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Wednesday, May 21, 2003
Wanted to highlight this one answer from the Blumenthal interview from Salon:

Why were official Washington and the media establishment so anti-Clinton?

They didn't share his commitment to shaking up the old order. And then, at the beginning of his administration, he was too embroiled in political conflicts -- over the economy, gay rights, healthcare and trade issues -- to sufficiently stroke the Washington and media gatekeepers. The Bush administration's attitude of utter contempt toward the press seems to work better. The press is sociologically much closer to the Democrats. Everyone's always going on about the liberal media. It's no mystery -- there's a natural selection process that goes on, the profession attracts certain people for the same reason that some people become heads of pharmaceuticals. Why get all exercised about it -- it's like accusing bankers of having conservative leanings. But as a result of this sociological affinity, the press feels both closer and more competitive with Democratic administrations than they do with Republican ones. The competitiveness inherent in journalism was brought to bear on many of the media's peers in the Clinton administration.


I don't want to go on too much about Blumenthal--I'm not obsessed with the thing like certain other bloggers--but this is a very nice answer to a persistant question, and one I tend to agree with.