Better to serve the country

Currently, there's a lot of attention to Scott McClellan's new book, particularly his statements about the media.

The mainstream media didn't live up to its watchdog reputation. "If it had, the country would have been better served."

This has all the 'news value' of most of what passes for news these days (although this term 'news value' could be part of a more interesting discussion affiliated with use value, exchange value, shock value, surplus value such that 'news' is purely a type of commercial indicator/qualifier). Who denies the fact that the msm failed totally and miserably in the run up to the Iraq war?

Nonetheless, there might be more to McClellan's statement. Namely, he might be understood as telling us something about the Republicans' understanding of the media and the Democrats (and their unholy union, the liberal media). The Republicans fight like vicious attack dogs because they presume antagonism. They presume political warfare, political struggle. The failure of the Democrats and of the msm is to hold up their end of the struggle.

Since the Nixon administration, a staple of the Republican position has been an antagonistic position vis-a-vis the press. We forget this because of Reagan's teflon coating, but that criticism didn't stick doesn't mean is wasn't leveled. The Republican premise, though, is of a fight with the media so they wage it as best they can. When the media just gives in, roles over, sucks up, accepts its terms, goes to bed with it and all that, then they don't have a struggle.

The same holds for the Democrats. The last eight years of Democratic rolling over and pissing themselves has been frightful. The Republicans should be sending them flowers "we couldn't have done it without you!" But their premise is of course not unity but fight, fight to the death (of the Democrats). Again, that the Democrats have fallen for it, and the pathetic acceptance that 51 is not a majority in the Senate is but one example here) simply means that they have been beaten. The Republicans have played a political game that somehow the Democrats have not understood themselves to be playing (and Kennedy's brain tumor is a sign that we may be losing the last Democrat who knew what was going on but was smart enough to play this game and to govern--get legislation through--at the same time).

McClellan's comment tells us about the Republicans. Their game has been premised on the presence of adversaries also out for blood. But the media and the Democrats gave up, gave in, and didn't play. And it seems, then, that maybe the Republicans were a little shocked and little over their heads when they got what they wanted and more. They needed adversaries, barriers. Victory doesn't taste like much when one's opponents don't put up a fight. So really, they were served up the country without much spice or flavor.

It could have been better served.

Comments

[Badda Being]

Sort of adds a new dimension to the "party of appeasers" moniker.

[Jodi]

very nice point.

[miggy]

"Who denies the fact that the msm failed totally and miserably in the run up to the Iraq war?"

The msm does.