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Taibbi takes CBS' Lara Logan to the woodshed

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Double Down, Jul 1, 2010.

Page 3 of 7
  1. Azrael

    Azrael Well-Known Member

    Between Logan's misplaced indignation over a journalist presenting a vain general and his fratboy staff for what they are at cocktail time, and a news operation keeping a bureau open in a war zone?

    No. There's no comparison.
     
    Azrael, Jul 1, 2010
    #25
  2. The Big Ragu

    The Big Ragu Moderator Staff Member

    I agree with both of you. This piece was well done. It's not just his tone, though, that makes it usually hard to take him seriously. There have been too many instances of him being right on the big point, but getting so many details wrong or using selective reporting or intentionally simplistic analysis to try to create villains to try to make an even more absolute point he could go on a screed over. And he's ruined a few otherwise excellent pieces that way. Taibbi is smart and clever and a good writer and he dives into topics that would overwhelm a lot of writers. If he could leash himself a little bit, and find a way to temper what appear to be some personal biases, he could easily be one of the best investigative reporters out there. Instead, he falls short and something like this probably gets ignored more than it should -- although I hope not. It was well done and funny and scary at the same time.
     
    The Big Ragu, Jul 1, 2010
    #26
  3. 21

    21 Well-Known Member

    Agree with Ragu completely. The message gets suffocated by the oh-so-clever lingual masturbation. Lost me at the first 'you suck'...although I stayed with it because I can't believe a 'major' news organization would be okay with Logan's remarks.

    Does anyone, anywhere, still go to CBS for anything? Particularly news coverage? If I had to make a list of news sources to search for exclusivity and detail and commentary, CBS would MAYBE be #20. Maybe.
     
    21, Jul 1, 2010
    #27
  4. Dick Whitman

    Dick Whitman Well-Known Member

    This is what I was trying to get at. Thanks for really crystallizing it. His pieces are often just too black and white, good guys and bad guys and nothing in between. I'll read a story of his about a Congressman or Goldman Sachs and come away thinking, "OK, no way it's just that simple." For all of his faults, David Brooks said something interesting the other day in his back-and-forth with Gail Collins: Most of the guys holding public office are good guys at the core, who are just nuanced and have flaws like the rest of us. I think that Hastings, BTW, captured just that when it came to McChrystal's operation (although not precisely analogous because he's not elected).
     
    Dick Whitman, Jul 1, 2010
    #28
  5. Azrael

    Azrael Well-Known Member

    I wonder if Taibbi grows out of it, or at least learns to modulate it. He needs a better, stronger editor he trusts to help him do that. You don't start as HST, you earn your way to HST. Which is the easiest comparison, but not really apt.

    I always thought Wm. Greider was the best they had in that role at RS.





    fixed
     
    Azrael, Jul 1, 2010
    #29
  6. 21

    21 Well-Known Member

    Wish those guys would stop auditioning for a role that can't be cast, and build their own brands instead.

    Mixed metaphor, sorry.
     
    21, Jul 1, 2010
    #30
  7. Alma

    Alma Well-Known Member

    Only for the occasional upset, like Couric's interview with Palin.
     
    Alma, Jul 1, 2010
    #31
  8. 21

    21 Well-Known Member

    A non-reproducible lightning strike. Never again will anyone be snared by Katie Couric into a gut-shredding inquisition on choice of newspapers.
     
    21, Jul 1, 2010
    #32
  9. Moderator1

    Moderator1 Moderator Staff Member

    I wonder if she still reads all of them?
     
    Moderator1, Jul 1, 2010
    #33
  10. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    "60 Minutes" is still a fixture on my DVR, though their story selection has weakened in recent years. It's good DVR fare because I'll always zap through at least one of the standard three stories every episode.
     
    playthrough, Jul 1, 2010
    #34
  11. JayFarrar

    JayFarrar Well-Known Member

    CBS Sunday Morning is very good.

    At least a couple or three segments, unless it is a themed episode, will kick ass.
     
    JayFarrar, Jul 1, 2010
    #35
  12. hondo

    hondo Well-Known Member

    Yeah, yeah ... but why does Taibbi ALWAYS have to be such an asshole?
     
    hondo, Jul 1, 2010
    #36
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