Sam Seder and Chris Hedges: What Tim Russert represents

In a recent post I catalogued Pundits eulogizing iconic journalist Tim Russert. I noted that there was a surprising lack of liberal of input.

Curiously many liberal APF pundits didn't offer personal statements for Tim. I was only able to find one from Keith Olbermann who was a fellow MSNBC colleague. I didn't exhaust myself trying but I will add them as I find them.

As promised, I bring to you what some liberal commentator have since said about Tim Russert's legacy. It turns out the silence was deafening.

The Hedonists of Power by Chris Hedges
The past week was a good one if you were a courtier. We were instructed by the high priests on television over the past few days to mourn a Sunday morning talk show host, who made $5 million a year and who gave a platform to the powerful and the famous so they could spin, equivocate and lie to the nation. We were repeatedly told by these television courtiers, people like Tom Brokaw and Wolf Blitzer, that this talk show host was one of our nation’s greatest journalists, as if sitting in a studio, putting on makeup and chatting with Dick Cheney or George W. Bush have much to do with journalism.

Liberal Radio Talker Sam Seder shares his thoughts on Tim Russert's legacy during his weekly chat with Marc Maron. True to form Sam remains outspokenly against Tim Russert and his ilk. His main quarrel being the stenography approach and the insider mentality of shows like 'Meet the Press'. Sam has a regular segment on his Sunday show called the 'Weekend Watchdog' with Bill Scher, the segment audits the Weekend talk shows to make sure they are covering the "real" issues.

What is it about this guy that was particularly special? What did he sacrifice? $5million a year this guys was making. He had no relationship with the audience... he would get politicians on the record once a week. The f***ing laziness I spent a year watching his show and I learnt nothing, nothing from this man...
the irony is in death they (media) missed the news stories as much as he did when he was alive...

Listen and Download the excerpted audio of Sam and Marc discussing Tim Russert.

Sam is particularly heated and potty-mouthed in this audio. For the uninitiated, former AirAmerica talkers Sam and Marc conduct a candid weekly podcast for their online audience.
Watch the June 20th Vodcast of Maron VS Seder
Find links to the June 20th Maron VS Seder audio here

'Enough Already!' by Justin Raimondo
Enough already with the encomiums to Tim Russert, whose untimely death has sparked a veritable chorus of eulogies depicting him as the epitome of objectivity and the greatest of journalists. This is all coming, quite naturally, from his fellow journalists and intellectual gatekeepers, who share his prejudices, his politics, and – alas! – his shortcomings. It's time for a little Russert revisionism.

Read my original post - 'Remembering Tim: Pundits reacting to Tim Russert's death'
Go to the Vodcast archive of Sam Seder
Go to the columns archive of Chris Hedges
Read Sam Seder's bio
Read Chris Hedges' bio