Journalistic Integrity
Let me see if I've got this "how to be a journalist" thing straight.
You go to a message board and post something laughably stupid, like "is Obama too skinny to be president?"
Does anyone out there think Barack Obama is too thin to be president? Anyone having a hard time relating to him and his "no excess body fat"? Please let me know. Thanks!
You get a brilliantly articulate response from "onlinebeerbellygirl", who has never posted anywhere else on those forums and seemingly just registered that day:
Yes I think He is to skinny to be President.Hillary has a potbelly and chuckybutt I'd of Voted for Her.I won't vote for any beanpole guy.
Love your response and your username (onlinebeerbellygirl). Would you mind shooting me an email so I can ask you a few more quesitons? My email is amy.chozick@gmail.com. Thanks so much!
Then you cite this as "research" or a "source" in your shitty article in the Wall Street Journal on the same topic:
But in a nation in which 66% of the voting-age population is overweight and 32% is obese, could Sen. Obama's skinniness be a liability? Despite his visits to waffle houses, ice-cream parlors and greasy-spoon diners around the country, his slim physique just might have some Americans wondering whether he is truly like them. ... "I won't vote for any beanpole guy," another Clinton supporter wrote last week on a Yahoo politics message board.
And that's journalism, right?
Mighty tip of the hat to Sadly, No! for digging this one out.
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Dan Dickinson is a 28 year old living in Jersey City, New Jersey. He works in the strange intersection of collaborative technologies, education, and medicine. His passions include finding unexpected paths and connections, music/rhythm video games, and backchannels. This has been his primary (vivid) weblog since February of 2000, seeing infrequent but overzealous updates. [more]
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Just… wow :\
As a political nut I am concerned about uneducated remarks about political candidates on the computer. I am 78. When I see TV personalities, political candidates, lobbyists, whatever, I match their writings, personalities, political leanings and then I make comments.
Most people do not care about anything, and that is file I use for stupid remarks like being skinny, etc. These people do not take time to become acquainted with mentioned people above.
I still make mistakes. And, this Presidential circus is extremely different. I still take my time trying to decide. And, for the first time in my life, I do not want to vote. But, I will. Maybe not for President, but my votes will be based on newspapers, magazine articles, TV appearances, etc.
Thanks for listening.
an old man with an attitude Charlie
I am a political nut. And I study newspapers, magazines, TV appearances and then try to make intelligent decisions. If they are fat or skinny, that is their problem. I wish people who make stupid remarks would READ. charlie, an old man with an attitude