I've posted diaries before critical of some of NPR's coverage of issues, but this one deserves calling out for how excellent it is.
read the article here
Nina Totenberg goes out to expose the sexism, veiled and not-veiled playing out in this nomination process. The efficiency with which Sen Lindsay Graham's (R-SC) dissembling about Justice Scalia is dismantled is particularly efficient and eloquent.
"Scalia is no shrinking violet. He's tough, but there's a difference between being tough and a bully."
Handled with both direct anecdotes:
"Republican and Democratic appointees interviewed for this story rejected outright the notion that she is a bully"
and even a quantitative example:
"she asked five questions of the government lawyer, and her colleagues asked 61 questions. She interrupted the government lawyer seven times, while other judges interrupted him 66 times"
In comparing her temperament and judicial style to Scalia's, the debate is framed in a particularly interesting way. Namely, conservatives praise Scalia for being 'tough' and a 'firebrand' even as even some conservatives (and far more liberals) question the legal underpinnings of his opinions.
In a classic case of either IOKIYAR or 'IOKIYAM', Sotomayor's toughness and directness is panned while the same qualities in her male colleages are praised.
I also noticed that the story pointed out that the negative reviews of Sotomayor only appeared in the latest judicial review report. It would be a particularly interesting piece of follow up research to compare when the research was being done for the report and when the first discussions of Obama's possible candidates for SCOTUS might be.
Looking back at other Nina Totenburg stories about the supreme court nominee is also impressive. (read here and here)
Her quotes include "The fact that she so rarely upholds discrimination claims I think answers the idea that she is always angling for minorities,", very efficiently taking apart the Rushbo talking points, or the 'anti-business activist' meme, with "What's interesting about looking at the range of her jurisprudence is that it's impossible to put her in a particular box as pro-business, anti-business,".
I have found her articles quite useful in dealing with some of my conservative friends at work. It is unusual to find a journalist whose work is both intellectually sound and pleasant to read.