John Moltz

The influence of blogs

A while back James asked in comments about how we go about making a difference in the fight to beat Bush. I noted that blogs are nice, but they're not outreach.

That's true, but blogs can be the research engine behind the media, as Kos notes today.

Kos call the press lazy and basically says that if bloggers have to do the research for them, well, so be it.

I think that may be true in certain cases, but the more endemic problem with the political media is making everything, even arguments based on verifiable facts, into a "he said, she said" story. The administration would say the sky is pink with purple polka dots and for a long time Democrats would say "I support the president and his characterization of the sky."

"Administration Says X, Democrats Agree" doesn't make for interesting reading.

But, as blogs became more of an entity for the media (in no small degree because some of them actually started their own blogs), they could be tapped to create more interesting stories.

"Administration Says X, Clever Blogger Points Out It's Really Y, Democrats Mumble That They Really Thought It Was Y All Along."

Yes, Bush and his pals had a sweet deal when Democrats were mute and the press just let it all drop. But those days are over.