Well first K-Bob, you can stop condescending to me. I know a bit about news and newspapers and about pushing stories, having worked on both sides. So no, this is not a matter of the medium being the message. The reporter’s role in the news is hardly forgotten, even in the social media age.

Thing is, in this case, there’s no reporter or blogger involved, is there? Everyone either saw it live with their own eyes (or saw it later thanks to — you guessed it — social media!) And they made their own judgments. There was no slanting of opinion. No one told “the libs” what to think.

And then, everyone was talking about it. And the Eastwood story took up as much time on the 24 hour cycle as Mitt’s speech. And poor Rubio, left out almost entirely, except for people saying, “what a shame no one is talking about Rubio.”

And the talking heads are talking about Eastwood because they can see, from the evidence, that people want to discuss it. How do they know? By observing social media. They didn’t have time to poll or survey. They didn’t just guess because no one relies on the wiley old editor’s hunch anymore except at the alt.weeklies. Gannett and the Times are all about numbers.

It’s not gossip. This is not something “the liberal media” decided was worth discussing. It was the people.

If the MSM isn’t panicked with their plunging ratings, circulations, and ad revenues, they aren’t paying attention.

And maybe they aren’t, since they’ve doubled down on stupid leftist lying for Obama. Fine with me, it only hastens their demise.

Sure. Only you get to be condescending. Figures.

They saw those things because they were on TV. Why you don’t seem to understand the origins is beyond my concern. You keep peddling the medium as if it’s more important than what’s on it. That’s like claiming air is more important than music because music is carried on the air. Nobody notices the air until it’s gone.

And hell yes it was “the people.” That’s exactly what I was telling you. They chattered about it and in some circles it was popular. In others, not. If you think Rubio didn’t get any coverage then you have been paying attention to where they DON’T cover him. The infosphere is a vast place, and a lot of people watched Rubio’s speech in full, some of us more than once. Others are doing so right now, in some cases, because they can. But that doesn’t mean it’s a new, big deal to “go use social media.” It’s just another term for the same, dynamic collection of information channels. Marketing people know this. They’ve known it a long time.

Go ahead and keep pitying us. Your opinion of conservatives matters to me just as much as your opinion of Eastwood and RSM. You’ve demonstrated time and again that you are impervious to reason and evidence, and refuse to argue in good faith.
For example: “The RNC-Eastwood moment was an embarrassment by any standard.” Wrong, based on prima fasia evidence: the crowd at RNC and the widely observed positive reactions following. YOU may find it an embarrassment, but your statement is wrong. Yet you refuse to back down from it.
Many of us find YOU a pitiable figure–those of us who aren’t mildy amused by you. Did you ever stop to try to understand why we might think that? Or do you already “know” that it’s only because we’re poor, deluded knuckle-draggers? Have you never noticed that the average conservative understands far more of your world-view than you do of theirs?
Nope. You just troll around here, toss out your talking points and refuse to engage in honest debate.
Go ahead and pity us. Frankly, my dear Anamika, I don’t give a damn.

Wrong, based on prima fasia evidence: the crowd at RNC and the widely observed positive reactions following.

Even Scott Walker publicly confessed that he “cringed” at Eastwood’s speech. Anyway, the point is, they booked “Dirty
Harry” and got “Grandpa Simpson.” The crowd in there might applause that act at that moment. But that’s quite sad, I think. (He’s always had difficulty focusing when he spoke and rambled on.) I kept watching in the hope that he would end the grueling 11 minutes with “I was only kidding. I am NOT a Republican and I’m NOT going to make your day!”