Well here we go. As the facts of this complicated case emerge, so will the spin. The headline here is beyond spin though. I am not wont to outrage, nor am I about to change that practice now. I'll simply state that the headline is completely disingenuous.
That said, the article pushes the concept that Con's are not at the centre of this affair. No, no, no. Let's pile equal blame on the Lib's and the NDP in an effort to appear unbias.
I'm not terribly familiar with Jennifer Ditchburn's work but what I have seen I generally thought was fair. This article however straddles that fairness creek. It suggests that balance relies on making the drier side of the creek feel as mucky as the side that is sinking. There is survival involved in putting more weight on the firmer side but it doesn't make for balanced news.
Take this comment:
Karlheinz Schreiber sent copies of red-hot documents to the Liberals and NDP two weeks ago detailing correspondence with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, but neither party reacted immediately to the provocative contents.
Baloney. Once the Lib's saw the package, they sent it to the RCMP. Did that incite the review announced by the RCMP? Who knows?
She goes on to say:
Still, Dion did not address the media before Harper's news conference on the issue of Schreiber's letter.
My reaction is, and your point is? Had Dion been out in front of the press waving documents, she and others would have labelled him as a political opportunist. He did not do that. Dion took the ethical course of action and the fact that Ditchburn is attempting to suggest otherwise is absolutely ludicrous. It's a headline getter though, isn't it?
The NDP? Well Pat Martin, is on record, film/video even, last night as saying that they threw what Schreiber sent them in the garbage. I think that was irresponsible. For the record though, I like Pat Martin. I do not agree with him on all issues, but I like his fight and I like the fact that he was a carpenter before being elected, (someone I'd consider to be an artisan).
It is a bit rich though for the NDP to cast aspersions against the Lib's, dating back to Gomery, when they obviously did not pick up on what was important here. The NDP's mission is clear. A pox on both their houses would be their cry. Sadly the house they built rests on sand, on a beach, with the tide coming in.
I think Ditchburn may be that start of a new/old trend. New on this story, old (very old) in terms of pillorying the Lib's, which we've seen for years now. What is happening now is important. It is time for the media to think, report and leave their ego and tired sound bites behind.
7 comments:
You have it all wrong.
Mulroney was a Liberal!!
I just don't know why people keep thinking he is a Conservative.
}:)
anon, is that shorter for the Con war cry: if you're not with us you're against us?
If you want to see what's left of Mulroney's old PC Party, check out the "Progressive Canadian" party website. Most of the old stalwarts of Mulroney's day have little or no affiliation with the current Conservative party which is still predominantly a core group from the old Reform/Alliance days.
Thanks for the post. I found the article just wacky. I have long wondered if the person who writes the article actually names the article headline. Can any journalist, or aspiring journalist explain that?
I was immediately struck that the "Oops" line is immediately followed by an article which explains:
1) They received packages Nov 2 (hardly an eon in the past by any stretch)
2) That the Liberals sent the package to the RCMP upon reviewing the contents briefly on Nov 5 (quite a proper reaction in anyone's measure).
And unmentioned is the fact that during this entire timeframe (Nov 1 to now), the Liberals and the NDP have both been pressing publicly and in the HOC for a full public inquiry - even in the early days while Harper was joking and threatening on the matter.
Doesn't pressing for a full inquiry constitute action!
So, again, good article. Totally misleading headline. Don't get it.
Glad you pointed it out in your blog! Thanks.
Schreiber has been in frequent contact with the Liberals, trying to find allies in his fight against extradition to Germany where he faces fraud, bribery and tax evasion charges. He has become something of a technical adviser to the party on the Mulroney affair. Thibault in particular has met with Schreiber for lunches and coffees in Ottawa to discuss his case, and spoke to him as recently as Tuesday morning about the continuing controversy.
Dion a political opportunist? No way.
Apparently Mr. Schriber has been meeting with Liberals "for coffee and lunches".
So, how is the food and coffee in the Toronto Detention Centre? Must be good if Liberals have been going their to have them with Mr. Schriber.
knb: Don't worry about the spin right now. It will be forgotten very soon once we begin to hear testimony from the various players in this little drama.
At that level the reporter writes the story, an editor creates the headline. I doubt Ditchburn had any input into the headline, but it looks like someone angling for Bourque's job as CON sphincter-inspector...
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