I know that the disproportionate amount of media going to every syllable and hiccup that comes out of Senator Barack Obama — compared to the seldom-reported rantings of Crazy Old Guy John McCain — suggests a media establishment looking for some slip-up by the popular front runner, and a hypocritical approval of John McCain’s offensive jokes, marital issues, flip flops, ignorant gaffes (Czechoslavakia is so last century, dude). I understand that there is legitimate concern about how the corporate establishment will try to tear down Obama as popular hero, and then shrug and nod at McCain because they got used to accepting old white guy Republican talking points long ago.
As Mark Crispin Miller has pointed out, this lopsided scrutiny prepares the public to accept the explanation that McCain wins the presidency despite the world’s expectations, because ‘Americans weren’t ready for such and such and so and so,’ as was widely run into the ground by the media leading up to the election.
But here is another side to the media rush to Obama instead of McCain, which I believe is also a factor: Ask yourself, why has the paparazzi been so single-mindedly focused on Brittney Spears instead of Christina Aguillera? What of Christina’s woes in love, bad driving, and wardrobe crimes?
Why? Because people DON’T CARE about Christina Agiullera, or John McCain. Obama is a star, Britney is a star, and the media swarms around the people readers give a shit about. And I sense the longer the American public has to get used to Obama being put in front of them every day, the more closet racists will get used to him as The Man, and be more pragmatic than going for the guy who’s skin tone matches theirs, even though his policies don’t.
