Over at Politico, Dylan Byers is shocked CNN chose to rerun the Queen of England’s Diamond Jubilee instead of covering the most important moments of last night’s monumental Wisconsin recall election:
Given this blatant partisan coverage, it was absolutely impossible to watch either network [MSNBC, FOX] and weed out any clear understanding of the actual significance of the event, much less what effect it would actually have on the 2012 presidential election.
Which means it was the perfect night for CNN, the network that bears the slogan “CNN = Politics” and claims to have “the best political team on television,” to step up and offer what only it can offer: a semblance of nonpartisan political news coverage.
I must say that I’m also shocked, especially that what CNN chose to cover was a rerun.
Byers thinks CNN missed a real opportunity to burnish their brand some by stepping up to offer “a semblance of nonpartisan political news coverage,” but like I’ve been saying all along, as CNN’s swirled the drain this year, it’s their phony “semblance of nonpartisan political news coverage” that’s the cable net’s problem.
CNN insults our intelligence with that pose.
But Byers is correct that CNN made a mistake. While I disagree with his characterization of Fox News as just a conservative doppelganger of the execrable MSNBC (Bret Baier’s coverage was, as always, exemplary, and included all points of view), it is true that the only time CNN seems to do well in the ratings anymore is during these big national moments.
CNN bailing on Wisconsin last night tells viewers that CNN can no longer be relied upon during those times in which some still rely on them.
What’s most telling, however, is that other than Byers, no one is really talking about CNN taking a flier during the climax of the country’s biggest political event since 2010, and maybe 2008. Byers seemed to be the only one who noticed, and it’s kind of his job to notice.
“Didja miss me”?
“You were gone?”
That’s the definition of irrelevance.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC
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