re: #7 The Ghost of Tonalite Gneiss

A part of the Brian Williams gaffe that I think needs more emphasis.

A journalist, newscaster, or any other news-related professional, like panelists and pundits sell verisimilitude. They are playing a part that has the same name as the performer, the same backstory as the performer: the performance is to sound authentic. They perform honesty, which is not the same thing as actually telling the truth.

The response from the media is intense—and hypocritical—because they need that uncritical acceptance of their presentation as reliable. It’s their cultural capitol. It keeps them on the air.

Wingnuts are labeling Williams a liberal, and inflating this story bigger and bigger, precisely because they’re the emperor with no clothes. Their stories don’t hold up. Their pundits lie. They need to divert attention, they need scapegoats.

When did we start doing philosophy here?