Obama's Oil Spill Emotions: The Mediagasm (VIDEO)

Obama's Oil Spill Emotions: The Mediagasm (VIDEO)
|
Open Image Modal

If you've spent any time at all watching the heroes of cable news grapple with the ongoing oil spill crisis, it should be pretty clear that what they need to get them through the day is for President Obama to stand in front of their cameras and wage a frenzied campaign of emotional warfare against BP, oily water, tar balls, fancy pants, time, circumstance, modern life, the perils of consequence and the fickle finger of cruel fate.

Nothing less will do! Everyone remembers that iconic moment where President George W. Bush got crazy emotional about terrorism and then global terrorism expanded to insane new heights -- errr... sorry! I meant to say, "and then everything was solved, forever." Thanks to emotion!

It's actions -- not self-indulgent displays of garment rending -- that people want to see. And while I hate wading in to the high-toned stupidity of "messaging," it's nevertheless true that one of the ways that Obama could "connect" with people would be to take to his bully pulpit and lay out a detailed and forceful prosecutorial case of the various delinquents and fools who spurred this disaster into existence. But, of course, that might take several minutes, and unfortunately, the media would prefer to broadcast a seven-second conniption instead.

At any rate, we've talked about how the desire for a display of pathos is a nutlog media obsession which is not by and large shared by the public. But have we put together one of those Ben Craw joints where we juxtapose everyone acting like a fool in order to comedically heighten how stupid all of this is? Well we have now! Please enjoy.

Video produced by HuffPost's Ben Craw

[Would you like to follow me on Twitter? Because why not? Also, please send tips to tv@huffingtonpost.com -- learn more about our media monitoring project here.]

Our 2024 Coverage Needs You

As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.

Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.

to keep our news free for all.

Support HuffPost