Views on News • April 22nd, 2008

Snow drifts over to CNN

by Chris Lato

Tony Snow, who spent 10 years with the Fox News Channel before a brief stint as White House Press Secretary, has been named a new ‘conservative commentator’ at CNN.

Good for him. Snow has struggled with cancer but appears to be on the rebound. He is an entertaining and smart guy even if you disagree with him politically. I’ve seen him speak in person, and he is an engaging personality.

It’s funny to read the talkbacker comments at the CNN website. You’d think Satan just signed a long-term contract.

CNN was called the Clinton News Network back in the day, and is vilified by the right for perceived bias. The Tony Snow hiring is one way to address that.

It’s always interesting to see how former ‘flacks’ are treated as they move back into the news business. As I have stated before, I have some personal experience with this, and Snow is being criticized by the left as being a ‘paid liar for Bush’ who has no credibility.

Well, I guess that discounts George Stephanopoulos. And James Carville. And Diane Sawyer. And…the list goes on and on and on.

First of all, Snow is being billed as a ‘commentator.’ He’s not going to be an anchor. Everyone who pays attention to these things knows his background, so take what he says with a grain of salt if you choose to do so.

Also, Snow is someone who has ‘real world’ experience. He’s been behind the podium on behalf of a Presidential administration. He has the level of experience that precious few have. He has unique insight. That is a valuable thing and should help inform Snow’s commentary. He has more credibility than 90% of the ‘observers’ who are out there pitching their wares on the news channels. He knows what he is talking about.

The fact is, everyone in the news biz brings their own biases to the table. Some cover them up better than others, but they all have biases whether they choose to admit it or not.

In addition, it is virtually impossible to be ‘objective.’ That’s a goofy notion born in journalism school classrooms.

However, it is very possible to be ‘fair.’ There is a difference, and honest reporters will acknowledge that.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008 at 1:13 pm and is filed under Views on News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.