Chris Matthews vs. Jimmy McNulty

The "controversy" over Barack Obama's "bitter" comments was a media creation from start to finish - a brouhaha manufactured by very wealthy reporters and pundits who do anything they can to ignore, reject or otherwise downplay the very real issue of inequality and economic class in America. Using MSNBC's Chris Matthews and "The Wire's" Jimmy McNulty, I show in my new newspaper column out today that the very media ideology that spins up these "controversies" has gone from subtle to brazen in the last few weeks - and that intensification is breeding, yes, bitterness.

Matthews is the personification of this ideology inside the Washington press corps and chattering class. He is a guy so out of touch with reality that he looks at his $5 million annual salary, three Mercedes and luxurious Chevy Chase lifestyle and tells the New York Times he's not part of America's winner's circle. In that New York Times profile, he likens himself to a working-class champion, and yet when you watch Hardball, all working-class issues are stripped of their substance and turned into a screaming match over tactics, and nothing more.

This is par for the course in the media. Obama notes that when working-class Americans get economically shafted, they get "bitter" - and millionaire Tim Russert reacts by asking a group of millionaire political consultants to appear on Meet the Press to explain working-class politics to America. ABC's Charlie Gibson takes what could have been a substantive discussion of tax inequality, and turns it into a fact-free diatribe about the capital gains tax supposedly hurting regular Americans - even though most of it is paid by the wealthiest 1 percent. These people all couch their arguments and presentation in blue-collar iconography, but what's really coming through is a powerful form of elitism.

At a time when people are dying because of lack of access to health care and because of a misguided war, only the superrich elite have the luxury of treating politics like an entertaining sport and deliberately obscuring issues so as to justify economic royalism. The problem is that when the superrich in the media do this, it not only makes solving real problems harder, but it can breed - yes - bitterness among us commoners, because the underlying message is that our daily challenges are unimportant.

In my column, I use the example of Matthews and Jimmy McNulty - the latter being the everyman cop in HBO's "The Wire." In season 3 of the show, McNulty starts dating a Washington political consultant, and when he tries to get up to speed on her business by watching Matthews-style cable shows, he laments how divorced from reality the coverage is. Later on, he's downright bitter.

Though McNulty is a fictional character, he's a lot more real than cartoons like Matthews, Russert, Gibson and the rest of the media elite. The feelings he expresses, which I recount in my column, are widespread out here in America - and the media has a heckuva lot to do with that. It may be shocking for political junkies to realize it, but most of America does not wake up everyday thinking about Obama or Hillary Clinton's latest gaffe. Most of America has no idea who David Axelrod or Mark Penn is. Most of America doesn't care what the latest polls in Indiana say. Most of America is worrying about paying the bills, making it through the next day and providing for our families.

But you wouldn't know that if you turn on the television. No, when you flip on the tube, you are led to believe the only thing that matters are politicians screaming at each other, and millionaire pundits analyzing the sport of it. And then, incredibly, these same millionaires wonder why so many Americans think our entire political process is broken, and that the political discourse in this country doesn't care about the majority of the country it is supposed to represent.

You can read the whole column at the San Francisco Chronicle, Denver Post, Ft. Collins Coloradoan, Vail Daily, TruthDig, Credo Action, In These Times, Alternet or Creators. You can listen to a podcast of the column here. The column relies on grassroots support, so if you'd like to see my column regularly in your local paper, use this directory to find the contact info for your local editorial page editors. Get get in touch with them and point them to my Creators Syndicate site. Thanks, as always, for your ongoing readership and help contacting local editors. This column couldn't be what it is without your help.

Join the book club for David Sirota's upcoming book, The Uprising, due out on 5/27.

Comments

[Jjc2006]

Welcome to our world Sirota! You know, the world where many of us have been complaining about Matthews for several years. We complained with his obnoxious hits on Al Gore. We complained when he was going on and on as he drooled over the objects of his man crushes. We complained REALLY REALLY loud when he went on his sexist tirade against Hillary Clinton, last year......when he and Delay were mocking Hillary's voice...the one MEN can't stand to hear.
Then again, for some of you, Matthews and his frat boy club, the millionaire boys' club of pundits, were just fine and dandy as long as he attacked someone you hated. He could use sexism, ageism and everything else.....no problem. NOW you notice what an out of touch jerk he is???? Better late than never.

[DaCoach]

As long as guys like Matthews can make $5M a year, you have to expect the people who hire them to want to make a profit on their investment. And that return is driven by ratings. So what drives ratings? How about controversy? Something like a fight for a political party's nomination.

Imagine the rating on CNN, MSNBC and Fox if Senators Clinton and Obama weren't in their neverending story about the forces of good and evil. Let's admit it was in the best interests of the networks to give Hillary a good opponent. Obama was a rainmaker for the ad teams. But just when the season was about to come to a close, we found out from all the media that the Senator from Illinois needed more vetting.

I remember seeing interviews done by journalists such as Murrow and Cronkite. They seldom allowed the viewer to know their personal opinion. Rather, they asked insightful questions and offered the viewer the chance to form their own decision.

Nowadays, we all know what the opinions are of everyone covering the nomination. It's a circus and the loudest barker gets the biggest salary. I'd suggest we would be well served not to expect any change in our lifetime.

[RAND7044]

Hot damn! Good job. The whole entire process is broken. Hence the nasty turn on Obama. They realized, oh shit he mite win. Then what will we have to talk about. If she wins, more of the same 60"s boomer bullshit. Is he american enough? Give me a damn break, Gas is about to hit 4 fucking dollars and the question that gets ask, Why don't you wear a flag pin? He should have answered, the same reason why you, George, and my opponent don't have on one. This is the state of journalism in this country. No hard question, just bullshit. Is her pant suit too expensive, he gets a 400 hundred dollar haircut. Meanwhile, KBR, Halli, and Blackwater get to rob fort knox. Thats why people are turned off. This whole process is soooooo screwed up.

[jhink465]

Matthews is making $5 mil for the drivel he spews. We are done.

[SaltySaltillo]

This blog and these comments are the most important discussion coming out of this election year. If we can learn anything about our world, it is that the MSM is an extraordinarily powerful, mostly antidemocratic force shaping our society.

For some reason I have read almost nothing in the blogosphere, although it shocked me to no end, that Gibson and Stephanopoulos conflated $250K per year as the top end of the American middle class income range when they tried to nail Clinton and Obama to the cross of "Read-my-lips-no-new-taxes". If anyone goes back they will see that Gibson quite clearly framed the tax question as "middle class americans making up to 250K per year."

Can someone please inform Mr. Gibson that 250K per year puts one in the top 5% of income earners in this country? 95th percentile wealth is not middle class. And a tax on people earning 250K a year is not hurting the middle class.

[windyindie41]

"Obama notes that when working-class Americans get economically shafted, they get "bitter" - and millionaire Tim Russert reacts by asking a group of millionaire political consultants to appear on Meet the Press to explain working-class politics to America. "

David, you are SPOT ON! This above quote sums up EVERYTHING that is wrong with todays media, and it saddens me to know end to see that it's not gonna stop anytime soon. As for Chris Matthews, I have railed against him many times on this site, and I'm sad to say that he was in prime form yesterday, calling McCain a "maverick" senator again, all the while talking with a mouthful of spit. Seriously, I hope those reports of his eminent demise at MSNBC happens sooner then later, because right now, having him pair with Olbermann for election night coverage is like watching Keith moderate next to a drooling monkey.

[RobertAndropolis]

HuffPost's Pick

Once one has watched for some time Matthews, Stephanopolous, Olbermann, Scarborough, Cafferty, Russert, Gibson, Gregory to name but a few (Matthews always to lead any list), one realizes they have very little idea what they are talking about, so the natural urge is for them to default and gush in support of their candidate. That is, their candidate this week. Most pundits--or whatever you want to call them--that command cable or network air-time think this White House race is about them (Stephanopolous, to name the most glaring example, Matthews to name the most tenacious example). The BBC, conversely, are refreshingly devoid of bias grand-standing.

Websites like this where democratic voices gain entrance at the mere keystroke, have seen comments about the lack of manners prevalent in these tv pundits. Keith Olbermann, and I'm a fan, takes so goddamn long to finish asking his questions he reminds me of Eric Clapton stuck in a guitar riff he can't get out of. Olbermann, (Cornell Univ.) forms questions awkwardly around the answer he wants to hear. The resulting sentence structure is so piled upon that I've forgotten whatever question he started to ask thirty seconds ago.

Bad manners. Bad communication technique. It is odd that a majority of these announcers cannot turn their high intellect inward and see what jack-asses they sound like to the rest of us outside their self-congratulatory network-network.

How to affect a change? Don't tune in. Boycotts prove effective.

[jhink465]

Listening to Eric Clapton on a guitar riff is a bad thing even if it goes on and on? Obermann framing a question so he gets an answer rather than blather is a bad thing? If your ability to comprehend complexity is strained then maybe you have some kind of attention disorder. You shouldn't slam people who are good at what they do. With fans like you....

[marc1antony]

I'd have absolutely no problem boycotting the media - in fact I do - but I will not give up Olbermann and I do admit I tune in during the primary results- other than that, I can get practically anything on the internet now - including any info on crap that I refuse to watch.

[punditpolice]

Excellent article- Matthews made me scream back at the TV yesterday- can't recall what he was saying, but it pissed me off enough to scream at him. Keep up the good work.

[Reader874]

I am a life long democrat to who stopped watching Chris Matthews too, but nor for the reason this article suggests. I stopped because I could not take Chris Matthews' dumping on Hillary and glorifying Obama any more. If you guys think Chris Matthews is pro-Hillary, I can only conclude that you have a severe hearing or a language problem. From which planer are you commenting?

[Snowball]

If anyone claims that Matthews supports either Democratic candidate, they are seriously delusional and fail to understand the politics, ideology and financial interests of the Corporate Media. They are going after Obama now because he's the likely nominee. They'd do it to any Democrat. Do you not remember what they did to Al Gore or John Kerry? Unless you've been asleep for decades since the Fairness Doctrine was eliminated, you'll have noticed the media always favors the Republican in any Presidential race.

As large corporations, the big media conglomerates are not objective non-partisan actors in the political process. They have a vested financial interest in the fortunes of the Republican party and its pro-corporate anti-working and middle class ideology of deregulation. The media industry needs Republicans to maintain control of the FCC allowing them to further merge and absorb greater control of media markets. If John McCain is elected, we will see a state of American media where one corporation can control your local newspaper, radio and TV stations and even internet access.

[savertime]

Well said.

I read comments where the poster actually believes Matthews is in the tank for Obama because he raved about an Obama rally that he attended. Matthews has always had a man-crush on McCain. It showed up again at the Villanova-McCain interview.

For $5 million/yr, Matthews will be for the republican candidate; he has a better shot at keeping much more of his money. Matthews was for the Iraq war before he was against it. His drooling over Bush and Cheney caused me to leave Hardball in disgust.
He is now a political hack, and will continue following the money.

Bill Clinton gave us legislation allowing the corporate creation of media monopolies.
.Bill Clinton gave us the deregulation of Glass-Steagall which allowed for all of the "creative financing" that got us into this mess.
Bill Clinton claims they are Eisenhower Republicans, not Reagan Republicans.

[Phaedrus21]

He became disenchanted with Obama after he decided that the "bitter" comments were offensive to the working people of Pennsylvania.

[scottymac11]

These pundits don't report the news they interpret the news. They give us their perspective as millionaires hired by billionaires to to dissemble reality for their financial, political advantage. I'm not saying there is no reason to watch any such performers. I'm saying they are constantly telling you what the folks on main street America are thinking. I'm saying the Pundits wealth , celebrity and corporate employers prevent both understanding and accurate reporting of average American intrests.

[Podewumun]

We pulled the plug on our cable last year, and if it weren't for PBS and BBC News, Bill Moyers' "Journal", "NOW" with David Broncaccio, and DVDs of "The Wire", we'd probably pull the plug on the telly as well.
George Will's mantra that gasoline is cheaper now (in something called "adjusted dollars") than it was in 1981 made me want to jump through the screen and strangle him with his own necktie!

[Jazz42]

Mr Sirota.
I agree completely with your assessment of Chris Matthews. I no longer watch Hardball, Road to the White House, Morning Joe. I still watch Keith Olberman. I use to like Lou Dobbs on CNN until he went off the deep end.

[PaulC37943]

The only reason to watch Tweety these days is for the sheer entertainment value of it. Watch at your peril though, you will not be enlightened. It's like a trainwreck - horrible to see but you just can't look away. I've taken to watching the faces of his guests as they struggle to hide what must be an irresistable impulse to reach out and choke the life of him. Good time, good times.

[peibossman]

Did you ever notice how fast Chris Matthew's guest talk? Well, it's because they rush to get their comments in before Matthews interrupts them...didn't he learn any social graces?...

[jhink465]

Blowhards tend to do that. They like the sound of their own voice and could care less what any of the other losers that go on the show have to say.

[loril]

Another reason why my tv is off 95% of the time. I just got to a point where I could not stand it anymore. I read instead...including news stories. Thank God for the web-based news. I can somehow read quotes from these jokers and look at their ugly mugs online and get slightly less agitated than when I actually have to see and hear them on tee vee.

I am an accelerated old crank...in my early 40s I have already realized that I want to tune out a lot of what passes for contemporary media and "entertainment". When "news" became "entertainment" it was a sign for me that I was wasting my time and eroding my sanity by watching.

We need to turn these programs off in droves. But many people need the sound of the tv in the background and the light shining from the monitor to keep them company. Even the company of fools seems better than a quiet house with only your own thoughts to keep you occupied. However, kicking the tv addiction is worthwhile once you have done it.

[Podewumun]

Welcome to Curmudgeonville, loril! Glad to have you!

[garcohsf]

I wish the working people in this country were more bitter. I wish that they would vote in their economic self-interest, rather than for Reagan, Bush, Perot (talk about an elitest fraud!), Bush.