Do They Really Pay Him for This?

In today’s Media Notes, inexplicably esteemed media critic Howie Kurtz condescendingly writes about Franken and his book:

“… Al Franken, slashing away at the Republicans and the right-wing press for fun and profit.”

…”[Franken] is having fun peddling a book about those he deems liars.”

“…Franken is trying to do for the left what Ann Coulter and Bernard Goldberg (not to mention best-selling authors Rush, Hannity and O’Reilly) have done for the right: Demonize the other side. Slap the conservatives around. Get some good licks in. While Franken’s book is strident, the former Saturday Night Live comic is helped by his sense of humor.”

Not addressed at all, of course, is whether the charges in Franken’s book are true (and whether the listed conservatives really are liars). That would take effort and research, not really Kurtz’s cup of tea.

Instead Kurtz cuts and pastes 510 words from a 1311 word essay by Salon’s Dave Talbot. I’m sure Salon appreciates the plug, but an undergrad who did this in a paper would be lucky to get a D.

AB