diversionary flare fired skyward by the murky figures who truly command and control this nation. In a world of amazing stories, all he covered were horse-race politics, scandals du jour and of course, the passing of "national figures." By doing this he showed himself to be worthy of full membership in the Gladhand Social Club that is Washington D.C. When he passed, he was commemorated with the kind of fanfare reserved for the exclusive crowd that sits so close to the action that it can't ever be relied upon for decent perspective.
The media wags that survive Russert are incapable of seeing the absurdity of their overkill of his death. An hour into the maudlin, endless "tribute" to Russert, I found myself relieved that his wife and son were in Italy and beyond viewing range of a shameless parade of electronic narcissists. The surviving talking heads busily inflated their deceased colleague beyond any recognizable proportion. They had more than enough hot air for the task.
As floodwaters rose, wars raged and the economy nose-dived, the MSNBC on-camera wake went on and on and on with nary a mention of the rest of the world. After a few hours, it became rather clear that there wasn't a lot to say about the man except that he was well thought of by friends and co-workers; he enjoyed his life; and he prepared questions that he then asked of the power elite -- who looked upon him as if he were one of them
Again and again we heard about the "likable" Russert. Well excuse me, but I want my journalists to be disliked by at least some people. I want them to be despised by those whose scams they exposed, whose misdeeds they brought to light. As the televised condolences continued, even Dick Cheney spoke well of Tim Russert. It did not color the late TV host in glory.
Russert was beloved for being a nice guy who never overlooked the small talk. He inquired after kids and families and talked sports just like a regular guy. Everyone MSNBC wheeled out to praise Russert referenced his working class roots. After a few dozen mentions it became obvious that his fellow millionaires were shocked that the son of a schlub had actually succeeded in the United States. At times it seemed like these power elitists were saying they still loved him despite the dirty, dirty circumstances from which he arose.
Many of these people referred to Russert as a "journalists' journalist" and as "the most important person in the Washington media," and it's likely they believed what they were saying. If Russert deserved the title of Washington Journalist of the Era, it sure was a nasty thing to point out about someone whose corpse had yet to cool. Because during Russert's reign as NBC News Washington Bureau Chief and Meet the Press host, about the only thing politicians were held accountable for was one blow job. Other than that, the treasury has been privatized, our country has been marched into two violent quagmires, the rich have gotten richer and the poor have gotten stomped, and the Bill of Rights has been shredded and tossed as confetti at a tickertape parade celebrating jingoism.
True to his roots, Russert worked hard -- he worked hard for the man who let him sit in the private dining room and taught him which fork to use for the salad. But what was his job beyond fitting in? And did he even know he was doing it? It always seemed to me that his job was to appear to be a tough journalist while never actually scratching the surface of what was really going on. For doing this he got status, celebrity and wealth. Again and again his response was to say "what a country!" But he never probed very deeply into the country that allowed his hometown of Buffalo to oxidize. Speaking of the upstate NY city, Russert was all Chamber of Commerce and professional sports booster but never one to draw attention to the crushing poverty found in our nation's second poorest city. Russert seemed to think enthusiastic boosterism was all Buffalo needed and that's all it ever got from its favorite son.
To speak up for his impoverished and forgotten hometown by specifically indicting the corporate greed that consumed it and left it to rot in toxic disrepair, would be to bite the hand that was tossing him the filet mignon nuggets. And so hardworking and likable Russert found a middle ground. He didn't expose the truth about his hometown but instead put forth a syrupy narrative about the spirit of its community. This fit nicely with the rest of his work, spreading myths that either overrated or overlooked reality. These myths are best placed under the label of "conventional wisdom" and Tim Russert was our nation's largest repository of such nonsense.
Russert's Meet the Press could have been a great program and a wonderful exercise in journalism. Instead it was a weekly roundup of the usual suspects with the usual pat answers. Why didn't working class Russert regularly feature labor leaders on his program? Why didn't he ever interview popular revolutionary leaders from abroad? Why did he never bring on members of the Iraq Vets Against the War? Instead we got a steady diet of Bob Doles, Dick Cheneys, Terry McAuliffes and Joe Bidens. Otherwise, how could those guys have ever hoped to get their message out to the American people?
Russert provided a Sunday morning showcase for every official cover story disseminated by the D.C powers that be. He believed those stories just as he did when he bought the saddlesoap George W. Bush was selling about WMD's. Did you? I didn't for a second and I don't have the full resources of NBC News at my beck and call. If we wonder why it's easy for shadowy figures in Washington to steal everything that isn't bolted down and then go to work with the bolt-cutters, we need look no further than Tim Russert. Because he was easily distracted. All you had to do was bring up the Buffalo Bills or ask him who made the best corned beef sandwich on Capitol Hill and Russert would be off and running, showing off his regular guy roots as he pontificated about professional sports, greasy sandwiches or the sacrosanct status of anyone hiding behind the flag.
I think it was Andrea Mitchell who said Russert's eyes would tear up whenever he heard the national anthem. Unfortunately his emotion came for all the wrong reasons because Russert believed in and sold America the Exceptional when he should have been digging for the real stories so vital to people from Buffalo to Baghdad. Stories worthy of tears.
And so MSNBC is heading full bore into another day of mythologizing a nice guy who failed the very working people to whom he paid so much lip service. The tribute is meant to remind us that Mr. Russert and all talking heads are more important than regular people. Maybe now we'll learn to appreciate and trust these people before we tragically lose another one of them!
The Russertathon establishes that talking heads matter more than many outstanding people, too. (At least as far as other talking heads are concerned.) In 500 years, who do you think will be considered more significant for his contribution as a chronicler of this age we live in? Tim Russert or Kurt Vonnegut? If Vonnegut got five minutes coverage on MSNBC when he died, I missed four minutes and forty-five seconds of it. Russert, on the other hand, has already had 30 times more airtime devoted to his life and death than all of the 129 journalists who have been killed in Iraq combined. It's exactly the kind of reporting we've come to expect during the era of a nice guy named Tim Russert.
UPDATE Sun Evening -- Thanks for all the comments. When I checked MSNBC today, the Russerthon was still going strong. I swear these people are just about talking about canceling the election because of how daunting it will be to sort things out without Tim Russert's guidance.
Another thing...How inappropriate was it to have his doctor on just hours after Russert died disclosing details about his patient's health? It was intrusive, inappropriate and creepy.
I was no fan of Russert but this crap has not been a tribute, it's been an assault, a propaganda campaign. I feel sorry for him because this has been a violation. It's gotten to the point where it would be better if the blathering talking heads did what should be done at an Irish wake-- drink. Their behavior couldn't become any more embarrassing and maybe a little truth would leak out.
Honestly, I wasn't going to write anything about this. But then it was still going on 24 hours later. At that point, the lack of any sense of proportion and the gauche and maudlin exploitation of the sudden death of someone by people who should have mourned privately, and with some dignity, demanded comment.
Tim Russert stayed busy, frenetically directing our attention toward every diversionary flare fired skyward by the murky figures who truly command and control this nation. In a world of amazing stories, all he covered were horse-race politics, scandals du jour and of course, the passing of "national figures." By doing this he showed himself to be worthy of full membership in the Gladhand Social Club that is Washington D.C. When he passed, he was commemorated with the kind of fanfare reserved for the exclusive crowd that sits so close to the action that it can't ever be relied upon for decent perspective.
The media wags that survive Russert are incapable of seeing the absurdity of their overkill of his death. An hour into the maudlin, endless "tribute" to Russert, I found myself relieved that his wife and son were in Italy and beyond viewing range of a shameless parade of electronic narcissists. The surviving talking heads busily inflated their deceased colleague beyond any recognizable proportion. They had more than enough hot air for the task.
As floodwaters rose, wars raged and the economy nose-dived, the MSNBC on-camera wake went on and on and on with nary a mention of the rest of the world. After a few hours, it became rather clear that there wasn't a lot to say about the man except that he was well thought of by friends and co-workers; he enjoyed his life; and he prepared questions that he then asked of the power elite -- who looked upon him as if he were one of them
Again and again we heard about the "likable" Russert. Well excuse me, but I want my journalists to be disliked by at least some people. I want them to be despised by those whose scams they exposed, whose misdeeds they brought to light. As the televised condolences continued, even Dick Cheney spoke well of Tim Russert. It did not color the late TV host in glory.
Russert was beloved for being a nice guy who never overlooked the small talk. He inquired after kids and families and talked sports just like a regular guy. Everyone MSNBC wheeled out to praise Russert referenced his working class roots. After a few dozen mentions it became obvious that his fellow millionaires were shocked that the son of a schlub had actually succeeded in the United States. At times it seemed like these power elitists were saying they still loved him despite the dirty, dirty circumstances from which he arose.
Many of these people referred to Russert as a "journalists' journalist" and as "the most important person in the Washington media," and it's likely they believed what they were saying. If Russert deserved the title of Washington Journalist of the Era, it sure was a nasty thing to point out about someone whose corpse had yet to cool. Because during Russert's reign as NBC News Washington Bureau Chief and Meet the Press host, about the only thing politicians were held accountable for was one blow job. Other than that, the treasury has been privatized, our country has been marched into two violent quagmires, the rich have gotten richer and the poor have gotten stomped, and the Bill of Rights has been shredded and tossed as confetti at a tickertape parade celebrating jingoism.
True to his roots, Russert worked hard -- he worked hard for the man who let him sit in the private dining room and taught him which fork to use for the salad. But what was his job beyond fitting in? And did he even know he was doing it? It always seemed to me that his job was to appear to be a tough journalist while never actually scratching the surface of what was really going on. For doing this he got status, celebrity and wealth. Again and again his response was to say "what a country!" But he never probed very deeply into the country that allowed his hometown of Buffalo to oxidize. Speaking of the upstate NY city, Russert was all Chamber of Commerce and professional sports booster but never one to draw attention to the crushing poverty found in our nation's second poorest city. Russert seemed to think enthusiastic boosterism was all Buffalo needed and that's all it ever got from its favorite son.
To speak up for his impoverished and forgotten hometown by specifically indicting the corporate greed that consumed it and left it to rot in toxic disrepair, would be to bite the hand that was tossing him the filet mignon nuggets. And so hardworking and likable Russert found a middle ground. He didn't expose the truth about his hometown but instead put forth a syrupy narrative about the spirit of its community. This fit nicely with the rest of his work, spreading myths that either overrated or overlooked reality. These myths are best placed under the label of "conventional wisdom" and Tim Russert was our nation's largest repository of such nonsense.
Russert's Meet the Press could have been a great program and a wonderful exercise in journalism. Instead it was a weekly roundup of the usual suspects with the usual pat answers. Why didn't working class Russert regularly feature labor leaders on his program? Why didn't he ever interview popular revolutionary leaders from abroad? Why did he never bring on members of the Iraq Vets Against the War? Instead we got a steady diet of Bob Doles, Dick Cheneys, Terry McAuliffes and Joe Bidens. Otherwise, how could those guys have ever hoped to get their message out to the American people?
Russert provided a Sunday morning showcase for every official cover story disseminated by the D.C powers that be. He believed those stories just as he did when he bought the saddlesoap George W. Bush was selling about WMD's. Did you? I didn't for a second and I don't have the full resources of NBC News at my beck and call. If we wonder why it's easy for shadowy figures in Washington to steal everything that isn't bolted down and then go to work with the bolt-cutters, we need look no further than Tim Russert. Because he was easily distracted. All you had to do was bring up the Buffalo Bills or ask him who made the best corned beef sandwich on Capitol Hill and Russert would be off and running, showing off his regular guy roots as he pontificated about professional sports, greasy sandwiches or the sacrosanct status of anyone hiding behind the flag.
I think it was Andrea Mitchell who said Russert's eyes would tear up whenever he heard the national anthem. Unfortunately his emotion came for all the wrong reasons because Russert believed in and sold America the Exceptional when he should have been digging for the real stories so vital to people from Buffalo to Baghdad. Stories worthy of tears.
And so MSNBC is heading full bore into another day of mythologizing a nice guy who failed the very working people to whom he paid so much lip service. The tribute is meant to remind us that Mr. Russert and all talking heads are more important than regular people. Maybe now we'll learn to appreciate and trust these people before we tragically lose another one of them!
The Russertathon establishes that talking heads matter more than many outstanding people, too. (At least as far as other talking heads are concerned.) In 500 years, who do you think will be considered more significant for his contribution as a chronicler of this age we live in? Tim Russert or Kurt Vonnegut? If Vonnegut got five minutes coverage on MSNBC when he died, I missed four minutes and forty-five seconds of it. Russert, on the other hand, has already had 30 times more airtime devoted to his life and death than all of the 129 journalists who have been killed in Iraq combined. It's exactly the kind of reporting we've come to expect during the era of a nice guy named Tim Russert.
UPDATE Sun Evening -- Thanks for all the comments. When I checked MSNBC today, the Russerthon was still going strong. I swear these people are just about talking about canceling the election because of how daunting it will be to sort things out without Tim Russert's guidance.
Another thing...How inappropriate was it to have his doctor on just hours after Russert died disclosing details about his patient's health? It was intrusive, inappropriate and creepy.
I was no fan of Russert but this crap has not been a tribute, it's been an assault, a propaganda campaign. I feel sorry for him because this has been a violation. It's gotten to the point where it would be better if the blathering talking heads did what should be done at an Irish wake-- drink. Their behavior couldn't become any more embarrassing and maybe a little truth would leak out.
Honestly, I wasn't going to write anything about this. But then it was still going on 24 hours later. At that point, the lack of any sense of proportion and the gauche and maudlin exploitation of the sudden death of someone by people who should have mourned privately, and with some dignity, demanded comment.
