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TechnoratiMatthews vs. McNulty
If television is the nation's mirror, then no two TV characters reflect the intensifying "two Americas" gap better than Chris Matthews and Jimmy McNulty.
A recent New York Times profile of Matthews describes a name-dropping dilettante floating between television studios and cocktail parties. The article documents the MSNBC host's $5-million salary, three Mercedes and house in lavish Chevy Chase, Md. Yet Matthews said, "Am I part of the winner's circle in American life? I don't think so."
That stupefying comment sums up a pervasive worldview in Washington that is hostile to any discussion of class divides. Call it Matthews-ism -- an ideology most recently seen in the brouhaha over Barack Obama's statement about economic dislocation.
The Illinois senator said that when folks feel economically shafted, they get "bitter." Matthews-ism spun the truism into a scandal.
The Washington Post labeled Obama's statements "Bittergate." Tim Russert invited affluent political consultants on "Meet the Press" to analyze the "controversy," with millionaire James Carville saying, "I'm hardly bitter about things." Hillary Clinton called Obama "elitist," ignoring her mansions in Washington and Chappaqua, $109-million income, career as a Wal-Mart board member, and legacy pushing job-killing policies such as NAFTA.
This sickening episode was topped off by ABC's Charles Gibson, who only months ago humiliated himself by insinuating that typical middle-class families make $200,000 a year (95 percent make less). Last week, while moderating a debate, Gibson segued from the "bitter" comment into a tirade against rescinding capital gains tax breaks, implying the proposal would hurt most Americans. This, even though the tax cuts in question delivered the vast majority of their benefits to the richest 1 percent.
By downplaying inequality and couching royalism in middle-class arguments, the Beltway elite pretend there are not two Americas but only one: theirs.
Matthews routinely turns discussions of economic issues into debates about tactics, and then heads home to Chevy Chase telling himself he isn't "part of the winner's circle." Tim Russert asks millionaires to explain working-class struggles, and then reminds viewers he roots for the Buffalo Bills -- as if that proves he speaks for blue-collar America. Hillary Clinton makes a career out of speaking for powerful corporations, and then shows up at an Indiana bar to decry "elitism." Gibson suggests six-figure salaries are common, and then says the masses should worry about rich people like him having to pay slightly higher taxes.
In sum, economic blindness, sports symbols, beery photo ops and uninformed idiocy have become the iconography of working-class solidarity that disguises the ongoing class war.
How could this happen, you ask? How could it not?
Pop culture tells us "The Cosby Show's" economically privileged family represents the ordinary black experience, politics tells us a money-controlled electoral system is "democratic," and pundits tell us that aristocrat George Bush is a "regular guy." Propaganda is ubiquitous -- and it results in Jimmy McNulty.
He is the cop from HBO's "The Wire" -- the quintessential everyman. For a time, he tries to understand politics by watching vapid Matthews-style talk shows, but quickly becomes frustrated. "It doesn't matter who you've got [running for office], none of them has a clue what's really going on," he says, lamenting that politics treats him "like a [expletive] doormat" -- as if the day-to-day challenges he faces are "some stupid game with stupid penny ante stakes."
McNulty may be fictional, but McNulty-ism is a very real reaction to Matthews-ism. When the media responsible for explaining our world deny the existence of the world most of us inhabit, they breed -- yes -- bitterness. And the more the Matthewses treat us McNultys like reality is just "stupid games with stupid penny ante stakes," the wider the gulf between the two Americas will become.
David Sirota is a bestselling author whose newest book, "The Uprising," will be released in June of 2008. He is a fellow at the Campaign for America's Future and a board member of the Progressive States Network-both nonpartisan organizations. His blog is at www.credoaction.com/sirota.
© 2008 Creators Syndicate Inc.
14 Comments so far
Show Allclaudius: do one better than line the birdcage or cat box as the case maybe. Write to the sponsors of these dribble inducing shows and tell them you refuse to buy their products unless then get smart and start sponsoring better quality programning. Paying any of these shrill, talk show host more than a $1.00 a show is highway robbery.
"It doesn't matter who you've got [running for office], none of them has a clue what's really going on," he says,..."
Of course they know what's going on. They know exactly what's going on. They just don't give a shit.
"Deer Hunting With Jesus...Dispatches from America's Class War" by Joe Bageant is a worthy read. Hilarious and depressing at the same time, it's right on; and those that have expeienced the life of the underclass will find much to identify with. Those that have led a more fortunate life may be perplexed. He's not making this shit up. Ask any of us that view life from down below! His web site www.joebageant.com provides more of the same.
Ya, smart people relize the MSM is a propaganda machine doing the Devils work.
Funny how Hillary is using the Republican line used on John Kerry on Obama... "he is an elitist"
Who's side is she on anyway?
Maybe she reverted to the Republican she was once registered as?
The two men written about, one real and one fictional, should ideally change dimensions and realities. A McNulty with his own gabfest that Matthews now has would be a true step forward for American television.
I haven't had a TV in the house, for over 7 years. Use the Web, folks - ain't nothing on the Mass Media worth watching. Even Public Broadcasting is SEVERLY compromised.
Tune out the Tube. Read books and Internet sites - like this one.
A long time ago I stopped watching Chris Matthews, John McLaughlin and other corporate talkshow mouthpieces not only because they are corporate shills, but they talk over each other, so it is virtually impossible to hear what anyone is saying. Then and now they have proven to be the guard dogs for the right-wing elites, piss poor excuses for journalists (many of them do not even have journalism degrees), and co-conspirators in war crimes (by protecting war criminals). Anything they put in print should be used as a birdcage liner or substitute for toilet paper.
Better tune 'em all out, and watch CCTV-9. The voices are more soothing.
Why the author didn't simply say,"I fucking hate Chris Matthews" and be done with it, I do not know. The premise of the article comparing Matthews to a fictional character on a TV show seems both lame and stretching a contrivance too far.
I get sooo sick of the news guys "interpretations and analysis". If you want to know what someone meant...ask them...don't speculate, debate, and humiliate.
I know what the "bitter" meant...and I agree with it. People like Matthews and the likes of him trying to stir something up is disgusting...especially in light of the fact that they won't ask the real questions or report on the real issues that concern Americans...
Hardball....no...softball...maybe.....ball-less, more accurately true.
It's time to start pamphleteering! Anyone want to get started on this with me? We have to talk control away from the mainstream media by taking it to the streets. It might be seen as bothersome, but what else is there? Keep it simple, and try our best to persuade to change our system.
"Baby Huey Matthew's" statement after the result's of the Pa primary became known ("The real winner here is cable news" hit me like 2x4 to the brain chamber.
It's all about'them'and that has incouraged me to never again watch MSNBC and CNN (never watched FOX to begin with).
Enough of us follow my lead and the advertiser's will notice and "Tweety Bird" may have to sell one of those Mercedes.
If you're on a dish, your viewing preferrences are registered imediately, call it a space age Nielsen Rating system. That's why you may notice that Lou Dobbs runs 5 minutes past the regular time slot. If you, for example. switch to MSNBC after Dobbs for Olberman, the rating is not registered/recorded, thus effectively reducting Olbie's numbers and increasing CNN's. Being tuned in for the openning is the key for ratings.
This is the system that Spitter Matthew's lives in.
A sureal and empty life earning million's.
That...can be changed.
Enforce "Operation Click" today.
Curtsie!
Yesterday's USA newspaper headline:
"60,000 firms owe $8B in taxes - Federal contractors delinquent, GAO says."
"The Government Accountability Office estimates that more than 60,000 federal contractors owe $7.7 billion in back taxes. An additional $1 billion is owed by health care providers who receive Medicare funds, the GAO says. An undetermined amount of farm subsidies, small-business loans and other benefits flow to companies that owe taxes. These taxes are part of the $300 billion in taxes that go unpaid every year, the Internal Revenue Service estimates."
From the "elitest" senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation (neo-con central), J.D. Foster comes this:
"Efforts to collect contractor's unpaid taxes make sense but shouldn't be expected to produce much new revenue".
Have a good program that would be of substantial benefit for the citizens of this country, but just can't get the funding? How about $300,000,000,000; would that be enough?
Also, check out The National Priorities Project, where one can find out how the Iraq war has been, is, and will cost the American people. It has information for States, Counties and Ciies.
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/
It is typical of the billionaire blind club to want to lead the blind, paying taxes and capital gains is a joke when there are as many ways to hid or rollover your money,as taxes, take the "death" tax (rich whine), if you are filthy rich you put it into a foundation and your heirs draw a salary manageing their money, simply effective tax avoidence, or simply put your money offshore, like the Bush dynasty, and invest it in the Kingdom of Saud, with weeklong stays at the Bin Ladens, laughing all the way to the bank when your buddies (OPEC) say they are not going to raise production, when lip service is paid to religion I wonder of the hypocrisy of the rich man going thru the eye of the needle or Jesus driving out the den of thieves in the temple,,,or my question "what makes one man think they are worth so much more than the next man, elitism is alive and wel withj think tanks and illusion to back it,,,is it time to dethrone the new "royalty"?