....The White House is still discussing how to present the president’s health care agenda when Congress returns in September. A speech before a joint session of Congress is a possibility, aides said, as is an address to the nation from the Oval Office. The president is also expected to hold more town-hall-style meetings across the nation.
But for the rest of August, Mr. Obama has encouraged his aides to take a break, which for many is the first real vacation in more than a year.
Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff, is fishing in Montana. Phil Schiliro, the head of legislative affairs, is in the mountains of New Mexico. Valerie Jarrett and Pete Rouse, both of whom are senior advisers to the president, are heading to Martha’s Vineyard for vacations of their own.
Mr. Obama, whom aides described as being amused by all of the gloom-and-doom prognosticating over his health care agenda, did not even consider skipping his vacation. Last year, he talked about the importance of taking a break to avoid “making mistakes.”....
Hmmmm. Nobody search for Jackowhacking. (grinning)
O. K. What's going on with TPM? I follow Rumpole, and not only because "she who must be obeyed" would be provoked with me if I didn't. He's terse which is useful, and on point...something I'd wish to have my lawyer be, if I had a lawyer.
Perhaps he was just a bit too terse this time. But when I saw who he linked to I got what he meant...I think. I'm going to interpret him now and add a few observations of my own...if I'm wrong, I'm sure he'll correct me.
Rumpole interpreted.
When Josh Marshall thinks that an AP (AP, for goodness' sake?) breaking story on the cause of Michael Jackson's death (I remember the ruckus around here when bloggers diverted their attention to this story) is worth putting his signature on something is going off in the State of TPM, if not going absolutely rotten. When things come to this pass, I despair for the future of serious discussion at TPM
Is that pretty close, Rumpole? If not, I apologize in advance. Now on to my observations.
We just spent a week being promised a discussion of a book on organizing for victory. No discussion. Why? Did TPM just throw a party to which nobody invited came? Would any discussion have been more timely? Do those who bought the book with the click-through to Amazon get their money back?
I just peeked and yup Dr. Dean is here...hooray. But wouldn't it be reasonable to tell the readership here when a discussion is going to be delayed.
People have been grousing about the rating system messups for months now, and occasionally we get a "we're working on it" notice.
The response to a call for chatrooms for regulars was twittering--which isn't quite the same thing.
MHO regarding TPM TV? I really don't need Josh Marshall to try to compress what's important into 100 seconds. For that matter, I think his is time too valuable to spend coming Fox News for outrage--we all know its there and how to find it ourselves. And the Google Ads running beneath the selections are as annoying as the running commentary on CNN...Right now I'm being asked by Phillips Medical to invest in employees' Health under the prune-like visage of Senator Crabgrassley.
So TPM diversifies into anything which will make it a few more bucks while catering to the lower end of the public IQ and drops the ball on the things which gave it a reason to be in the first place--assuming that reason wasn't to turn Josh in to a male Arrianna Huffington, media entrepreneur-wise..
One last gripe...in an age where specialized knowledge is ever more important the stable of regular contributors to TPM gets narrower.
Nathan Newman isn't here anywhere near as often as I wish he were.
Dean Baker hooray.
Robert Reich, Ho-Hum.
We used to have Elizabeth Warren and a stable of her brighter students providing us news on the middle class where is her replacement.
With health care as the hottest topic of the year, who is replacing Maggie Maher--not that she could ever be replaced.
Sterling Newberry--whom I could never decide whether he was brilliantly eccentric or eccentrically brilliant--except his spelling which was definitely eccentric, where is his like?
So if I have Rumpole's intent down pat, then I think he deserves a round of applause. TPM is not above being called to account.
don't know what's going on with TPM anymore, amike. Some of the things you're talking about have bothered me as well.
Loyal readers/bloggers like you should be listened to and heeded more.
After all, there are like 100 reader blogs, and about 50 new posts per day-each of those posts has a bunch of ads on it. How many ad pages is that altogether?
Think about the amount of cash via ads generated by the readers of TPM for TPM--compare that to the amount of cash via ads generated by the main pages/staff writers of TPM for TPM.
I think TPM reader gripes should be taken more seriously. Maybe Josh should hire a liason to better communicate and address frustrations.
Versha doesn't deal with readers full time--maybe she should, she does a good job, but it is more reactive than pro-active.
Things work best when all parties that participate are heard.
Please read my comment to amike. Positive action thoughts!?! Thanks.
amike,
Okay, I agree with most (95%) but I have to ask, who is 'she who must be obeyed'?
I don't know what the answer is, unless everyday there's a post about the issues and it gets on front page (maybe we could 'learn' how to do the phony recs too).
Do you have any thoughts on how to change negative reaction into positive action? (tpmgary, you too!)
Thanks.
positive action? I'm not sure yet. Create a list of things that just have to stop.
For one, readers shouldn't have to alert TPM that there's spam clogging up the posts. This morning, there were like four or five spam things there and I decided not to post because I figured it would be a waste of time. So the whole thing about "let us know if there's something going on that seems fishy" is getting old. TPM should take it upon themselves to watch the reader list and weed out spam and fake rec posts.
I sent in an email and within thirty minutes they were taken down and I got confirm e mail from her.
I, for one, believe that there should be a blog post here TO ALL from TPM about issues the users here have suggested as positive ideas to resolve some of these issues - with TPM's ongoing progress and process noted with projected timelines.
There's still people posting on blog I posted with suggestions and issues.
What do ya think?
I don't know how much of a priority TPM considers its loyal reader following. They respond when they're asked to respond I guess. I don't know. I haven't been around long enough.
The thing is, why do they have to be reminded?
who is 'she who must be obeyed'?
That's what Rumpole calls his wife on the show.
It's funny-you write these things and have no idea what will happen-what will provoke comment and what will-despite best efforts-produce crickets.
FWIW, I think that in general, TPM does a better job than most at keeping its eye on the proverbial ball. (The exception to this was TARP). As its coverage has expanded (and esp recently) it has begun to act more like a traditional "oh look something shiny" media production. In fairness, not that much.
To the extent my intent matters, all I was pointing out was the effect that Jacko's early demise would have on the tee vee and other similarly "serious" outlets. Some of that "seriousness" has infected TPM, but not as much as elsewhere. I say this as a Washington Post subscriber, so I like to think I know "seriousness" when I see it. See Hiatt, Fred; Cohen, Richard.
I am so proud of myself that I got your intent right, especially given that some might think of me as obsessed with TPM meta. :-)
I just have this feeling that the majority public just won't be that overwhelming interested in the Jackson investigation (therefore the media that cover according to ratings will not focus on it 24/7) besides liking to hear general upates, that the audience for it will be more limited to the usual celebrity crime junkies and perhaps a few of the over the top fans. I can't really explain why that well, I just think the big reaction on his death was more of a cultural milestone thing, also very much a shock with a memento mori message for another generation. After all, it doesn't have the classic murder mystery qualities of something like the Jon Benet Ramsey case.
I didn't take it that way at all because what Rumpole linked to was not a TPM story/post but an AP story that was on the news wire that TPM subscribes to. (On the TPM front page, they have a box/section where they have a news feed, if you click on those, because they pay for the feed, they appear on TPM masthead, but that doesn't mean they are TPM content.) It's not typical for the website using a feed like that to be able to pick which stories they are displaying, beyond chosing what subject categories to subscribe to.
Every year, 22,000 are killed due to lack of health insurance. When will their deaths be ruled homicides?
August 24, 2009 5:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hereby recommend this comment. Powerful response, Gary! Excellent!
August 24, 2009 5:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
I second!!!!
August 24, 2009 7:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Not yet, see
"Today's Hot Trends" (USA) @
http://www.google.com/trends
August 24, 2009 5:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
August 24, 2009 6:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hmmmm. Nobody search for Jackowhacking. (grinning)
August 24, 2009 7:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jackowhacking wasn't trendy? Somebody tell Josh Marshall.
August 24, 2009 7:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
O. K. What's going on with TPM? I follow Rumpole, and not only because "she who must be obeyed" would be provoked with me if I didn't. He's terse which is useful, and on point...something I'd wish to have my lawyer be, if I had a lawyer.
Perhaps he was just a bit too terse this time. But when I saw who he linked to I got what he meant...I think. I'm going to interpret him now and add a few observations of my own...if I'm wrong, I'm sure he'll correct me.
Rumpole interpreted.
Is that pretty close, Rumpole? If not, I apologize in advance. Now on to my observations.
We just spent a week being promised a discussion of a book on organizing for victory. No discussion. Why? Did TPM just throw a party to which nobody invited came? Would any discussion have been more timely? Do those who bought the book with the click-through to Amazon get their money back?
I just peeked and yup Dr. Dean is here...hooray. But wouldn't it be reasonable to tell the readership here when a discussion is going to be delayed.
People have been grousing about the rating system messups for months now, and occasionally we get a "we're working on it" notice.
The response to a call for chatrooms for regulars was twittering--which isn't quite the same thing.
MHO regarding TPM TV? I really don't need Josh Marshall to try to compress what's important into 100 seconds. For that matter, I think his is time too valuable to spend coming Fox News for outrage--we all know its there and how to find it ourselves. And the Google Ads running beneath the selections are as annoying as the running commentary on CNN...Right now I'm being asked by Phillips Medical to invest in employees' Health under the prune-like visage of Senator Crabgrassley.
So TPM diversifies into anything which will make it a few more bucks while catering to the lower end of the public IQ and drops the ball on the things which gave it a reason to be in the first place--assuming that reason wasn't to turn Josh in to a male Arrianna Huffington, media entrepreneur-wise..
One last gripe...in an age where specialized knowledge is ever more important the stable of regular contributors to TPM gets narrower.
Nathan Newman isn't here anywhere near as often as I wish he were.
Dean Baker hooray.
Robert Reich, Ho-Hum.
We used to have Elizabeth Warren and a stable of her brighter students providing us news on the middle class where is her replacement.
With health care as the hottest topic of the year, who is replacing Maggie Maher--not that she could ever be replaced.
Sterling Newberry--whom I could never decide whether he was brilliantly eccentric or eccentrically brilliant--except his spelling which was definitely eccentric, where is his like?
So if I have Rumpole's intent down pat, then I think he deserves a round of applause. TPM is not above being called to account.
August 24, 2009 7:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
don't know what's going on with TPM anymore, amike. Some of the things you're talking about have bothered me as well.
Loyal readers/bloggers like you should be listened to and heeded more.
After all, there are like 100 reader blogs, and about 50 new posts per day-each of those posts has a bunch of ads on it. How many ad pages is that altogether?
Think about the amount of cash via ads generated by the readers of TPM for TPM--compare that to the amount of cash via ads generated by the main pages/staff writers of TPM for TPM.
I think TPM reader gripes should be taken more seriously. Maybe Josh should hire a liason to better communicate and address frustrations.
Versha doesn't deal with readers full time--maybe she should, she does a good job, but it is more reactive than pro-active.
Things work best when all parties that participate are heard.
August 24, 2009 7:57 PM | Reply | Permalink
Please read my comment to amike. Positive action thoughts!?! Thanks.
August 24, 2009 9:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
amike,
Okay, I agree with most (95%) but I have to ask, who is 'she who must be obeyed'?
I don't know what the answer is, unless everyday there's a post about the issues and it gets on front page (maybe we could 'learn' how to do the phony recs too).
Do you have any thoughts on how to change negative reaction into positive action? (tpmgary, you too!)
Thanks.
August 24, 2009 9:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
positive action? I'm not sure yet. Create a list of things that just have to stop.
For one, readers shouldn't have to alert TPM that there's spam clogging up the posts. This morning, there were like four or five spam things there and I decided not to post because I figured it would be a waste of time. So the whole thing about "let us know if there's something going on that seems fishy" is getting old. TPM should take it upon themselves to watch the reader list and weed out spam and fake rec posts.
August 24, 2009 9:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
I sent in an email and within thirty minutes they were taken down and I got confirm e mail from her.
I, for one, believe that there should be a blog post here TO ALL from TPM about issues the users here have suggested as positive ideas to resolve some of these issues - with TPM's ongoing progress and process noted with projected timelines.
There's still people posting on blog I posted with suggestions and issues.
What do ya think?
August 24, 2009 10:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I don't know how much of a priority TPM considers its loyal reader following. They respond when they're asked to respond I guess. I don't know. I haven't been around long enough.
The thing is, why do they have to be reminded?
August 24, 2009 10:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
who is 'she who must be obeyed'?
That's what Rumpole calls his wife on the show.
August 25, 2009 4:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's funny-you write these things and have no idea what will happen-what will provoke comment and what will-despite best efforts-produce crickets.
FWIW, I think that in general, TPM does a better job than most at keeping its eye on the proverbial ball. (The exception to this was TARP). As its coverage has expanded (and esp recently) it has begun to act more like a traditional "oh look something shiny" media production. In fairness, not that much.
To the extent my intent matters, all I was pointing out was the effect that Jacko's early demise would have on the tee vee and other similarly "serious" outlets. Some of that "seriousness" has infected TPM, but not as much as elsewhere. I say this as a Washington Post subscriber, so I like to think I know "seriousness" when I see it. See Hiatt, Fred; Cohen, Richard.
August 25, 2009 3:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
I am so proud of myself that I got your intent right, especially given that some might think of me as obsessed with TPM meta. :-)
I just have this feeling that the majority public just won't be that overwhelming interested in the Jackson investigation (therefore the media that cover according to ratings will not focus on it 24/7) besides liking to hear general upates, that the audience for it will be more limited to the usual celebrity crime junkies and perhaps a few of the over the top fans. I can't really explain why that well, I just think the big reaction on his death was more of a cultural milestone thing, also very much a shock with a memento mori message for another generation. After all, it doesn't have the classic murder mystery qualities of something like the Jon Benet Ramsey case.
August 25, 2009 4:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
I didn't take it that way at all because what Rumpole linked to was not a TPM story/post but an AP story that was on the news wire that TPM subscribes to. (On the TPM front page, they have a box/section where they have a news feed, if you click on those, because they pay for the feed, they appear on TPM masthead, but that doesn't mean they are TPM content.) It's not typical for the website using a feed like that to be able to pick which stories they are displaying, beyond chosing what subject categories to subscribe to.
August 25, 2009 4:22 PM | Reply | Permalink