Tuesday, August 31, 2004

Press keeping Swift Boat Lies in the news

If, as the accusation goes, the media is Liberal-biased, then why would it keep bringing up the Swift Boat Liar ads and not clearly stating that the truth is out, the ads are pure fiction, and move on?

Here's one reporter's observations:

Ryan Lizza -- The New Republic:

"Never in a campaign has a more disreputable group of people, whose accusations have been repeatedly contradicted by official records and reliable eyewitness accounts, had their claims taken so seriously. John Kerry's accounts of his military service are supported by U.S. Navy documents, his crewmates, and -- in the case of the engagement for which Kerry won the Silver Star -- the only other living officer who witnessed the event...

"But, as much as the press bears responsibility for the last few weeks of wall-to-wall Swiftee coverage, many Democrats, who have been tearing their hair out as they have watched this story unfold like a slow-motion car wreck, aren't just angry at the media. They are also blaming the Kerry campaign for allowing the accusations to metastasize into a clear threat to a Democratic victory."

Before we got to New York, there was some chatter about whether the Swift boat controversy would fade as the media became preoccupied with the convention. The answer is a resounding no, and not just because the swifties have launched another anti-Kerry ad. The correspondents just keep sticking microphones in Republicans' faces, including Rudy and McCain, and saying, "So, what do you think of the swift boat ads?"