Matthews: I Want to Do Everything I Can to Make Obama Presidency Work

Not especially surprising coming from him. But if the regime brings back the Fairness Doctrine, will this statement be used to ensure that ALL Matthews’ airtime must be balanced by, say, Rush?
Just wondering.

old Chris is fun to watch and sometimes has a good substantial show..
but I’d never vote for him and I’m a Dem

“Looks like Tweety is looking at a Senate run.”
There has been discussion about it after his comments on Colbert reports months ago.

“I’ve been mislead all these years, I always thought it was a journalists job to report the news as fair and balanced as possible. Now I know it is their job to pick the president and make sure he is viewed well.”
ROFLMAO….even works in the FoxNews slogan while blissfully unaware of the irony.

Gee, wonder what Olberman’s JOB will be?

Well, since he (and everyone else in journalism) did everything they could to get him elected, why would this be any different.
Amazing how the role of journalism has changed. Simply amazing.

“only FOX was the only balanced news station there was,”
FoxNews? The guys who ran every crappy internet rumor about Obama? The ones who made up the flags in the trash story? Who repeated gleefully the NY Post’s fake Michelle room service story? The ones who ran the Obama is a Muslim story?
ROFLMAO.
Want to know how big a joke FoxNews is?
Megyn Kelly grilled Tucker Bounds once, the right wing media went crazy and that was the end of ANY hard questions for the McCain campaign.

This is nauseating. Reporters are supposed to report the news not run the country.

I think it is good for reputable journalists like Chris Matthews to step up against the vile negative attacks Obama will have to suffer from idiots with a following like Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coutler and Hannity! They chomping at the bit to spew there hate speech to influence the hearts and minds of Americans against this Presidency! They would love this administration to fail!
You GO Chris Matthews and others like you! Protect the interests of main stream American who want UNITY!!!!

I would not call Chris Matthews a journalist. He is an opinionator and pundit and many people are interested in his opinions. I don’t find anything wrong with him supporting the president and doing everything he can to make sure the presidency succeeds.

ANYONE who thinks FOX NEWS is fair and balanced needs their head examined!

Is this the end of individual freedoms in this country? Obama supporter Peggy Joseph actually believes her troubles are over because Obama’s welfare state will help her pay the mortgage and put gas in her car. Thousands of young Liberals in this country now think that the age of racism in this country is now “fixed” with the election of the first Black president. I feel sorry for these people, who once again, will be let down. There is no easy fix. Getting anything requires work, Obama worked to get to were he is, but the idea that life will now be all “laughter and light” is impossible. We are faced with people around the world that want the end of American exceptionalism, which is a result of productive workforce and individual freedom in America. The promises made by the democrat party that has promised them the moon, but it is only paper. Just watch and don’t blame me.

Does anybody Remember what news journalist are suppose to do. How about report the factual news.However I am sure that will not send any feelings up mr Matthews legs

I channel surf…
MSNBC left
FOX right
CNN center
talk radio extreme right
and major newspapers, from left to right
it’s up to free Americans to inform ourselves, only a weak mind can be swayed in this country.
most people gravitate to shows that satisfy their political stripe.

“I have. FOX News is the MOST fair and balanced and unbiased”
ROFLMAO.
Meg, the study you linked to called CNN the most neutral of the cable networks.
In cable, the evidence firmly suggests there now really is an ideological divide between two of the three channels, at least in their coverage of the campaign.
Things look much better for Barack Obama—and much worse for John McCain—on MSNBC than in most other news outlets. On the Fox News Channel, the coverage of the presidential candidates is something of a mirror image of that seen on MSNBC
The tone of CNN’s coverage, meanwhile, lay somewhere in the middle of the cable spectrum, and was generally more negative than the press overall.

Jake,
Is this a veiled shot at Fox News?
How much is the value of Fox News’ rah-rah-ing for the GOP? How about a Nightline expose on that, huh?
Under Bush, Fox has basically been a propaganda unit of the Bush presidency (and then the McCain campaign). They have been more pro-GOP than Pravda was in the USSR.

Nothing offensive, but if he could keep from tinkling and erecting (paraphrase his own words) up on seeing and hearing our Dearest Leader, it would be a great help and a plus for his show.

Look within 9 months of taking office and Obama does not deliver the media will be all over him. No controversy .. No news, even Matthews.
I feel sorry for Obama, there is such high expectations of what he will do.The reality is this country is in the crapper and it’s going to take a long time to get us out of it.

I agree with Chris but not Joe.
The idea that any talking head is relaying news by trying to guess motives is just silly. A journalist should ask questions but not try to get ‘inside’ anyone’s head, as that is impossible. Guessing is not reporting the news.
It would make more sense to discuss Emanuel’s job history, in a factual way, to give us information.
Chris is right that we should all be rooting for the success of this president and to help in anyway we can. This is a true crisis time for our country.
Guessing motives is not journalism. Asking real questions is what real journalists do.

Does MSNBC try, outside of Scarlborough????
Posted by: Dear Leader Chairman Maubama | Nov 6, 2008 2:53:58
————
Outside of Scarlborough, MSNBC is a farce, especially during the Primaries.

I belive its nearing the end of Fox news can I get a YAHOO YAHEEE!!!!!!!WOOOH

2 great shows I enjoy for finding out information and opinion are:
- Charlie Rose on PBS
- Fareed Zakaria on CNN.
and since I am a Dem, Rachel Maddow’s
show is becoming a favorite also.
NO shouting,….
just great discussions about issues and opinions.

Why would the media change now? They never vetted Obama. I completely quit watching network nets program. I go to the abcnews website every day just to see the headlines. It was overwhelmingly biased. Palin’s medical records day 11? What about the person that Obama was/is? You’ll never question Obama or the Democrat’s. I hope that you all lose your jobs and go out of business. I don’t want biased right news either. I want questions asked and answered on ALL SIDES. Journalism is currently dead and sooner or later the average citizen will know that the country has been dishonorably served.

Well said Chris Matthew. We all have our hopes and our futures tied to the good and honest leadership of President Obama. We should all support him and back him as he fights for the America people. President Obama has the intelligence and has shown a desire to surround himself with smart, caring, concerned people who will do good things for the country.

Linda,
Check out MSNBC’s bio of Matthews. He is described as a news anchor and broadcast journalist, not a commentator.
Just like Olbermann thinks he has a “news hour”.

Joe Scarborough is so amazingly republican that he will join all the rabid republicans who will be at President Obama’s throat about any and every minor and worthless things they can come up with. Joe Scarborough will not be a stand up guy and give our new president the respect and period of time he deserves to even be sworn into office. Pathetic.

I Will take Chris Matthews over Sean Hannity anyday, at least Matthews is Human Honest and a Real Journalist, what is Hannity A racisit right wing whack job and He Is a Pathetic joke of a Journalist!

The MSNBC and the other liberal media thrived for the last 4-8 years because of their bashing Bush and Republicans.
People like to watch negative news. People like to watch others in the media reinforce their own negative views. The liberal media thrived in that environment.
Now that Bush, Cheney, McCain and Palin are out of the picture MSNBC have to attack the new guy in office or no one will watch their shows.
How many times can Chris Matthews give a fluff piece about Obama’s new dog or Michelle’s new dress? People want to watch people digging up and slinging dirt on politicians. The only politicians in Washington for the next 4 years are all Democrats. If they don’t critique the people in power, their shows will die.
I doubt Matthews and Olbermann (and many others) will last through the first term of Obama.

I think we need to put Matthews’ remarks in context. He was reacting to Joe Scarborough’s clear partisan criticizing of Obama’s transitional plans. While I think Chris could have articulated it differently, I did not get the sense that he was showing partisanship. I felt he was confronting Scarborough about advancing the negative speculation about whether chaos was brewing in the Obama camp because Emanuel did not immediately pronounce his acceptance of the COS position. It was petty on Scarborough’s part, but Chris should have expressed it better.

Thank you Chris Matthews. The constant negativity of Morning Joe is one of the reasons that I change the channel. We as Americans need for the presidency to function, including the final days of the Bush Administration.

I was watching Morning Joe this morning (I was actually woken up by Joe screaming about how Obama was blowing his transition with the whole Emanuel, “did he take the job or not” thing) and when he invited Chris to participate, he declined and offered what you have quoted.
I don’t think, however, that you are putting the discussion in its proper context, because soon after the exchange, Time Magazine’s Richard Stengal chimed in and said that with everything that needs to be done, we (journalists) shouldn’t be nitpicking trival matters such as whether Rahm Emanuel should have said “no comment” when the press confronted him at his home last night. Chris agreed. Joe shut his mouth.

Blue: I agree with you. The station changed Chris Matthews time because they said he was too biased. And he was the biggest promoter of Obama leaving Hillary and McCain sometimes out of the news. I didn’t vote for Obama but I am aware of the fact he is going to have severe problems. This generation of young college students that didn’t think before they voted will not be so happy later. It will all come to ahead and America will know what a mistake they made.

I didn’t know journalists could help presidents. That’s interesting.

This guy is the biggest jerk around…wait, second next to Biden. He also said he doesn’t question the motives of politicians…since when, Tuesday??!!
When I saw that exchange this morning, I knew his tv career was OVER, thank God.
But don’t worry…Pennsylvania will make him a Senator in a couple of years!
Yikes.

so what’s different from Matthews and every other network news person?

What, the “tingle up my leg” comment wasn’t proof enough that Matthews abandoned his journalistic credentials long ago?
The undercard to this truly historic and wonderful election is the official death of journalism. There were far too many stories that the MSM considered out of bounds, yet the day before the election Brokaw and Charlie Rose were lamenting the fact that they knew so little about Obama! You can’t make this stuff up.
The print media is on life support, meaning people no longer know who to turn to for the unbiased and unvarnished truth. You certainly won’t find it anywhere on the cable channels or the big three networks for that matter. There is a real market opportunity tight now to establish an online newsite worthy of Edward R. Murrow. Who will fill that gap? Jake?

He’s right. We need a successful presidency.

I actually saw Matthews say this on Morning Joe this morning. How pathetic! Of course, we all want the president-elect to succeed and for our country to be safe and prosperous. But it is not the role of a journalist to work to try to help the president succeed. And I could not help but notice that Matthews apparently did not consider it part of his duty as a journalist to support President Bush as he supports president-elect Obama. Matthews should be ashamed and MSNBC should stop allowing him to do anything other than his own Hardball program, which is no more journalism than OReilly is. It is commentary. It is polemic. It is not journalism.
The problem with cable news is that they have gone beyond blurring the line between advocacy and reporting. They have obliterated it. Commentary shows like Hardball and Countdown and O’Reilly and Hannity and Colmes should be distinct and seperate from the news programs. I must say, I think Fox News does a better job of keeping the lines between the two types of shows clearer than the others. MSNBC is the worst at it.

Mariann Pepitone
all of the ‘opinion’ shows are there to get ratings for their respective networks. … if you remember there was a time where Coulter was in vogue as a guest during republican ‘times’ because of her invective and ‘over the top’ comments…..they do throw some ‘news’ in but mostly they are alll folks talking over each other….
College students vote (like everyone else in America) their individual beliefs…. no doubt there were many students voting Republican and now are second guessing their vote as they try to find a job and pay their biils.
Matthews will admit who he’s worked for politically, he doesn’t hide it, yes, his bias shows, but no more than many on the Fox network…. I have seen him ruthlessly grill both Dems & Repubs equally when he thinks the need is there.
Matthews doesn’t have the gravitas of a Walter Cronkite, currently, no one on TV has that. Cronkite’s opinion actually did matter to the public.

Karl Rove and the rest of the bums that are looking for everything they can to say that as predident Obama will be a failure noone can do as bad as the administration that is leaving the White House now and that is with Rove thrown in the pot.We had to have them at the stern of the sinking ship for six yrs or the bus going into the ditch either way it was time for change and it might not come as fast as some want, it is great knowing that these nitwits are not there to keep screwing things up.They knew what was happening a long time ago but chose to look the other way because their pockets were already lined,and there is not only democrats that are suffering because of their failed policies but republicans as well.It is time for Americans to realize we are all here together and stop hating.Give him a chance just as you did with Bush for eight yrs,but already with the way Obama ran his campaign is an example of his leadership.And that is better than this country has been ran for the last eight yrs.

as others have said on this thread, Matthews is not a reporter or a journalist. He is a political commentator. There is nothing wrong with what he said. Scarborough is as far to the right as Matthews is to the left… so it is laughable that he is trying to call Matthews out.

Where was Matthews alleged “ethics” during the primary? He sure liked to pick apart non-issues when it came to Clinton.
MSNBC = buffoon cocoon

(QUOTE DAMEHEN: already with the way Obama ran his campaign is an example of his leadership.And that is better than this country has been ran for the last eight yrs.)
Amen to that!!!!

Yes and apparently it was the press’ job to cheerlead for the Iraq war back in 2003 – 2005. (Oh wait, I guess they still are..) Go USA! USA! USA! Matthews is such a bozo :-(

Everybody’s got personal feelings politically, but journalists tout their ability to suspend them while at work. Matthews has really discredited not only himself, but as one of the more widely known journalists today, his profession. It feels like, oh, election night. Our media suspend emotion when reporting current events in Congo but practically throw a party when covering the Obama victory.

Whatever it is, Chris Mathews got courage. He is a straight shooter, sharp, and can handle a dozen, repetitious pin-heads like hannity.
We need more like him in main stream media.
Go Chris, you and your friends did a marvelous job on rightwing demolition.

IT IS THE JOB OF ALL OF US TO HELP GET OUT OF THE EXTREME MESS THE LAST 8 YEARS HAVE GOTTEN US INTO—-MATTHEWS IS VERY RIGHT ON WITH THIS.
QUIT BLUBBERING OVER THE REPUB LOSS AND GET ON WITH IT.—THE POLITITIONS ARE HANDLING THIS FAR BETTER THAN THE CHILDREN OUT HERE.

Matthews said:
My job is to help this country.
Now just what part fo that do you not understand? A journalist’s job is NOT to try to gin up controversy just to get more publicity, it’s to INFORM the people. Clearly, that’s what Matthews is saying he will do.