UpTight said:
Interestingly, the originators of this story (http://africanpress.wordpress.com) keep claiming their tape of Michelle is about to air on a cable news network.
That's not interesting. It will be interesting if it ever airs. But claiming that evidence is going to be presented is what people do when they're trying to pull off a hoax. See the recent Bigfoot Discovery for an example.
"We have evidence! We have evidence! We'll show it to you at this press conference! Okay, here's a blurry photo. But we have better evidence that we'll show you after this conference! Okay, they're examining our evidence! Okay, we're full of shit."
UpTight said:
Interestingly, the originators of this story (http://africanpress.wordpress.com) keep claiming their tape of Michelle is about to air on a cable news network.
That's not interesting. It will be interesting if it ever airs. But claiming that evidence is going to be presented is what people do when they're trying to pull off a hoax. See the recent Bigfoot Discovery for an example.
"We have evidence! We have evidence! We'll show it to you at this press conference! Okay, here's a blurry photo. But we have better evidence that we'll show you after this conference! Okay, they're examining our evidence! Okay, we're full of shit."
Until that point, API had been a non-controversial, credible enough source, but if they made it up, then they are to blame - the hoaxer - not the hoaxees, just like Larry Johnson is to blame for the "whitey" thing.
UpTight said:
Interestingly, the originators of this story (http://africanpress.wordpress.com) keep claiming their tape of Michelle is about to air on a cable news network.
That's not interesting. It will be interesting if it ever airs. But claiming that evidence is going to be presented is what people do when they're trying to pull off a hoax. See the recent Bigfoot Discovery for an example.
"We have evidence! We have evidence! We'll show it to you at this press conference! Okay, here's a blurry photo. But we have better evidence that we'll show you after this conference! Okay, they're examining our evidence! Okay, we're full of shit."
Until that point, API had been a non-controversial, credible enough source, but if they made it up, then they are to blame: the hoaxer - not the hoaxees.
So when the latest Bigfoot guys showed up, you wouldn't blame someone for going "Guys! They found Bigfoot!" and you wouldn't have a "Told you so." instinct when it was finally shown to be a hoax?
Because anti-American statements by the Obamas have been the conservative Bigfoot for a number of months now.
The Discovery Channel was a pretty credible source, right up until they figured out that airing programs about ghosts and other bullshit got them more ratings than legitimate science.
the most brazen distortion on this list is the attempt to pin a story appearing in an African community newsletter on the conservatives
Except, as is noted by the linked piece, the lunatic fringe of the Conservative blogosphere was more than happy to run with it.
Maybe. There's a lot of what you'd call the "lunatic fringe" that called bullshit.
What does this prove? Well for a start, it proves that you can't treat the "conservative blogosphere" as a homogeneous blob and tar them all with the same brush.
Or can you? If so, then I tar the entire Liberal blogosphere with all the kooky, racist, 911 conspiracy addled blogs that litter my.barrackobama.com
Interestingly, the originators of this story (http://africanpress.wordpress.com) keep claiming their tape of Michelle is about to air on a cable news network.
It also tells us of the dire need for professional journalism that covers both sides of the partisan divide. A "fairness doctrine" is shit - whether for right wing radio or left wing newspapers, but if the press isn't investigating Obama then the blogs (in all their amateur glory) will.
Ahhh, the most predictably irrelevant of Uptight's responses: Moral equivalency.
Listen, I'm not ever going to argue that the left doesn't have it's share of kooks. I'm sure if you were so inclined you could write up a similar article for lefty blogs. But that wasn't what this article is about. This is about the tenancy on the part of wingnuts like you to swallow every nonsensical and nonfactual story about the left/Obama whole and run with it. Of course, sometimes there are those who decline to take the bait, but with the wholesale defection of conservative intellectuals from the Republican Party that is occurring, that's getting rarer and rarer.
Also, you never said which parts were "true stories". My friends, I eagerly await that bit, my friends.
Accuser said:
So when the latest Bigfoot guys showed up, you wouldn't blame someone for going "Guys! They found Bigfoot!" and you wouldn't have a "Told you so." instinct when it was finally shown to be a hoax?
This isn't just a "conservative issue". not so long ago sites on the liberal blogosphere carried the story that Sarah Palin secretly adopted Trig from her own daughter.
Conservative blogs speedily called bullshit on the story of that McCain campaigner who self-mutilated.
Regardless of the side, it's all about quality control - and whilst many blogs do care more about their reputation than point scoring, it's going to remain a problem...probably until someone sues a blogger for libel.
I still maintain that the source of the hoax is the primamry person to blame in these cases. Even top broadcasters and newspapers can slip up.
Oh Subrosa, I could do a lovely top 10 for you if I had the time. It would probably focus more on hysterical liberal opinion pieces, implied violence and crass demonisation.
Accuser said:
So when the latest Bigfoot guys showed up, you wouldn't blame someone for going "Guys! They found Bigfoot!" and you wouldn't have a "Told you so." instinct when it was finally shown to be a hoax?
This isn't just a "conservative issue". not so long ago sites on the liberal blogosphere carried the story that Sarah Palin secretly adopted Trig from her own daughter.
Conservative blogs speedily called bullshit on the story of that McCain campaigner who self-mutilated.
Regardless of the side, it's all about quality control - and whilst many blogs do care more about their reputation than point scoring, it's going to remain a problem...probably until someone sues a blogger for libel.
I still maintain that the source of the hoax is the primamry person to blame in these cases. Even top broadcasters and newspapers can slip up.
I'm referring specifically to this supposed recording of Michelle Obama, or other Obama slip-ups, in the case of conservative bloggers when I call it the conservative Bigfoot. That's why I said so in the first post. Where would you get the idea I was only accusing conservative bloggers of misrepresenting facts and evidence? Of course other bloggers do the same thing, the Trig controversy is a good example. Of course, the reports about it were very trepidacious and said they were looking for legitimate evidence, but they should shoulder some blame for even reporting rumors.
And those who bought it hook, line and sinker and ran around announcing to everyone that Palin was in a conspiracy to hide underage pregnancy deserve blame as well.
Accuser
Scottsdale, AZ
October 2006
OCT 27, 2008 12:15 AM