It's the Media stupid: Thinking outside the media box:

The biggest obstacle to the Democratic Party is not the Republican Party but the media.  Democratic party polling consistently shows that they represent American values much better than Republicans. Yet the vote has not reflected that in quite some time. In fact the Republicans have become the majority party by becoming less representative of the American voter. How does this happen? The Republicans understand the media and use it to win. The republicans did not win until they took control of the message and that meant taking control of the media.

Republicans do not win with their ideas but by manipulating the media. Call it the vast right wing conspiracy because that is exactly what it is. Talk Radio, a legion of conservative pundits, religious indoctrination, Fox news, Clear channel, Drudge Report, Bill O Reilly,  conservative think tanks and a cowed corporately owned main street media. That is what we are up against.

The attacks should be aimed at the media. Attacking positions, individuals even the party has been disastrous.  Our message is so undermined by the conservative cabal that we barely ever get heard above the Conservative Noise machine. Our positions are misrepresented or distorted on a constant basis.

Even venerable institutions like the Washington Post, NY Times have succumbed to the right wing onslaught. For every true fact reported there is a "balanced" lie to undermine it. If you look at it logically then you understand fair and balanced means is that truth must be counterbalanced with lies. If you don't believe that go to the Media Matters website.  
Media Matters
They have exposed so many lies, deceptions that they are now constant targets of the right wing hit squads. Yet the Main Stream Media does not even acknowledge the site. Many times it has no problems letting lies go unanswered. Sometimes in the so called interest of being balanced it reports talking points.

Learn the Media Matters lesson. He who wins the frame wins the game. Truth is only as relevant when people believe it.

I understand a lot of you out there "get it". I write this because of my frustration. News cycles move too fast. Katrina, Libby, Miers, Alito were  all devastating but they come and went too quickly. It is by design ! Cycle the bad news quickly and drag out the positive news.. We will continue losing until we understand that Republicans are not the enemy but the media is the enemy. This means focusing our attacks on the media until we destroy the right wing's stranglehold on them. That is our biggest challenge I hope you guys think so too.

•  Exactly right.

  All the best "frames" in the world shouted from the rooftops will have absolutely no effect if the media treat them as if they are silent and invisible.

  The right got to where it is by attacking the media for being "too liberal," or by doing what Eric Alterman calls "working the fers."

  by marylrgn on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:06:30 AM PDT

  •  "refs."

    by marylrgn on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:06:55 AM PDT

•  Hear hear

  I am in complete agreement.

  by bhlogger on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:09:02 AM PDT

•  this is why

  mathews should not be allowed to lie.

  by BiminiCat on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:14:17 AM PDT

•  I agree completely.

  I think all of us could do some of that, attacking the media.  Howard Dean can't do it all by himself, we all must take on some of the responsibilty here.  Write those LTE's, send critical emails to MSM organozations........let's roll up our sleeves and get to work!

  by Mz Kleen on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:16:43 AM PDT

•  Jon Stewart

  nailed this last night with the "big ball of shiny tin foil on the White House lawn" skit -- LMAO!

  by rincewind on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:23:12 AM PDT

•  My frustration is in overdrive

  I had to listen to NPR tell me how wonderful and brilliant Alito is by a "liberal". What the fuck!?
  What kind of fucked up, batshit crazy approach to news is this? This motherfucker has made it his mission in life to undo the New Deal, roll back civil rights and kill the right to privacy. Contrary to the positions of a vast majority of American voters. Its framing!

  Why the hell are they telling me how smart he is. Because they know advertising his positions won't sell so they changed the subject. Its fucking evil!

  by TexasLiberal on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:28:28 AM PDT

•  When the revolution comes...

  ...the media will be first against the wall.

  In all seriousness though, the media is owned by the same people that the Republicans are owned by, so there's nothing that the Democrats can do to beat the Republicans via the media or use the media in any way.  The only hope is to keep pushing people against the news and against the media and seeing them for the ridiculous right-wing tools that they are.  Only then do we have some hope for constructing a truly objective media that can report facts, relevent facts, and not a bunch of political spin and missing white girl nonsense.

  by theboz on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 08:32:37 AM PDT

•  Yes, Yes, Yes!

  No, wait.  It's because Kerry said the voted for the war before he voted against it.  And Al Gore is a liar!

  People simply must understand what a HUGE disadvantage Democrats are in in this media environment.  THIS is what's going on, not any big political shift in the U.S.

  Alas, this is harder to fight even than any deep-seated political shift.

  by BrentHartinger on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 09:54:06 AM PDT

•  I agree

  this is THE issue.
  But as we see w/ all the stories coming out about MSNBC, one angry phone call from someone in the administration outweighs 100s of angry emails from the likes of us. And the ultimate power over content lies w/ the owners (and through them, the advertisers), which basically guarantees a Republican bias.
  Maybe a boycott of all these stations could have an impact-- a petition with a pithy statement of our demands for real balance and thousands of signatures?
  Or/and Dems should start setting conditions for their appearances. The mere fact of their presence on these shows shores up the myth of balance, when the reality is that they have to be rhetorical wizards to get their message across while the REpubs barely have to be coherent to be treated respectfully. I understand that people like Matthews are going to be more panicked about alienating the party in power and losing access to the administration, but they still need to have Dems on their shows.
  And of course we have to keep supporting alternative outlets like Air America.
  And keep up the angry emails and phone calls..
  does any one have any other ideas?

  by makeitstop on Tue Nov 01, 2005 at 10:22:15 AM PDT