Take a look at this gem in an article about McCain’s possible VP choices (and some ditty about Lieberman speaking at the RNC). It’s subtle, so look closely.

“Some Republicans speculate that Lieberman’s name simply is being floated to make a Republican abortion-rights backer, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, seem more acceptable to conservatives. Ridge, too, is believed to be under serious consideration, along with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, both Republicans and abortion-rights opponents.”

Did you catch it? No? Look more closelier.

“Some Republicans speculate that Lieberman’s name simply is being floated to make a Republican abortion-rights backer, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, seem more acceptable to conservatives. Ridge, too, is believed to be under serious consideration, along with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, both Republicans and abortion-rights opponents.”

OH! I get it! All those EVIL Republicans who want to take abortion rights away! What happened to pro-choice and pro-life? Just because a couple black robed mobsters on the Supreme Court created a “right” out of nowhere in Roe v. Wade doesn’t mean that the right actually exists. Therefore, the term “abortion-rights” is a misnomer at best, and an example of media bias and agenda based reporting at worst.

Don’t believe me? Why is it that the Brady campaign, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and a whole slew of other gun grabbers are referred to as “gun control supporters” instead of “gun-rights opponents”? In fact, when was the last time an AP article ever used the suffix “rights opponent” in reference to a democrat? Why doesn’t the AP label Obama as a “private property-rights opponent” because of his position on raising taxes? Is Pelosi a “drilling-rights opponent”? Surely we have a right to the natural resources on OUR land?

This negative, pejorative use of semantics is absolutely astonishing, and certainly not an example of proper journalism. Is there any reason why Romney and Pawlenty could not be referred to in the positive term of “pro-life”? There are a number of better phrases that could have been employed rather than implying that the political leanings of either politician are somehow rooted in a desire to strip Americans of rights.

The AP is a joke.

Yeah, well, my gas prices certainly reflect those expectations. Argh. Seems there’s something missing in the reportage, though:

The Corner on National Review Online via kwout

Check out the original article for context and comparison, please. I’d be curious to know if anyone can come up with “the rest of the story,” here. I have no immediate way of knowing what those number signify, for one thing.

I do know we’re getting Gored, and the misinformation campaigns are only a piece of it.

The Corner on National Review Online via kwout

How shall I say this–are they trying to make me want McCain?

Because that’s almost enough, right there, even if I were over the other edge away from him on the rest of his record. Almost enough in itself to win my vote, right in that slimy paragraph.

The mass media seems to occupy a similar place in Liberal ideology. Within the enclosed world of journalism, two of the otherwise universal Laws of Liberalism simply don’t function — “Truth is Subjective” and “Diversity is Vital.”

In all other contexts of human endeavor, Liberals insist that there is no objective truth. We all have our own truth. Truth is simply a strongly held opinion. Claims to objectivity are a white-male tool used to steal power, resources, or season tickets from women/gays/aborigines/red-cockaded woodpeckers.

However, when conservatives raise the subject of media bias, this universal law is suddenly suspended. Journalists, we are told, are professionals. Unique among human beings, they are able to donate to Democratic candidates, work in their administrations, give speeches on liberal political topics, and yet report the news with complete equanimity. Truth is subjective; reportage is not.

Another Law of Liberalism is the Diversity Principle, which states that diversity is a positive good because the viewpoint (or “voice”) of an individual is fundamentally and deterministically shaped by genitalia, melanin count, economic conditions, political background, sexuality and physical disability. In other words, one’s personal circumstances decisively influence one’s perspective. Diversity is thus necessary in order that all these various “voices” can be heard.

Weirdly, this principle doesn’t apply to newsrooms. Upper-middle class, elite college-educated liberals are overrepresented to an astounding degree. No one seems keen to “celebrate diversity” there. And whenever the subject of media bias comes up, we’re assured that the determinism which impacts the actions and beliefs of everyone else somehow manages to give journalists a pass. Mirabile dictu, hegemonic liberalism in their personal lives in no way contributes to hegemonic liberalism in their writing.

Journalists often seem to live in an alternate reality. According to the Laws of Liberalism, they really are.

(NOTE: This post has been edited due to fairness concerns raised by liberal readers.)

Bizarrely, it is an article of faith in the American Left that the media is biased against them. One must assume that the Democratic Netroots don’t watch the Academy Awards or read newspapers, are unaware of the career track which flows naturally from Democratic presidential administrations to major press outlets, and have no clue about the curricula taught at today’s journalism schools.

So their view of reality is warped, I get that. But what is truly telling is their REACTION to this perceived bias. Both conservatives and liberals think the media is biased against them. Conservative politicians recognize this, but still attend debates moderated by Chris Matthews, Tim Russert and their sort. Conservatives also work to build up alternative media sources such as Fox News or talk radio.

The Left, meanwhile, remains true to its totalitarian impulses. Democratic politicians refuse to debate on a network which they disagree with, and their activists demand an absolute ban on Fox News by their politicians, on pain of punishment. More significantly, Democrats are dying for a chance to reimpose the fairness doctrine and silence conservative talk radio.

It’s ironic that an ideological group which had its roots in the Free Speech Movement is now the advocate campus speech codes, “hate speech” bans, and of silencing dissent through the blunt power of the state.

As Mary Katharine Hamm demonstrates, the media won’t just help Obama frame the debate — they help frame his images as well. Turnout was well below expectations at Obama’s Reynolds Stadium rally on May 07. Far from reporting this, television crews covered it as a packed house.

What TV viewers saw:

HT: Cassy Fiano

“The threat of Christian-American terror comes from only a tiny fringe of this otherwise great religion. Not more than fifty or sixty million Christian-Americans subscribe to these militant beliefs. As I have always said, Christianity is a religion of peace.”
-President George Bush

The Bush administration denounced the Verhoeven death sentence in a press conference yesterday, drawing criticism from the Barack Obama campaign. The Democratic presidential candidate told reporters, “If elected, I promise to meet with Pope Benedict without conditions. I am confident that Christians and Americans can work out a modus vivendi preserving at least fifty percent of our free speech rights.”

In Europe, the BBC reports that gangs of “Euro youths” burned hundreds of cars, assaulted police with fowling guns, and declared their neighborhoods “No-Go Zones” for non-Christians. In the United States, many suburban neighborhoods and southern towns similarly have been declared off-limits to “infidels.” Clashes with police claimed eighty-three lives yesterday while another sixty people died in the suicide bombing of a Topeka, Kansas movie theater. Members of the Buchanan Brigade claimed responsibility for the blast. In a hand-written communique, faction leader Patrick Buchanan stated, “Now THIS is a culture war.”

The violence is the worst since the 1999 Holy Virgin Mary with Elephant Dung incident which claimed 172 lives in Iowa alone. More deaths are feared as a tense stand-off continues in Chicago, where seeker-senstive militants from Willow Creek Community Church have taken hostages, demanding the execution of Paul Verhoeven. Justice officials are reluctant to storm the historic shrine as it is considered holy by many American Christians.

In New York City, Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared a state of emergency this morning as factional fighting between Christian militants paralyzed the city. Elements of the Legion of Mary, Campus Crusade for Christ and the Salvation Army clashed in Manhattan and Queens, while members of the First International Holy Crusade Church of the Power of God in Christ, Inc declared Harlem an autonomous Christian state.

Christian marketing groups responded to the controversy with a line of Precious Moments figurines featuring Verhoeven alternately immolated, beheaded or stoned to death. Artist Thomas Kinkade has completed a print of Verhoeven being beaten to death at sunset in a New England fishing village. Big Idea Productions has also announced the latest in its popular Veggie Tales line of children’s films — Larry and the Big Bang.

Moderate Christian groups are denouncing both the book and its resulting violence. The moderator of the Presbyterian Church issued a strongly worded statement yesterday: “We deeply regret that the blasphemous actions of Paul Verhoeven led to so many deaths and dismemberments. Please disregard the body count and remember that Christianity is a religion of peace.”

The FBI has begun a round-up of suspected Christian militants, but their efforts are hampered by legal injunctions filed by the moderate Christian Legal Society (CLS). In a press release, the CLS stated, “As Christians and Americans, we oppose both the violence and any government actions which might stop the violence.” Christian Coalition spokeswoman Michele Combs reports an upswing in anti-Christian hate crimes since the wave of bombings began: “Just yesterday, in Boise, a Christian passenger was assaulted by a taxidriver yelling ‘Jesus Christ!’ at a lengthy red light.”

Paul Verhoeven’s location is currently undisclosed and the fate of his book remains uncertain. A coalition of 2,583 intellectuals and members of the Screen Actors Guild have denounced the book for its “religious intolerance and insensitivity to the right of Christians not to be offended by anything at any time ever for any reason.”

Book distributors are refusing to carry the work due to the threat of bombings. Verhoeven earlier planned to distribute the book online, but internet hosting companies are likewise fearful and only the popular Daily Kos website has agreed to carry it. In addition to the threat of beheading, Verhoeven has found himself in legal jeopardy as the International Court of Human Rights in Brussels and the Canadian Human Rights Commission are both filing charges against him for crimes against humanity.

President Bush appealed for calm today in his weekly radio address, reminding Americans that they are all fellow-citizens. “The threat of Christian-American terror comes from only a tiny fringe of this otherwise great religion. Not more than fifty or sixty million Christian-Americans subscribe to these militant beliefs. As I have always said, Christianity is a religion of peace.”

1. If it was about the money, at least one of the Big Three networks would be trying to appeal to the plurality of conservatives in this country.

2. If it was just about the money, Hollywood would make more G- and PG-rated films and less R-rated ones.

3. If it was just about the money, the massive success and profitability of Passion of the Christ would have spawned a host of religion-themed movies.

4. But most of all, if it was just about the money, this flood of anti-war stinkbombs would have been killed two years ago.

UPDATE: Allah at Hot Air is reporting that yep, Stop-Loss is tanking too. Couldn’t happen to a nicer movie.