A gift for Gwen Ifill
An Ivy League prof responds to the Gwen “Age of Obama” Ifill controversy, no doubt with a tinge of regret in his voice, in an interview with the Boston Herald:
“It’s probably not the greatest thing on Earth that she is in that role and it’s probably going to really force her to be fully even-handed,” Thomas Patterson, professor of government and the press at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, told the Herald yesterday.
“Fully even-handed.”
As opposed to the usual partially (un)even-handed way the ogling Obamedia has operated the past 20 months.
Snort.
Anyway, Professor Patterson better be careful.
As I predicted Tuesday night, expressing even the slightest criticism of Ifill’s vested financial and ideological interest in the outcome of the election will get you labeled a…RACIST!
Speaking of which: You won’t believe (nah, you will believe) the number of e-mails from incensed Obama supporters who complained about this sentence in my column:
“It’s not the color of your skin, sweetie.”
The reference to Obama’s dismissive use of “sweetie” when addressing a female journalist sailed right over their heads.
Ignorant of the allusion, the complainers’ immediately proceeded to attack me for…RACISM!
This one’s for you, Gwen Ifill. Like they say, membership has its privileges:
***
On a related note, several readers send word of another Ifill who’s using the phrase “Age of Obama.” Go figure! It’s Ifill’s cousin, Sherrilyn, (”my brilliant baby cousin,” gushes Gwen). Here’s her piece, “The Relevance of Nooses and Lynching in the Age of Obama.” A sample:
The challenge for 2008 and beyond is for us to embrace the hope represented by the widespread acceptance of public figures like Barack Obama and Colin Powell, while continuing the hard work of sorting through the lingering effects and reality of white supremacy in our society.
And Ifill’s “brilliant baby cousin” weighs in on Sarah Palin (hat tip – Chris R.), whom she calls “offensive to black women:”
The actions and remarks of Palin are something that caught the eye of Sherrilyn Ifill, a University of Maryland law professor who has taught voting rights, equal protection and restorative justice.
“From the first day, Palin presented herself as shooting a bear in the morning, field dressing it, cooking up the breakfast, diapering the babies, passing legislation in the afternoon, cleaning the house, satisfying her husband, etc., etc., etc. And it’s just not true,” she wrote in an e-mail interview. “It’s hard to be an average working mom, really hard. And when women who are privileged present as though they have it all together, it’s offensive to black women.”
She said, “black women are not easily confused by false claims to feminism. When women like Palin lay claims to ‘representing’ average women, I think that black women have a visceral reaction to it.”
Ifill added that Palin “missed her opportunity when she announced Bristol’s pregnancy to explicitly talk about how painful it was to her as a mother – instead of making it as though this too was also part of her perfect life.
“Hillary has the sympathy of women because of what she went through with Bill in front of the whole country. Michelle [Obama] takes pains to be self-deprecating and to talk about her concerns and fear about her girls. She insists that she couldn’t do what she does without the help of her mother. Most importantly, both champion issues that affect the lives of real, average women – universal health care, equal pay, choice, etc. To do so is a recognition that real working women (not political wives or politicians) need olicies that will help them maintain their families. What’s the point of Palin’s brand of feminism if it doesn’t translate into real returns for average women?”
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Trackbacks
- Blatant Anti-Palin Bias in the Liberal Media: A Collection (82 Cases) « BUUUUURRRRNING HOT
- Right Angles » Blog Archive » Stakes too high for Ifill to be ‘fully even-handed’
- A GIFT FOR GWEN IFILL « The Florida Patriot
- Obama, You Must Learn To Love Him! « Riggword Weblog
- Gwen Ifill’s “brilliant baby cousin” « The Right Daily
- Was Gwen Ifill tipping her hand? « The Right Daily
- PBS Defines Impartiality - Book In, Bumper Stickers Out | Bitter Knitter
- Preach on, SarahCuda! « The Right Daily
- Michelle Malkin » More things you can’t say in the Age of Obama
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Categories: Media Bias, Race relations, Sarah Palin
Big Government
» BREAKING: San Diego ACORN Document Dump Scandal
Big Government
» Why Isn’t Anyone Really Investigating ACORN?Big Government
» ACORN Scandal, Part 2: The Evidentiary PhaseMudville Gazette
» War costs money (2)Green Room
» Going Un-Framed?Mudville Gazette
» Surrender, he whisperedPundit & Pundette
» The rebirth of Rom Houben
Top of the morning to ya!
This, on it’s face, it’s ludicrous. People by their nature, are infallible – their views of justice or “even-handedness” is pretty much just based on their personal experience. What gauge is used to judge their idea of “even-handedness” or “justice.” Crazy!
Peter Kirsanow on the wimpiness of Republicans
That’s what discourages a lot of the base. If the party won’t fight for principles, why should we?
Gwen Ifill’s comparison of herself to Lou Cannon is absurd. Lou Cannon was a liberal who covered President Reagan extensively. He was friendly with President Reagan, knew him when Reagan was governor, and got along great with the Reagans. But Cannon did not write hagiography about Reagan. He was frequently critical of the Reagans, but always respectful. In contrast, Ifill sees Obama in messianic terms. She loves Barack Obama the same way a teenager loves Miley Cyrus. It is with a gushing, knee shaking attitude. And with Ifill there is alot more going on. Ifill sees Obama as the vessel for all of her (Ifill’s) lifetime ambitions and hopes. Both Obamas represent to Ifill, the fulfillment of the American dream. She can no more be fair in a debate affecting Obama than Donald Trump, Jr. would be talking about Donald Trump, Sr.
Whe doesn’t she just admit her bias and do a Senate debate?
Ifill is telling us that we should wait and see if she was fair and unbiased.
Despite the obvious financial implications for Ifill if Obambi wins, or just the political bias she has, we should wait until tomorrow. That is a courtesy that these “unbiased” journalist they have not extended to Sarah Palin. Tomorrow could be to late.
The problem with liberals today, and so-called commentators like Ifill, is that they are really mean-spirited.
The fuming left, in words and text,
are a most and ugly foul crew.
Utter merely a word
that you’re not in their herd
and their beat you black and blue.
Another ethical lapse by a liberal which will have no real consequences.
When Obama loses the election and Gwen makes no money on her book, it would be a nice gesture for Sarah Palin to offer her a guided moose hunt in Alaska.
my friend mccain is doing everything he can to ensure obama wins in the name of bipartisanship…
Why should it? Libs have no ethics, morals or principals that guide them. They make their own rules as they go, to fullfill their own desires.
Please pardon my optimism.
So according to Sherrilyn Ifill all black women are victims, who can only look up to bigger victims, and if someone takes the rough patches in her life and uses them to her advantage (or in the very least does not wallow in self-pity but tells herself “This too shall pass), then that person is an affront to all black women everywhere. Pardon me but that sounds rather racist.
moral relativism
secular humanism
resulting in chaos and decline of civilization
sometimes I wonder if there is ANYTHING else mccain could do to throw the election…I mean its becoming a joke.
Yep!
Watching the stock market tank…..thanks CONGRESS…..AH’s
I thought they saved us??? how can this be?
I wonder why this bright, articulate, victimized, black law professor didn’t just state that she doesn’t like Palin because Palin hurts the image of the typical, average, liberal black woman of being the victim?
Without victimhood, these poor women would actually have to act like American patriots, work for a living. They would have to stop sitting around on their fat-a$$es and actually contribute to the economy.
Instead of having a commitment to do something positive for America, they prefer to be carbon-spewing, entitlement gobbling Obamatrons.
from RedState.com…….
If you are as concerned about this as I am, you can call Paula
Kerger, the CEO of PBS at (703) 739-8619 and Sharon Rockefeller,
the CEO of WETA in Washington, D.C. at (703) 998-2089 and ask
them to have Ms. Ifill recuse herself or, if they refuse, insist
that Ms. Ifill fully disclose her conflict of interest.
Note:
The CEO’s number is answered by Mark Huey’s voicemail. He won’t return until next Monday…His cell # is:703-300-1158
Contacts for the Commission on Presidential debates:
Paul J. Kirk, Jr
(democrat & co-chair)
Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr.
(co-chair)
Phone: (202) 872-1020
fax: (203) 783-5923
site address: http://debates.org/
it is all about the victim. you can’t relate to me unless you know what it is like to be a victim. baloney! i am so sick and tired of that mentality, so negative and full of bitterness. this mentality has been rewarded for far to long in our society.
looking at the positive and being positive has its benefits and it is time that this began to take precedent over the negative mantra of the left. being positive and thinking positive has its benefits for the community you live in as well as your personal life.
i am so sick of this reverse racism being ignored by the media. this is racism and should be called out as such. it benefits no one.
The thing about “average” is, there must be a high number……..and a low number.
Apparantly mzzzzzzzz Ifill failed to understand that she falls into…….the low catagory.
Some feminists can indeed live like Sarah, and some feminists live like mzzzzz Ifill. Then there’s the average
And she should invite Dick Cheney to go along with them. Now I’m really gonna be branded as a racist.
so true
this is machine politics pure and simple. name any city that once captured by the communist machine has reverted and gone back to neutral and voted republican. people will say l.a and new york city, but in both cases, the republican was a rino and the democrat running was a black incompetent socialist moron who had proven his inability to govern to everyone.
Yes she can…and so can the libs. Isn’t Michelle Obama the one that said Hillary could NOT even keep her house in order?
visceral:
characterized by or proceeding from instinct rather than intellect.
characterized by or dealing with coarse or base emotions; earthy; crude:
Doesn’t seem like Palin has anything to do with their reactions!
stevelockridge
Are you saying that Mzzzz Ifill might be mistaken for a moose? … Haven’t seen a photo of her but that may be considered an insult within the moose population … guess we’ll have to wait for the “News at 11″ to get an answer to that one …
Several people have questioned and/or discussed the term restorative justice; I was immediately reminded of an interview with Howard Zehr (”…director of the Conflict Transformation Program at Eastern Mennonite University and author of Changing Lenses: A New Focus for Crime and Justice) published in a 2004 issue of Christianity Today. The piece is titled A Justice that Restores. An excerpt:
Shalom is more than a greeting of peace:
It appears that, based on some of the previous discussion here (nod to gunslingerpatriot #34), once again a sound biblical principle has been co-opted by liberals to mean something other than God intended.
To number 30 (#81):
Wait a minute! I have to whine about being a victim in order to be considered a real woman!?! That’s just crazy talk.
Leftists do not own women. Knock it off, Lefties.
Cuz all da brothers will leave them for a white woman?
Just listen to Kanye West’s song” Golddigger” (before I get banned…)
This is just like femenism, unless you give in to 100% of their ideology, you don’t belong. Where are the biographies of Condi Rice? If anyone deserves to be gushed over, it certainly is this remarkable woman. But, she does not sign on to Ifill’s victimology, therefore, she is just a house slave who should be ridiculed and ignored. It is official, I do not understand or get the left. Nothing they do makes any sense to me.
Re the title of this blog, perhaps this is truly a “gift for Sarah Palin”. This way, despite her deference to her elders
, she should be under no illusions this evening about which side the moderator supports.
What’s really sad about all of these observations is that Gwen Ifill is so much smarter than all of you on this site.
I didn’t notice anyone questioning her intelligence. Just her ethics, and her victim mentality.
To Ilovemycountry
Yes Gwen seems like a very smart woman as does her sister but sometimes smart people can be really dumb about certain issues. It is unbelieveable that women are now having to fight other women for the right to be who they want to be. Sarah Palin has the right to be herself and shouldn’t have to apologize to anyone for it and she shouldn’t lose her Real Woman badge just because she doesn’t claim the title of Victim on her resume. Someone with a high I.Q. who professes to respect fairness should be able to find room in her thinking for a different viewpoint on what being a woman means. I can’t see anything inherently racist about publicly supporting your pregnant teenage daughter or not complaining about how tough life has been. I think Gwen and her sister are looking so hard for racism in others that they can’t see it in their mirrors.
Oh No! Not that! Not even-handed!
Gwen, it’s not the blogs that are going to destroy you, it’s you baby, just you!
On October 2nd, 2008 at 9:17 am,
Kapo lgm is not playing stupid. It’s real.
Lame. Is that the best you can do? You come here and say the stupidest things, like some 12 year old.
Now go finish popping those pimples.
Strong woman from average means, works hard and gets it done, is “privileged”, and the woman with an Ivy-league background and top 2% income needs the help of her mother.
Uh-huh.
I agree that Ifill should step down or be replaced to avoid the appearance of impropriety. I do believe that Ms. Ifill is a pro, and wouldn’t do anything to damage her reputation as a black journalist in front of 70+ million viewers. Remember the hit Obama took after SNL lampooned how the media was harder on Hillary than Obama? White voters would lash back if Ifill sandbagged Palin, and she knows that. If anything, I think she’ll overcompensate by being harder on Biden(Obama), because he can handle it as a vet of these proceedings. Palin will crash over the basic questions, and Biden’s calm(hopefully) attempts to challenge her.
We are of the same mind on this.
She just forgot to tell anyone about the book, and it’s meticulous timing.
Interesting.
and wouldn’t do anything to damage her street credit
So what is the difference between a ‘black’ journalist and any other kind of journalist? Does she only cover ‘black’ issues? Or are there special rules that do and don’t apply to her that all other journalist have to follow?
I remember Palin speaking more than once about not being able to handle her family life without the help of her parents, aunties, and uncles. The writer is being disingenuous.
Gov. Palin has not presented herself as a superwoman, but the term comes to mind naturally when a woman with so many professional responsibilities is also the mother of five.
Where are the interview transcripts? Who are Sheryllin sources? Bloggers?
**the part about her “satisfying her husband” is rude and incredible.
If Sheryllin ‘knows’ so much about Palin, then she should have listed the sources of all these intimate details of the Gov.’s personal life.
This is more like creative writing, journalism?….. not so much.
Her race is very important here. If she screws Palin in this debate with bias, her credibility is shot. She’ll look like a hack or a racist. As a black moderator with an Obama book about black issues she has to walk a very fine line. If she does a great job, she’ll get a lot of respect and career opportunities. She’ll be looked at as a genuine professional. If she screws Palin, it will look like the “race thing” got in the way, and I would expect a voter backlash. Her reputation would be damaged, and she’ll likely wind up hosting some Sunday afternoon show on BET for the next 30 years, and doing a column for Essence.
The race factor is important here, and she can’t screw this up.