Arrogance: Rescuing America From the Media Elite

Rating:
Summary: It is about time someone wrote this book
Review: Arrogance by Bernard Goldberg
Reviewed December 8, 2003

Being a self-confessed news junkie, all I can say is that it is about time someone dealt with liberal bias in the major media. Katie Couric is bad enough, but when Bryant Gumbel was on the Today Show the bias was so self-evident that I was dumbfounded that liberals could look me in the face and innocently say, What Bias? The rolling of the eyes, the disappointing sighs, and the askance looks which were exclusively reserved for conservatives. Hey, how about Matt Lauer interview of Charlton Heston. Can anyone out there cite me one liberal that has been treated with such disrespect?

Unlike Hilary's vast right wing conspiracy Goldberg repeatedly refuses the attribute liberal bias in the news to a conspiracy. The liberal bias is due to the fact that liberals tend to be drawn to journalism, they attend liberal schools; they live in liberal cultural centers such as New York City. The result is that there is hardly a national journalist who would describe himself or herself as liberal. All their friends, family as associates think like them, so they conclude that they are middle of the road. Hence, the media elite constantly refer to label conservative academics, politicians and research groups as conservations; whereas such groups as NOW, physicians for social responsibility, a plethora of public interest groups and such politicians as Ted Kennedy and Howard Dean rarely are labeled as liberal. The inference that the news audience draws is that those who are labeled as conservation are pushing an agenda, whereas those liberal groups that are given a bye on the liberal label are unselfishly working in the nations best interest

The book is very well researched, citing Nexus searches, interview, articles, etc. This is not a rating of a dissatisfied employee, or some conservative wacko, it is a reasoned argument about news bias. The sad conclusion that Goldberg reaches is that news bias is one discussion that liberals will not even discuss. Anyone who puts forth a reasoned argument for bias, is immediately dismissed as a right-wing wacko or as a racist bigot.

I could write several more thousand words, but you would be much better served by reading this insightful book.

Rating:
Summary: Compelling and Important but Flawed
Review: Bernard Goldberg's "Arrogance" is a sequel of sorts to his first excellent book "Bias." Rather than rehashing the content of "Bias," the author expands on ubiquitous liberal bias in the media.

Goldberg discusses a new line-up of leftist cheerleaders in the media like Howell Raines and fabricator Jayson Blair at the New York Times; Stephen Glass, who, like Blair, specialized in inventing facts, not reporting them; the superficially hopeless Katie Couric and Maureen Dowd; Carole Simpson of ABC and Nina Burleigh of Time Magazine. Not surprisingly each of these often do not pretend to have a very liberal agenda all the while telling the public with a straight face that their tremedous biases do not influence their commentary and daily news decisions.

Some of Goldberg's topics include:

- A lengthy discussion about coverage of various kidnappings that mysteriously were all of white girls. When the kidnapping of a black girl was finally covered, what the media failed to report reveals much about their liberal agenda.

- Hillary Clinton, the patroness of the liberal media. Whether it is Barbara Walters, Leslie Stahl, or Eleanor Clift, no one dares to ask any difficult questions of the former First lady, and much like the rest of the media, they never fail to gush adoringly over Clinton regardless of her very flawed and potentially criminal past.

- The shameful treatment of Paula Jones who, when accusing the former President of sexual harassment, was maligned as "trash." Juanita Broaddrick, too, was ignored or mistreated because of her accusations of rape against Bill Clinton during his Arkansas days.

- The near "lynching" of Justice Clarence Thomas. Not surprisingly, Anita Hill's story and details were not to be questioned while Thomas's reputation was ruined.

- Feminists iron grip on the media, and how much they dictate the details and discussion about gender and children's issues.

- The gay and lesbian lobby's major influence on the media's handling of the Catholic Church's sexual abuse scandal.

Included here are very thoughtful and informative interviews that Goldberg conducted with Bob Costas and Tim Russert, and a "12 step program" for finally correcting rampant liberal bias in the news. While Goldberg's suggestions are somewhat interesting, one wonders if ANYONE at ABC, NBC, or CBS would even consider anything Goldberg would have to say. (For the liberal media, there is no problem at all!)

One annoying flaw in "Arrogance" is Goldberg's tone. He could not decide whether to be informal or formal. At times, he sounded as if he is speaking to old friends at a bar. Also, there is something terribly strange about a very experienced journalist who writes about liberal media bias publishing his book through AOL-TIME-WARNER. Doesn't this mega-corporation usually DEFINE the media of blind liberal bias? What was Goldberg THINKING?

Rating:
Summary: Right on!
Review: The author is right on about the arrogance of the elite media like Fox News, the Washington Times, and the Wall Street Journal, for if they had not parroted President Bush's false claims about WMD, we would never have entered the ill-fated Iraq War. Instead, we are in a war, which seems to have no end in sight. What arrogance!!!

Rating:
Summary: Right on target again
Review: Bernie is dead on target once again with this continuation of his first book, BIAS. Once more, Goldberg is no right-winger by any means. He's a traditional liberal with over 25 years experience in the "mainstream" media (mostly with CBS). And, he reiterates that he doesn't think there's some "leftist elite conspiracy" to skew news coverage -- it's just that elite journalists are so insulated from most of "real" America that they truly believe their views (liberal) are the norm, and that ideas to the contrary are odd, in the minority, and even dangerous. Why else identify politicians and advocates as "conservative" at a rate magnitudes greater than their liberal counterparts? Why else go to NOW (National Organization of Women) or the NAACP or People for the American Way as "experts" in their fields -- without balancing their views with those groups' conservative counterparts?

This time out, Goldberg includes interviews with Tim Russert and Bob Costas (whom Goldberg considers two of the more balanced news/sports-guys) about the bias problem, and at book's end offers several chapters of solutions to the elite media's problem. One of these chapters even suggests that Brokaw, Jennings, Rather and co. move their news operations to a Middle American city so that they'll be more "in tune" with average Americans. It sounds humorous at first, but ends up making a hell of a lot of sense!

If you liked BIAS, you'll definitely enjoy this second part.

Rating:
Summary: Arrogance! Oh Brother And How!
Review: I try and abstain from books that are strict polemics, but this book was solid, and echoes what I have really noticed over the last decade & I've never voted republican for President BTW, but it is this: The light in the loafers, limosine liberal, has completely taken over the media & academia- these people have little if any regard for truth. Like trained seals they will blame Koresh entirely for Waco, Oswald in the Kennedy Assassination, acknowledge Lewinsky with regard to Bubba Clinton, the least of his sins- how about all the careers & lives he either tarnished,or destroyed with his incessant womanizing, his fund raising practices with Red China, his dereliction of duty in not wiping Out terrorist camps, the FBI Crime Lab, it was one major cover up after another, and all the Washington Post, or NY Times, can give us is Lewinsky, then they tell us over and over Al Gore is boring, and we end up with an out of control cowboy in the White House, remember the last time we had an out of control cowboy in the oval office? LBJ...thanx elite media

Rating:
Summary: The Truth - Again
Review: Goldberg tells the reader what I and millions of Americans have known for years. I thought I was the only one who thought that the New York Times, along with the major networks, was on the same newsworthy level with the Enquirer and the same ideology of Pravda. It's good to see a respected newsman say the truth for once. I know this because the only paper in my city, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (a cheap leftist rag as well), gets most of its front page news stories from the New York Times and The L.A. Times. It's very obvious that those writers have a leftist axe to grind that goes beyond deception and truth-twisting when they're writing about anything pro-American or about conservatives. Thanks Bernard, for reminding us of what real journalism is supposed be, regardless of what the bratty, elitist children in big media try to ram down our redneck throats.

Rating:
Summary: EVERYBODY KNOWS THE MEDIA IS LIBERAL
Review: The fact that the Western news media is liberal and biased in favor of Democrats is simply factual knowledge possesed by millions of Americans who can read, have access to information, and care to analyze it honestly.

What is less known is that the liberal media helps Republicans. How? Over time, so many people have developed factual knowledge of liberal bias, and see that it is a bad thing, that they favor the right. Republicans have always won the White House, and now they win the Congress, the Senate, governorships, and state legislatures. As irritating as it is to hear, Republican media strategists should just let the Left keep lying, at such time as voters make note of these lies and back the GOP as a result. The Left is so bullheaded and full of itself that they do not see this reality, and apparently will not learn any lesons from their repeated mistakes.

During the Clinton years, there was a marginal swing towards moderation, caused by a combination of conservative talk radio, Fox News, and the Clinton scandals that could not be ignored. During the 2000 election, the Leftist media actually played it fairer than usual, which helped George W. Bush. After 9/11, they swung even further towards the middle, actually rooting for America, but since the Iraq War the media has become more hateful towards the right than any time since Ronald Reagan, or perhaps Nixon.

Despite all this noise, the GOP will gain in every seat of political power in November. The Left will look at all its efforts and wonder where it all went wrong, just as the New York Times' Pauline Kael declared after Richard Nixon won 49 states and 62 percent in 1972, "How did he win? I don't anybody who voted for him."

Call conservatives what you want - the Christian Coalition, the Silent Majority, the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy - but they remain and shall continue to be millions of patriotic American citizens who register and vote, and they are not found at the same cocktail parties with Pauline Kael.

STEVEN TRAVERS
Author of "Barry Bonds: Baseball's Superman"
[e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book
Review: Buy it. Read it. Get ready to pass it around to your friends. Arrogance is even better than Bias. Does anyone know where I can email Mr. Goldberg to congratulate him?

Rating:
Summary: Astonishing
Review: In his bestselling book "Bias", Bernard Goldberg catalogued the overt liberal bias infesting the major news networks in America. Now, his bestselling book "Arrogance" catalogues the outright contempt and condescension he encountered from the media elites he criticized. His account is simply astonishing in nature.

Rather than make a concerted effort to address an obvious problem within their ranks, the major newspapers and news networks in America impugn the reputations of, fire, and outright ignore those who buck the system. In an industry where employees take pride in their willingness to shake the status quo, to uncover "the big story" - journalists are ignoring one of the biggest stories in American history - a blatant media bias within their own ranks.

Now despite what some may say, Goldberg does not assert that media bias is the outcome of some grand conspiracy. Instead, it is the natural state of being for a clique of elite media journalists who all reside in the same neighborhoods, walk the same halls at work, attend the same cocktail parties, and live within the same isolated "media-sphere". What we have is an enormous case of "group think" at work. Although quite unlike the widget industry, the media's business is truth, and Goldberg (as well as millions of American viewers) are convinced the media is selling an inferior product. That's why CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC and others are watching their ratings plummet, while FoxNews (the "fair and balanced" network) is climbing to new ratings highs every month.

Throughout the book, Goldberg recounts a number of personal instances where bias or outright ignorance permeated the media community. The best part of "Arrogance" is the conclusion, where the author lays out a "Twelve Step program" (much like one for a recovering alcoholic) that will enable the media to rid itself of its liberal bias once and for all. Goldberg suggests intellectual and political diversity be implemented into hiring practices alongside the longstanding policies of racial and gender diversity. My favorite suggestion of all is to move the news headquarters of CBS, NBC, or ABC to one of these five locations:

1. Tupelo, Mississippi
2. Mitchell, South Dakota
3. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
4. Indianapolis, Indiana
5. Laughlin, Nevada

I can just see the media elite cringe! Maybe one day I'll own a major news network. When I do, the first person I'll hire is Bernard Goldberg. But for now, I'll simply suggest that you read his book.

Britt Gillette
Author of "The Dittohead Guide To Adult Beverages"

Rating:
Summary: Arrogance: Rescuing America From the Media Elite
Review: In the best-selling Bias, Goldberg decried the way U.S. media slant the news. Here, he reputedly names names and offers solutions. At least he has an insider's perspective: he was a CBS correspondent for nearly 30 years.