I dont get Tim Russert

musicismylife78
musicismylife78 Posts: 6,116
edited June 2008 in All Encompassing Trip
Yes its sad he died, but I really dont get the fascination and admiration of this guys talents.

Bill oreilly was friends with him, and good ol Bill seemed to consider Russert one of the best journalists around. That alone is reason to be suspicious!

Russerts role in the CIA leak case is still unclear

and lastly he had powerful people on his show all the time, and I didnt get the sense he was into really finding the truth and combating the lies those people in power always tell.

For me, journalists should be doing the hard work, something few did, Russert included, like calling out Bush and Co during the lead up to war. I didnt hear him suggesting the WMD needed to be debated more.

As I said, sad he is dead, but I dont really consider his role as tv host as that pivitol and important. He chose to be friends with Oreilly. He could have chosen another path.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • Rhinocerous Surprise
    Rhinocerous Surprise Posts: 4,423
    radiohead33 wrote:
    Yes its sad he died, but I really dont get the fascination and admiration of this guys talents.

    Bill oreilly was friends with him, and good ol Bill seemed to consider Russert one of the best journalists around. That alone is reason to be suspicious!

    Russerts role in the CIA leak case is still unclear

    and lastly he had powerful people on his show all the time, and I didnt get the sense he was into really finding the truth and combating the lies those people in power always tell.

    For me, journalists should be doing the hard work, something few did, Russert included, like calling out Bush and Co during the lead up to war. I didnt hear him suggesting the WMD needed to be debated more.

    As I said, sad he is dead, but I dont really consider his role as tv host as that pivitol and important. He chose to be friends with Oreilly. He could have chosen another path.

    You're gonna hold the guy's friends against him? Whatever you want to say about his journalistic abilities and whatnot... making his friendship with O'Reilly out to be some sort of huge moral flaw is kinda weird.
    Smokey Robinson constantly looks like he's trying to act natural after being accused of farting.
  • orig_long red
    orig_long red Posts: 2,029
    who gives a fuck who he was friends with?

    he was a journalist in the truest sense of the word. he was excessively prepared for interviews, he knew the best questions to ask, and his political leanings were impossible to nail down.

    its apparent to me that you never watched Meet the Press.

    "chosen another path" ... you sound like a real winner.
    Jam out with your clam out.
  • Brain of J.Lo
    Brain of J.Lo Posts: 3,259
    long red wrote:
    its apparent to me that you never watched Meet the Press.

    I concur.
  • musicismylife78
    musicismylife78 Posts: 6,116
    whenever bill oreilly raves about something, I try and stay away from it. Just a general rule I follow

    and when Bill oreilly says Tim Russert is great, I dont think I would run to the tv and tivo his shows

    So am i wrong? Was Russert out their in January of 2003, a few months before the war saying we needed to not go to war?

    Was Russert out there combating all the lies Bush was telling and is still telling?

    And we know he wasnt out there saying Bush and Cheney were criminals for leaking the name of a CIA agent to the press, because after all russert had a role in it all

    There is a line between journalists and JOURNALISTS. people like katie Couric, or Brian Williams, they arent doing any service. They read from a goddamn telepromter. They are employed by major corporations who tell them what to cover.

    Real JOURNALISTS speak truth to power, they print the truth, they print or talk about what no one else is talking about, they arent afraid of consequences. Was russert really of that caliber?

    Again, feel free to prove me wrong, but I am almost certain Russert wasnt a host who was fighting the good fight. he was schmoozing with Washington congresspeople and senators.

    Can anyone answer my questions? What did Russert do that every single other reporter didnt do? Cause when i look, I see a normal reporter. He acted just like everyone else. he ran under the table and hid. He is complicit in the leaking of a CIA agents name. He has blood on his hands as a member of the press for not being more tough during the lead up to the war... etc...

    is that really a good legacy?
  • FinsburyParkCarrots
    FinsburyParkCarrots Seattle, WA Posts: 12,223
    Tony Benn and Enoch Powell had great respect for one another, but their politics and personalities were vastly disparate. Ed was friends with Johnny Ramone, who supported Bush. I have friends whose politics are vastly different from my own. In fact, right wingers are often a lot more fun than the miserable bleeding heart brigade.
  • ledvedderman
    ledvedderman Posts: 7,762
    So, you're faulting him for beliving all the intelligence reports at the time which made a pretty convincing report that Sadaam did have WMD's? That makes him human in my book. It doesn't make him a poor journalist. Now, when it became clear that we were lied into this war, did Russert ask those in charge the tough questions? Yes. Bush, Cheney, Rice, Powell, and Rumsfeld have all had to take the tough questions from Tim in this regard.

    As far as the BillO comment. If BillO is reporting that Tim is dead, do you question that? While Bill is a slimeball, it doesn't mean that he had some true friends who were not slimeballs.
    E8toX.gif

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  • aNiMaL
    aNiMaL Posts: 7,117
    Brain of J.Lo wrote:
    I concur.
    So do I.

    If the OP isn't aware of the accomplishments of Russert, why do we have to prove this to him.

    Tim never once let his own personal political opinions effect who or how he interviewed people. He asked the tough, most direct questions, that made some of the biggest figures in Washington, squirm. He was tough equally on both sides of the political parties. Relentless, some would say. He could ask questions leaving very little to no room for the candidate or politician to not answer the question. He studied and prepared very hard all week for each and every interview he had. He asked the tough, direct questions that no other journalist today ever does. He was respected from both the GOP and the Democrats as a fair, and very tough interview. He was friends with all of his competitions as well, being they all respected him as the leader and the foremost authority on Sunday mornings, which they would base the rest of their week by.
  • libragirl
    libragirl Posts: 4,632
    I got him.
    These cuts are leaving creases. Trace the scars to fit the pieces, to tell the story, you don't need to say a word.
  • aNiMaL
    aNiMaL Posts: 7,117
    radiohead33 wrote:
    Real JOURNALISTS speak truth to power, they print the truth, they print or talk about what no one else is talking about, they arent afraid of consequences. Was russert really of that caliber?
    Most definitely. What Tim did best, was not ever speculate on anything. He was about the facts, and getting to the truth, and not about letting his own personal views or opinions effect his journalism.'

    The other point I have for you, understand the difference between an anchor person, and a political moderator.
  • riffrandall
    riffrandall Posts: 685
    radiohead33 wrote:
    Yes its sad he died, but I really dont get the fascination and admiration of this guys talents.

    Bill oreilly was friends with him, and good ol Bill seemed to consider Russert one of the best journalists around. That alone is reason to be suspicious!

    Russerts role in the CIA leak case is still unclear

    and lastly he had powerful people on his show all the time, and I didnt get the sense he was into really finding the truth and combating the lies those people in power always tell.

    For me, journalists should be doing the hard work, something few did, Russert included, like calling out Bush and Co during the lead up to war. I didnt hear him suggesting the WMD needed to be debated more.

    As I said, sad he is dead, but I dont really consider his role as tv host as that pivitol and important. He chose to be friends with Oreilly. He could have chosen another path.

    So you never watched "Meet the Press" then. Don't deny it, because most of what you said in this post indicates that your knowledge of Meet the Press is limited to YouTube clips, or replays if something particularly memorable happened that week.

    Aside from being the ONLY one in the country who knew weeks ahead of time that the 2000 election would come down to Florida one way or another, he most certainly held politicians' feet to the fire (to quote Bruce Springsteen) on a weekly basis. Basically: if you couldn't hack it on Meet the Press, you either came back better prepared, or you quit politics.

    He was awesome, he'll be sorely missed & he won't be replaced. And that's a loss.
    "If you're looking for someone to pull you out of that ditch, you're out of luck."
  • patrickredeyes
    patrickredeyes Posts: 8,834
    radiohead33 wrote:
    Yes its sad he died, but I really dont get the fascination and admiration of this guys talents.

    Bill oreilly was friends with him, and good ol Bill seemed to consider Russert one of the best journalists around. That alone is reason to be suspicious!

    Russerts role in the CIA leak case is still unclear

    and lastly he had powerful people on his show all the time, and I didnt get the sense he was into really finding the truth and combating the lies those people in power always tell.

    For me, journalists should be doing the hard work, something few did, Russert included, like calling out Bush and Co during the lead up to war. I didnt hear him suggesting the WMD needed to be debated more.

    As I said, sad he is dead, but I dont really consider his role as tv host as that pivitol and important. He chose to be friends with Oreilly. He could have chosen another path.


    He was just so in depth and his views were great IMO. Sad to see him gone too soon.

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