Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Republican Candidates: Like Peas in a Pod.


The Republican debates are in full force and all the 2012 Republican candidates are just like peas in a pod. Many of them believe in these ridiculous falsehoods, for example, Ben Bernanke is “the most inflationary Fed Chairman of all time” or that the stimulus created "no jobs." Both of which are completely factually incorrect. As Rachel Maddow pointed out so eloquently on the September 13th edition of her show, The hilarity is not only that the candidates are perpetrating these erroneous, deceitful falsehoods, but that the discourse has become so stupid that they are actually operating and debating with each other on the premise of these falsehoods. The next debate airs October 11th and is hosted by Bloomberg.


Sunday, September 25, 2011

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Chris Hayes


The tenth and final journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is Washington Editor of The Nation and newly named MSNBC host, Chris Hayes. Today Hayes debuted his new two-hour morning show "Up with Chris Hayes." Hayes’ first guest was house minority leader, Nancy Pelosi. The show airs live on Saturdays from 7:00 – 9:00 a.m. ET and Sundays from 8:00 – 10:00 a.m. ET. Before making his debut as host of his own show, Hayes had previously filled in as guest-host for Lawrence O'Donnell, Rachel Maddow, Ed Shultz and Keith Olbermann. Here Hayes talks with Rachel Maddow about how Republican politicians in congress have been avoiding dealing with the President’s jobs bill.


That concludes the series Ten Journalists in Ten Days. I hope readers of my blog enjoyed this series/tribute as much as I enjoyed making it. I want to give a big thank you to everyone who left me nice comments on twitter and also a very special thank you to the journalists who saw their respective illustrations and gave me props for them, Andy Kroll and Amanda Terkel. Everyone who liked this series should stay tuned because I might return to this idea of "Ten in Ten Days" again with a different theme.


Friday, September 16, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Ayman Mohyeldin


The ninth journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is newly named Foreign Correspondent for NBC News in Egypt, Ayman Mohyeldin. Mohyeldin formerly worked as Gaza Correspondent for Al-Jazeera English where he extensively covered the fall of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak and his regime. Soon afterwards, Time Magazine named Mohyeldin as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. In this clip from Al Jazeera English, Mohyeldin talks about how he was detained for several hours by the military in Tahrir Square during his coverage of the revolution. On August 22, 2011 NBC News President Steve Capus announced Mohyeldin’s return to the network where he originally began his career in 2001.


Thursday, September 15, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Jose Antonio Vargas


The eighth journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is journalist and founder of the website defineamerican.com, Jose Antonio Vargas. Vargas has written articles for The San Francisco Chronicle, The Philadelphia Daily News, The Washington Post, and The Huffington Post. Vargas was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 2008 for his work on coverage of the Virginia Tech massacre. In June, 2011 Vargas wrote a personal and incredibly revealing piece for the New York Times entitled “My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant.” In the article Vargas reveals that he is an undocumented immigrant and was unaware of the fact until the age of sixteen. Here Vargas talks with Rachel Maddow about coming out as a gay man, exposing the secret of his immigration status and the state of  the immigration debate in the United States.


Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Lou Dubose


The seventh journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is editor of The Washington Spectator, Lou Dubose. I had to include Dubose because he just wrote an outstanding, meticulously researched piece exposing how Texas Governor and Republican presidential hopeful, Rick Perry knowingly created a budget deficit in his state. Unbelievably, Perry took $17 billion in stimulus money to help fix his state’s budget hole while the whole time he railed against the President’s stimulus program publicly. Here Dubose talks with Tulane Professor, Melissa Harris-Perry about decoding what Perry really means when he talks about Social Security, a balanced budget and job creation.


Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Eugene Robinson


The sixth journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is columnist for The Washington Post and MSNBC contributor, Eugene Robinson. Robinson was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 2009 for his work at The Washington Post on Barrack Obama’s presidential campaign. Robinson is also a member of the National Association of Black Journalists and a current Board Member at the International Women's Media Foundation. Here Robinson talked with Tulane Professor, Melissa Harris-Perry in August about the conflict over when President Obama was supposed to deliver his jobs plan and what he expected from the plan. The President’s job speech aired on September 8th.


Monday, September 12, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Ezra Klein


The fifth journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is economic and domestic policy columnist for The Washington Post, Ezra Klein.  I found this interview with Klein that he did in 2004 with laist.com where he pretty much summed up another reason that I wanted to create this tribute to journalists. He said “I think that the creation of a media environment that can sustain and propel progressivism is more important than any single elected official. The media is as effective and important an agent for change as the legislative bodies, and I think it's where I'm happiest and most effective.” I had to include Klein in this list because I think he’s amazing and brilliant. I’m consistently impressed at how prolific Klein is. On Thursday September 8th The President’s job speech aired at 7:30 pm eastern time. By 8:29 pm Klein had already written a completely thorough rundown of what was in the President’s plan. I think The Washington Post hit the jackpot when they snagged him. Klein's column online was recently redesigned and renamed Wonkblog and it looks amazing.


Sunday, September 11, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Rachel Maddow


The fourth journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is television host and political commentator, Rachel Maddow. Ms. Maddow is the host of MSNBC’s primetime hit, The Rachel Maddow Show. In 1995 Maddow was the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship. She earned a Doctor of Philosophy in politics from Oxford University in 2001. Maddow is the first out lesbian to host a prime-time news or political commentary show on American television and the first openly gay American to win a Rhodes scholarship. I think it’s fitting to mention today on the ten year anniversary of 9/11, the outstanding documentary that Maddow produced with NBC news’ chief foreign correspondent, Richard Engel entitled Day of Destruction, Decade of War. In the two part special that aired recently on MSNBC, Maddow and Engel take a hard hitting look at the after effects of 9/11 and the impact it has had. The Rachel Maddow Show just celebrated their third year on the air on September 8th.


Saturday, September 10, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Amanda Terkel


The third journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is senior political reporter for the Huffington Post, Amanda Terkel. Terkel was recipient of The Hillman Prize in 2008. The Hillman Prize is a journalism award given out annually by the Sidney Hillman Foundation. It is given to journalists "who pursue investigative reporting and deep storytelling in the public interest." Like John Nichols and Andy Kroll, Terkel was also instrumental in exposing the union busting tactics of Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and his Republican controlled administration. Here Ms. Terkel talks with Rachel Maddow about the Republican effort to attack labor unions on the federal level.


Friday, September 9, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten days: John Nichols


The second journalist in my Ten Journalists in Ten Days series is political blogger and Washington correspondent for The Nation, John Nichols. Nichols was also instrumental in uncovering what was happening with the emergency financial manager legislation in Michigan. He also did some outstanding investigative journalism on Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker. Nichols is the author of several books including The Death and Life of American Journalism which he co-authored with University of Illinois professor, Robert W. McChesney.


Thursday, September 8, 2011

Ten Journalists in Ten Days: Andy Kroll


I’ve never done this before but I’m going to try something new and post ten illustrations of my favorite journalists from print and television in ten days. I will post them in random order. Before I begin let me just say that I am a news junkie. In addition to being an homage to these highly respected journalists, part of what this series is about for me is embracing my addiction to news instead of being embarrassed about it. So there I said it, I’m a news junkie and I’m not going to be embarrassed about it or hide from it anymore.

The first journalist is a reporter in the D.C. bureau of Mother Jones magazine, Andy Kroll. Kroll has been the recipient of several awards for outstanding journalism and an associate editor at TomDispatch.com. I had to include Kroll in my list because he wrote a great hard hitting piece about the draconian, emergency financial manager legislation that Michigan’s Republican Governor Rick Snyder passed along with the republican controlled Michigan senate. Kroll was the first journalist that I know of to write about Snyder’s policies in detail.