Scott McClellan, The One Legged Tap Dancer
Friday press briefings at the Whitehouse can be most amusing. This is an opportunity for the Whitehouse to pass out the ammunition for the Sunday talk shows. Usually it’s been a long week for the press, their exhausted or at least the hot points of the week have been exhausted. Philosophically Whitehouse reporters new week starts on Friday, physically Friday is the end of the week. The strains between body and mind works too an advantage for the Whitehouse. This is the time they slip in information that’s critical but seldom picked up on. Later McClellan can say I told you that in a previous briefing.
A Whitehouse Press Secretary, first must never deliberately lie to the press, On the other hand he must be capable of misdirecting reporters off sensitive issues. Press Secretaries are often viewed by reporters as being the Court Jester. They’re the voice of the president, they must poses certain skills, they must be articulate, they must command a vast array of knowledge, and above all they must stay cool under fire. Press Secretaries never deal in what if’s, they deal in what is. They are careful never to express the Presidents view with out knowing what that view is.
On the other hand, the press is predisposed to answers to questions they intend to ask and anything short of their answer by the Press Secretary isn’t acceptable for them. It’s like the game of tug of war both sides pulling to the point of breaking the lines of civility.
The result is supposed to inform the public of what their government’s up to. The media insists the public has a right to know, politicians insist the public already knows. It was the public after all who told politicians what they wanted them to do. In reality neither is the case. The media and politicians are preaching to the choir, their telling each other what they think they want to hear. The public for the most part could care less what the daily workings of the government are about. If the pubic really cared all press briefing’s would be carried live on primetime TV.
The media is a willing tool for both political parties.They are the town criers, perhaps even court jesters of the age. How many times has a media bias caused them to get it wrong? In 2005, alone we’ve seen half a dozed media cover-ups. This year we saw, three of the Medias Primer Anchors leave the airways, two for questionable reporting, and one for who knows why. The public once relied on Print news, Radio, and Television and were expected to make their determinations from those sources. Today in addition there’s Talk Radio, Cable Television, and the Internet to chose from. It’s called The Information Age All the information in the world, is available to everyone in the world, in every language in the world, 24 / 7, there’s no end to what’s available. With the assist of Blackberries in Alaska, laptops in the jungles of New Guinea, and cell phones everywhere. No corner of the earth need be uninformed.
It’s been said we are too well informed, I disagree. God gave man the ability to separate useful information and discard wasteful information. Unfortunately, God didn’t always give men the ability to distinguish between the two.
Make it a point to watch or read a Press Briefing some time. Its an experience in child physiology 101.
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