Gwen Ifill My Pockets?
VP debate moderator’s impartiality questioned
NEW YORK (AP) - PBS journalist Gwen Ifill, moderator of the upcoming vice presidential debate, dismissed conservative questions about her impartiality because she is writing a book that includes material on Barack Obama.
Ifill said Wednesday that she hasn’t even written her chapter on Obama for the book “The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama,” which is to be published by Doubleday on Jan. 20, 2009, the day a new president is inaugurated.
This is just the latest example of great moments in double standards. Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz calls it “The latest controversy to hit the echo chamber”. He went on CNN and started waiving the race card around, saying how sad it was for people (conservatives) to charge that Ifill can’t be impartial towards Obama becuase she is black. Michelle Malkin says Ifill is doing the same thing.
I was surprised to hear this. She’s black? I hadn’t even thought of that. All I can see is a woman with an obvious conflict and direct financial interest in the outcome of this election.
Simple question: If Barack Obama loses the election, how well do you think a book titled The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama will do?
This is more than the appearance of impropriety. This is the existence of impropriety in that she stands to have a financial benefit from the outcome in favor of one side over the other.
Kurtz is not alone. Others are snickering that conservatives are doing this because they are trying to preempt a much feared poor showing by Palin in the debate. Furthermore, the “timing” of this criticism somehow invalidates it. How convenient. Ignore the obvious financial conflict of interest and point to two irrelevancies. Real honest critique of the media. Very fair and impartial. These same media critics will be writing after the debate how easy Ifill took it on Palin and how this proves the conservative “noise machine” influenced the debate.
Gwen Ifill is a respected journalist but she put herself in this position by not telling, then accepting, the Commission on Presidential Debates offer to moderate.
The host of PBS’”Washington Week” and senior correspondent on “The NewsHour” said she did not tell the Commission on Presidential Debates about the book. The commission had no immediate comment when contacted by The Associated Press.
Should be interesting when Ifill questions the candidates about the need for transparency and disclosure in the Wall Street bailout.
I’m not saying Ifill can’t or won’t be fair to Palin tomorrow night. I’m saying she has a pretty obvious conflict in my opinion and supporters of McCain are justified to be upset about it. While they are at it they should also be asking questions about the competency of the McCain campaign if they are truly just learning about this as they claim.
UPDATE: Some media critics are more honest than others. Here’s the Columbia Journalism Review,
Conflict of interest is often about appearances. There appears, to us, to be a conflict in Ifill moderating tomorrow night’s vice presidential debate….It stands to reason that a book with such a title would sell better if a certain person is inaugurated on that day.
Media Bias, Obama, Politics, Sarah Palin | Kevin | 
October 2, 2008 12:13 am
Yup, it’s called working the ref’s.
And she has a reputation of impartiality to keep up, so keep a look at the kitten mittens questions Sarah Palin will be getting.
My prediction, not many follow up questions like the super liberal bastards Couric…..
Uhuh wrote: “My prediction, not many follow up questions like the super liberal bastards Couric…..”
Yeah. It’s terrible she tried to, you know, ask the vice-presidential nominee actual questions.
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