How Ezra Klein's JournaList Ruins Journalism

I like reading newspapers and magazines. I enjoy reading people who have contrary opinions then I do.

But when you have an industry, such as Newspapers or Hollywood, that persists in spouting one side of a two part equation, well, expect business' to fall under.

Last week, The Politico released information about Ezra Klein's (a writer for the Left Wing American Prospect) private Listserv with Journalists and Democratic partisans. Yet, the names were not released. Why is that?

Political people of all stripes (and I have been a Democrat and Republican) are media junkies. They use information to support their side and/or attack the other side. That is the role of a Partisan -- it is not the role of a Journalist.

What is the role of the Journalist? Simple, know the arguments for both sides of a debate so a paying public can make up their own minds. They are supposed to call shenanigans on both sides and report on grass root organizing of the two teams, R and D. What I have seen (and this came to light when I switched parties in 1992) is that "Journalists" always seem to ignore Republican arguments and Republican activists and re-write Press releases from Democratic Lobbying organizations .

Ezra Klein's JournaList is a corruption of the craft -- only Left wing ideas allowed to speak to Journalists. If a true debate over ideas is needed, what is wrong with inviting magazine writers from the Weekly Standard, National Review and American Spectator? Simple, Klein does not like competing ideas. If you ever listen to Pacifica Radio, they do not like competing ideas.

And then when there was a debate about the JounaList on the Althouse Blog, rather then refute charges of Group think, Klein yelled, "Look! Over there! Anti-semetic commenter's!" Althouse has done more for Free Speech then any progressive I know. When Thom Hartmann defends Rush Limbaugh's right to speak and defends him against the State, then I will believe Liberals support Free Speech.

Until then, Ezra, on this Blog I Blogged continuously about Anti semites on Kos -- where were you? You didn't stand up then, so who believes you know? If you want to see the posts, let me know and I will email all of them to you. The silence of the Democrats is hypocritical -- at least William Buckley did not want Anti semites as his allies. The Democrats current thinking is: if they hate Bush, they support us. So what if they support Hamas' missiles into Israel? Ezra Klein, you are a hypocrite.

Here why I continually write: FREE THE LIST! Tom Maguire noted three Journalists using the same talking points. No originality, no research, just the same indignation. Newspapers are failing, any reporter who is on the JournaList should come clean. Lockstep is supposed to be the forbearance of Ivy league liberals, not Journalists who are supposed to question every Political Parties rhetoric.

And if I worked at the RNC or on Capitol Hill, I would put it in a memo that no Republican should speak to any reporter on that JournaList since they show no concept of understanding Republican ideas.

For the future of journalism: FREE THE LIST!