So the Dog had an interesting thing happen to him yesterday. When he opened up his e-mail in the morning the follow e-mail was waiting for him:
I work on Neil Cavuto’s program on the FOX Business Network. After reading your blog http://squarestate.net/... ;
We are interested in you on our show for an interview.
The segment is about taxing the rich, their time has come!
We would love to get your insights on this topic. We can arrange for a television studio in the Atlanta area or wherever you may be traveling today.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
My contact number is:
Sincerely,
At first blush this seems like a really cool thing, no? An offer to go on a national show on a cable network, a chance at raising the profile of Square State and the Dog at the same time, what could be better, right? Still this is a Fox network and the Dog is a liberal with a capital L. Then there is the fact the article they are referencing talks about how we have reduced the number and rate of the tax brackets at the behest of the Republican Party from 90% to 34% and from 27 to 5.
The Dog is not a go it alone type of hound, so he talked to some of his fellow travelers about what they thought he should do. The big advice everyone gave was the fact that Fox is not looking for a debate, they are looking for a Liberal they can make look foolish to make their point of cutting taxes stronger. The interview (or ambush) would not be face to face, the Dog would be sitting in a studio here in Denver and Neil Cavuto would be in New York. There would be not face to face and there would be no eye contact.
In the end the choice comes down to a few things. First off taxes are a new subject for the Dog, he is in no way as studied on it as he is on Torture. Second, the Dog is semi-anonymous, this is on purpose so he can speak his mind and not have to worry about it costing him work opportunities. Third, the Dog has only a small amount of training on dealing with hostile media and no on-air experience. Finally, this is Fox "Going out of" Business Network; they are not doing this to be nice to a liberal blogger.
The Dog decided to pass on this "opportunity". Going on TV means outing this nom du blog, why do it on a network that wants to make the Dog look like an uninformed liberal chump? It is hopefully not the last invite the Dog will get for a TV appearance, so why should he go on Fox and get chewed up and outted on an issue which is not one of his primary ones?
Ultimately the Dog turned it down. There is no win for him or his causes going on Neil Cavuto’s show at this time. In any case the Dog thought that Square Staters might like to know the things they post here are getting a wider audience than we might tend to think on a day to day basis.
At the same time it is important to remember that raising one's profile is only a good thing when it is positive. As they say over and over, you only get one chance to make a good impression. Now, if Keith Olbermann or Rachel Maddow want the Dog's meager insights on any issue, he will be glad to go on, but for Fox and Rupert Murdoch, not so much.
The floor is yours.