MEDIA DISGRACE

Posted at 4:40 p.m. ET

More on the obnoxious media assaults on Sarah Palin.  ABC News reports that the supermarket tabloids are now joining the attack, with their usual vulgarity.  Rick Klein writes:

But this, to me, is the clearest evidence yet that the McCain-Palin campaign is losing the battle over Palin’s image. US Weekly readers are the voters her selection was designed to attract. There’s not much to like in this early take -- and not much to indicate that the next round will be much better.

Well, there's Sarah herself, who will speak to the nation tomorrow.  But the tabloids have a large audience, and their joining in the knifing does worry me.  There is a press riot going on.  It is sickening.

Some are fighting back.  Fred Thompson has taken on The New York Times, whose behavior has rivaled that of the tabloids.  The Hill reports: 

ST. PAUL - Former Sen. Fred Thompson lambasted The New York Times for its coverage of Sarah Palin on Tuesday, claiming the newspaper is "trying their best to drag her down."

Thompson told Fox News that the Times has focused on Palin's children, saying, "I don't think they get it."

But Thompson also said the Times is not the only one who has had unfair coverage of Sen. John McCain's (R-Ariz.) running mate, claiming liberal bloggers "are in a state of panic" about Palin.

Thompson touted Palin as a outsider, suggesting that some Washington Republicans are "sore" that McCain didn't pick an inside-the-Beltway politician.

He said Palin "excites people like I've never seen before."

The only way to deal with a press assault is to fight back.  There are a lot of bullies in the press, but, as an institution, the mainstream media isn't as strong as it once was.  A media assault can be resisted.

And even the liberal Cokie Roberts, appearing on ABC's "This Week," defended Sarah Palin, as reported by Jerome J. Schmitt in American Thinker:

I was surprised to see Ms. Roberts, one of the grand-dames of mainstream television broadcast news, take center stage on Sunday to vigorously defend Governor Sarah Palin against attempts to dismiss her candidacy prematurely. George Will hardly said a word, leaving Ms. Roberts to do the heavy lifting on behalf of a Republican.

Ms. Roberts repeated her performance last night on PBS's Charlie Rose. Although not actually endorsing Sarah Palin, Ms. Roberts almost bristles at liberal concoctions designed to dismiss her qualifications before the Governor has had a chance to make her case to the American public.

Could the Palin candidacy be instigating a split in the ordinarily-monolithic liberal mainstream media? Dennis Sevakis already noted that Maria Bartiromo was positively effusive over Sarah Palin's qualifications on Meet the Press this past Sunday.

In response to the Governor's selection, a few well-known cast-members seem to be changing their roles.

Let's hope so.  But a word of caution:  I was in mainstream journalism, and you can't imagine the careerism that goes on.  Very few journalists will stick their necks out to defend Sarah Palin if the people who control their careers are sixties leftovers in the tank for Obama.  That is simple reality. 

But fight back we must.  There used to be a saying:  "Never start up with people who buy ink by the barrel."  Today you have to start up, or they'll sink you.

September 2, 2008.