Ten Media Truths

One of my favorite blog writers is Moe Lane at RedState.  He's got just the right amount of snark mixed with impeccable logic and a sense of realism.  I could not applaud any louder to this advice he offers up to elected Republican politicians:

This is the result of roughly ten years' worth of looking on – sometimes horrified; sometimes amused; sometimes bewildered – at our current Media environment. Note that capital, by the way: I'm pretty much describing the Media as a singular and monolithic institution, mostly because on a practical level that's pretty much how it acts towards conservatives/Republicans. Also, I'm really not interested if individual Media-units feel bad about the more unsavory aspects of the paradigm that they're supporting, either; guilt, like gratitude, is worth its weight in gold.

So let's go. One final note: if you need a quick summary of this list… well, just remember the first truth and you'll be fine.

Ten Media Truths for Conservative/Republican Legislators

1. The Media hates you, and wants you to die in a fire.
2. The Media will only reliably compliment you when you do things to help liberals and Democrats.
3. The Media loves it when you attack other conservatives/Republicans.
4. You will never, ever, ever be able to reliably buy off the Media by being a 'good' (i.e., self-hating) conservative/Republican.
5. Every flaw that you have – real or perceived – will be magnified by the Media. You will get no slack at all.
6. Every flaw that your opponent has – real or perceived – will be downplayed by the Media.
7. If you get an endorsement from a major Media source, it's probably because your opponent was caught in a horrific scandal. So don't count on getting that endorsement the next time.
8. The Media has no shame, no sense of guilt, and no institutional memory of its own faults, flaws, and prejudices. Do not appeal to its better nature: the Media could care less about your opinion of it.
9. Do not whine about any of this: the truth is, this unrelenting hostility from the Media will (if properly handled) simply make you an unstoppable political machine.
10. Most importantly: THE MEDIA DID NOT ELECT YOU. The voters did. Keep that in mind when you're working out your legislative priorities.

AMEN AMEN AMEN AMEN AMEN AMEN AMEN!!!!!!!

I expect to disagree with essentially everything that liberals -- whether elected liberals, media liberals, or liberals in my own little sphere of the universe -- because I have a pretty solid understanding of their motivations, inclinations, and philosophical worldview and I think it's wrong.  That's fine.  We all get to choose our worldview.  It's how America's political system works.  However, I have never understood why people who are supposedly in agreement with me, and who get elected by millions of voters like me specifically to carry our philosophical worldview into elected office...don't get it.  How can they not understand that a liberal on Main Street = a liberal in the Media = a liberal in Congress?  A liberal is a liberal.  It's a philosophical worldview, and anyone who subscribes to it will believe generally the same things.  It colors every issue with the same shade of Leftism.

So, how is it that elected representatives on our side can't seem to figure out that the liberal Media isn't the same as them, never will be them, never will agree with them, and never will do anything other than try to make them lose?  It's as if Republicans think the Media is unbiased and objective, and all they have to do is more effectively communicate their message through the Media to reach more people.

No.  Wrong.  Stupid.

By communicating through the Media, Republicans are using the enemy's own radio system to call for help.  The sooner they realize this en masse and start harnessing the power of the new media -- blogs, talk radio, the Internet -- the sooner they can relegate the Media into the niche it really occupies: the Democrat party propaganda machine.