I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THIS ONE

It's a perfect example of what outlets should be doing that on MSNBC's Hardball (hosted tonight by Pete Williams, who we love) they make Mario Cuomo's motives clear in shilling for Michael Moore's movie. In short, he's, you know, shilling for Michael Moore's movie as the man hired to get the rating changed up from "R." (I have to admit, I cannot imagine what could possibly be in this movie that would get it an R. But the point is this -- Cuomo's got a financial stake here.) But they're upfront about that, which gives you, the audience member, the information you need in determining how much weight to give to his claims about the movie.

They couldn't find somebody to talk about the movie who wasn't on the PR staff?

They then have someone to speak against the movie, a media critic I'm not familiar with. In a separate segment. I know I'm not supposed to say this. But I am so tired to listening to people yell not just at but over one another -- at which point they aren't smart people making smart arguments, but just loud people whose arguments I can't hear anyway, busily giving me a headache and longing for another X-Files rerun -- that I frankly found the decision to go for the separate corners fairly refreshing.

Comments

[Prague]

The Fallujah mutilations are in there, I heard. Can't say for sure, because I haven't seen it, and as I don't particularly want a coronary, I don't think I will.