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The 3rd Most Influential "Liberal" In The Media

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Media
Posted on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:01:02 AM EST
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. . . is, according to Forbes (via Balloon Juice), Fred Hiatt. I kid you not:

Fred Hiatt, Editorial page editor, The Washington Post

Pilloried on the left for his non-Manichean support of the war in Iraq, his moderate and pragmatic editorial column is likely to be the one most closely followed by the Obama administration.

The entire list is, as these lists always are, mostly silly. But Fred Hiatt on the list pretty much sinks the entire operation.

Speaking for me only

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    The 3rd Most Influential "Liberal" In The Media | 38 comments (38 topical)

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    If Hiatt is "moderate and pragmatic" (5.00 / 2) (#6)
    by Anne on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:32:00 AM EST
    how does that make him an influential media liberal?  Doesn't he belong on the "Most Influential Moderate/Pragmatist in the Media" list?  

    Oh, you can almost hear the plaintive cries of "pick me!" emanating from editorial board rooms across the country, as jockeying begins for media prominence and influence; if only these twits knew how irrelevant and truly lacking most of us think they are...

    Hiatt is Forbes mole (5.00 / 1) (#7)
    by oldpro on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:33:55 AM EST
    on the list.

    Notice KO isn't on it?  Boo hoo.

    Parent

    Maddow and Opra (5.00 / 3) (#12)
    by samtaylor2 on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:46:23 AM EST
    Pretty much Oprah is liberal because she is black and is friendly with Obama and Maddow's sexual orientation is a large part of her liberal credentials.

    "Maddow, a lesbian, has outpaced Keith Olbermann and other colleagues to attract a cultish following hooked on her blunt outsider's perspective."

    Andrew Sullivan (5.00 / 2) (#23)
    by CST on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:22:52 AM EST
    In his description, being gay is his ONLY liberal credential.  He doesn't even consider himself liberal.

    Parent
    No kidding (5.00 / 1) (#36)
    by BernieO on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 05:19:29 PM EST
    Sullivan is no liberal. Nor is Hitchens who is just an egomaniac who takes outrageous positions for the attention.

    Bet Bob Somerby at Daily Howler is having a canniption fit over the inclusion of Maureen Dowd and Chris Matthews, both of whom did their best to destroy Gore. Matthews thought Bush was great, something NO LIBERAL would ever have done.

    On the other hand, I like the pick of Krugman for number one.

    Parent

    Maddow is a WHAT? (none / 0) (#17)
    by Radiowalla on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:02:35 AM EST
    Pass the smelling salts!  I feel a faint coming on!  

    Parent
    Whaaa? (none / 0) (#26)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:47:29 AM EST
    Oprah is liberal because she is black

    Supreme Court Justice is black and the polar opposite of liberal in outlook. How is it again that being black makes one a liberal?

    Parent

    Justice Thomas (none / 0) (#30)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 12:00:19 PM EST
    (don't know how that oops happened)

    Parent
    Shows how watered down (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by Radiowalla on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:00:47 AM EST
    the term "liberal" has become if Andrew Sullivan and Christopher Hitchens appear on the list of liberal heavy-hitters!   Quite hilarious.   No, actually it's quite pathetic.

    And for your further amusement, check out the Slate piece by Jack Shafer on Chris Matthews' inaugural blabbering.

     

    What about (5.00 / 2) (#20)
    by Radiowalla on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:06:16 AM EST
    Katrina Van Den Heuvel?  Eric Alterman?  David Brock?  Digby?
    Bob Somerby?  

    They are all on MY top 25 list, that's for sure.  

    Heh (5.00 / 1) (#22)
    by CST on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:21:16 AM EST
    Colbert got robbed :)

    I find it amusing that they put "self-described" conservatives on this list.  If they say it, and we say it, what is there to debate??  Oh right, gay marriage and Sarah Palin.

    Friedman too ... (none / 0) (#1)
    by Robot Porter on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:10:11 AM EST
    just behind him at 4!  Yikes!

    Silly indeed.

    And Hitchens! (none / 0) (#25)
    by Demi Moaned on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:42:25 AM EST
    Also Maureen Dowd.

    Parent
    Sillier than usual (none / 0) (#2)
    by Maryb2004 on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:10:34 AM EST
    I had a little chuckle when I got to Andrew Sullivan but laughed out loud at Hiatt.

    The fun will start (none / 0) (#3)
    by oldpro on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:26:38 AM EST
    when we see who objects to being on this list!

    The photo of Tweety (none / 0) (#4)
    by oldpro on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:31:41 AM EST
    looks for all the world like a young Tip O'Neill.  

    Uncanny.

    Pretty (none / 0) (#5)
    by Wile ECoyote on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:31:51 AM EST
    much a white male list.  

    Not sure which is funnier (none / 0) (#8)
    by ruffian on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:36:23 AM EST
    calling some of these liberal, or calling them influential.

    Fareed Aakaria?  He never struck me as liberal at all.

    Heh (5.00 / 3) (#11)
    by Steve M on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:45:19 AM EST
    Liberal in this context basically means "not a movement conservative."  Nothing more.

    Parent
    Exactly (5.00 / 2) (#13)
    by ruffian on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:59:00 AM EST
    I couldn't link through to the whole Forbes list. Is Krugman even on there? Or is he considered too much of a wild-eyed leftie to be "influential"?

    Parent
    The #1 "Liberal" (5.00 / 2) (#19)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:04:58 AM EST
    The funny thing is Krugman is pretty Centrist really.

    Parent
    "Strongly disagree" (none / 0) (#27)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:55:15 AM EST
    how is Krugman centrist? he is:

    • strongly pro universal healthcare
    • strongly anti-racist (wrote a whole book blaiming 40 years of republican political success on their racism)
    • strongly pro-union
    • strongly anti-misogynist, pro equality
    • strongly pro Keynesian
    • strongly pro social security
    • strongly non-militaristic foreign policy
    • pro environment

    what is left that could make him centrist as opposed to liberal?


    Parent
    How Bout (5.00 / 1) (#29)
    by squeaky on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:58:54 AM EST
    That the center has moved left, not right as the conservatives are claiming.

    Parent
    That's the Center now (5.00 / 2) (#31)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 12:14:04 PM EST
    The Left is now more than that.

    Parent
    Let me get this straight (none / 0) (#33)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 01:48:26 PM EST
    • the nation is now left-liberal, ergo Krugman is center.
    • the republican and corporate media declared center is actually the right and the only adherents are the dwindling republicans and corporate media (including Fred Hiatt)
    ????
    If this is true, I am very happy and all we'd have left to do is get rid of 2/3s or so of the politicians and breakup Big Media.

    Parent
    Precisely (none / 0) (#35)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 04:36:38 PM EST


    Parent
    Coming from most, I'd laugh my A** off (none / 0) (#37)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 07:00:38 PM EST
    But because of the source I'll give this serious consideration.

    Parent
    Nailed it. (5.00 / 2) (#16)
    by Molly Bloom on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:02:27 AM EST


    Parent
    How is Fred Hyatt not a (none / 0) (#28)
    by pluege on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:57:35 AM EST
    movement conservative? He supports them on everything they say and do - he is completely in the bag for them and abuses his position to enable their point of view.

    Parent
    That was some comedy gold (none / 0) (#9)
    by flyerhawk on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:41:33 AM EST
    Apparently forbes' definition of liberal is anyone who doesn't wear a swastika on their lapel.  

    You would think that, at the very least, an influential liberal would need to be able to influence liberals?  

    Maureen Dowd?  Is she like the gag choice to see if people were reading the entire list?

    And of all the reporting staffs to choose they pick the Wall Street Journal's reporting staff?

    A Farce (none / 0) (#10)
    by mmc9431 on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 10:43:28 AM EST
    Liberal by camparison to what? Limbaugh maybe! Andrew Sullivan's on my list but not this one. And yes I did notice that KO was excluded. That must have ticked him.

    The concept of Liberal-Liberalism (none / 0) (#15)
    by SOS on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:01:14 AM EST
    has been turned into just another "product" like most other original ideas.

    A buzz word to sell something.

    Maybe it's time to move beyond "isms".

    Like classic rebel rock music (none / 0) (#21)
    by SOS on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:06:48 AM EST
    being used to sell Suv's and Giant Pickups.

    Parent
    From the comments to the list (none / 0) (#18)
    by ruffian on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:03:23 AM EST
    As far as I am concerned, the outrage by liberals over this list is just a taste of their own medicine. Now you know how the right feels when you try to pass off Bush as a conservative.

    Bush isn't a conservative.  Now they tell me! and I sure don't see any outrage on this thread. Maybe when I stop laughing I'll get mad.

    That list is hysterical (none / 0) (#24)
    by Jjc2008 on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 11:32:41 AM EST
    Sad but hysterical.
    Sullivan, Hitchens, Huffington are liberal????

    Sully was proud of rooting for W, Hitchens is a drunken jerk and Huffington was a "rah, rah, I adore Reagan" cheerleader.   Even KOS was a Reagan rethug.  I suspect the criteria for this list included having CDS so bad they cannot speak ever without talking about their hatred of the Clintons.  Hell, Arianna was CLOSE with Newt and I suspect had more than a passing interest in spinning against dems in the 90s.  

    In my view, there is really not a true liberal on that list........jmo

    Definitions (none / 0) (#32)
    by bocajeff on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 12:27:58 PM EST
    Again, it's how you define what a liberal is and then how important each of those issues are...

    Hitchens is a far left liberal who happened to support the war in Iraq. Does one issue define you, and if so which issue?

    Can you pro-choice and anti-death penalty and be a conservative? (Bill O'Reilly).

    Pres. Obama is liberal yet he isn't for gay marriage.

    BTW, it's all semantics anyway and pretty useless.

    You talking to me? (none / 0) (#34)
    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 03:24:12 PM EST
    My post is about Fred Hiatt.

    Parent
    The Right (none / 0) (#38)
    by weltec2 on Fri Jan 23, 2009 at 09:06:08 PM EST
    is just up to its old habit of trying to define for the Left who and what the Left is. Nothing new. Slipping some of their own in is simply par for the course.

    The 3rd Most Influential "Liberal" In The Media | 38 comments (38 topical)

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