One last thought about the inaugural: NBC is embarrassing.
We’ve all heard that the message of Barack Obama is that anyone can aspire to become president. Public service is not the preserve of an aristocracy (although Obama had to defeat the wife of a previous president to get there).
Network television seems to be another story.
Walking through the newsroom yesterday, I was confronted with the image of a smirking Luke Russert “interviewing” witnesses to the big event.
Russert is the son of former “Meet the Press” host Tim Russert, who died unexpectedly last June. NBC, with an entire nation, nay globe, of talent to choose from, somehow decided in a matter of weeks that Russert’s son was the most talented person to become an on-air NBC employee.
The hire, of course, was applauded by the Beltway establishment, even though it’s quite clear that had his name been “Jones” or “Rosebaum,” he would not be gracing NBC’s coverage.
Obama has received favorable media coverage in recent weeks, but he will soon have to make a choice.
If he decides to really lead the nation and reform government, he will run right into the Washington crowd, which isn’t committed to liberalism or conservatism, but to the perpetuation of its own influence. The Beltway media will turn on him in a minute if they see a threat.
So, he can lead or he can get the kudos of the capital crowd.
