Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Open Thread

NPR related comments? Let 'em fly.
Posted by Mytwords at 5:45 AM
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6 comments:

Porter Melmoth said...

When daring to dip into NPR I find it impossible not to become a self-appointed Style Critic, not for my own amusement, but because the general persona of NPR is so damn intrusive and obnoxious.

(When I listen to BBC, which isn't what it used to be, but is still light years ahead of NPR, I tend to listen to WHAT they are saying instead of HOW they are saying it - a process that strikes me as perfectly appropriate, and is what radio should be.)

So, a question: has anybody else made note that the delivery of both Renaay and Inscreep on Morn Ed has become EVEN MORE affected? It's as if they want us to be amazed at everything they say - every sentence has an exclamation point after it. It's like, 'you've just not gonna believe what I'm about to tell you', - that kind of thing. I know, it's all obviously part of the grand strategy to get America's young people on board and NPR-ize them while the iron is hot. It certainly worked for Fox, while CNN (which has their own 'fair and balanced' issues) was left in the dust. I can just imagine that Roger Ailes is a 'silent consultant' to NPR.

Also, has anyone checked out Auntie Liane's new 'Sunday Soapbox' (really condi-scending title, huh?) bloggishness? She can sound very pouty on the air sometimes, and she sounded VERY pouty when she was talking about the new blog. Perhaps she anticipates a shitstorm of criticism from listeners who would have the audacity to question NPR's perfection.

I'll end with a dare: hey, someone at NPR, are you listening? Why don't you assign one of your reporters to review this very blog: NPR Check? Why can't someone like John McChesney or Daniel Zwerdling do a story on it?

Cat got your tongue? I'm not surprised. The timidity of NPR is a dead giveaway for their role as a mouthpiece for corporate interests. , plus it exhibits a BushCorp-like contempt for the blog culture.

4/29/08, 10:46 AM
Anonymous said...

twice in the past two days I've heard NPR do science pieces featuring "goofy" sound effects and "wacky" sound bites and sounding like something made on the Disney channel for kids.
(yesterday's piece was by Robert Krulwich on genetic engineering of e coli)

I haven't been listening to much NPR of late... is this common now?

4/29/08, 3:35 PM
Anonymous said...

Aye that, Port. It feels as though they are all intoxicated (hell, three sheets to the wind for that matter!) on their own skewed sense of self-importance. Fools. I am ever the more repulsed by their baby-talk inflections, as my time spent there diminishes.

4/29/08, 8:38 PM
Porter Melmoth said...

You have right solution, big!pink!: abstinence from intoxication - NPR-style. I will do what I can.

4/29/08, 8:51 PM
Anonymous said...

Yep.

"My name is Big!Pink!Fuzzy!Bunny! and I'm in recovery from NoPR brainwarshing (sic)."

4/29/08, 9:02 PM
Anonymous said...

McMaster Brown-noser Tom Bowman
All Things Considered, April 28, 2008

"U.S. Army Col. H.R. McMaster has been credited with critical thinking and combat commands that have helped shape some successes in Iraq. Now he's being tapped for a new, and perhaps more difficult, job: making Iraqi ministries run efficiently."

Blame the incompetent Iraqis.

OK, but why do we need to know this, unless somebody at the Pentagon wants us to know?

This stuff's embarrassing: "Hard-charging Colonel with a PhD"? I mean, does NPR have no shame in running this kind of blatant Pentagon P.R. Boilerplate? What role does Tom Bowman think he's fulfilling? It is the worst kind of sycophancy. Not to mention propaganda.

And it's ridiculous that the NPR ombudsman will not address the question: "Who at NPR comes up with the propagandistic, puff-piece story ideas?" The frequency of these type of stories has suggested (for years now) to your listeners that there must be a fast-track for these pieces. And the embarrassing and blatant stuff keeps coming. Why?

Ever guess why so few people give money?

Sincerely,

Benoit Balz

New York, NY

4/30/08, 9:19 PM

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