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General discussion

Why the shots?

Apr 27, 2010 1:57PM PDT

I don't know if the hosts of the show read these posts, but I don't understand why this crew continues to take shots at conservatives. This show isn't about politics. Please consider the fact that not all your listeners have the same views that you do and don't use this as a platform to attack those of other political views.

Thanks for your consideration.

Discussion is locked

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well actually...
Apr 27, 2010 2:54PM PDT

Are you sure that YOU aren't making the assumption that its about the fact that they are conservatives, or the fact that those particular conservatives espouse ideals generally held to be contrary to the open ethos of the internet?

I think you are hearing what you want to hear and generalizing a bit.

I don't doubt that there, from time to time, have been some off-hand remarks, but I am POSITIVE that they are aware of it and try to stay away from it when they can. It's really hard to be impartial ALL THE TIME, don't you think?

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What are you talking about?
Apr 27, 2010 3:15PM PDT

Give us examples.

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Examples?
Apr 27, 2010 4:44PM PDT

Examples? Ummmm.....don't you listen to the show? Perhaps it is because YOU side with a particular party that YOU hear what you want? I am relative impartial to one side or the other. But for example, there was no need to take shots at Rush Limbaugh. But I know what's coming next....

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If one little joke about Rush is all it takes to ruffle your
Apr 28, 2010 3:56AM PDT

feathers then you might as well hide yourself in a cocoon.

It wasn't even all that crazy of a comment. Rush Limbaugh isn't exactly known for even handed, objective journalism so assuming that he used Gizmodogate as yet another springboard to launch an attack on liberals or Obmama isn't exactly a stretch. That kind of stuff is what he does every day on his show. Fanning flames, fake or real, to make the conservative base mad (and thus generating more money for him) is what his entertainment empire is all about.

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Kidding, right?
Apr 28, 2010 5:39AM PDT

I didn't say that it was "one little joke about Rush" that ruffled my feathers. Nor did I say my feathers were ruffled. I was simply stating my observations that over the past year I have noticed an increase in shots at conservatives or members of the Republican party. That being said, I am only offering up MY opinion that the hosts should try to hold back at mixing politics into the show when not needed.

I'm not sure how you can compare a tech show to a talk radio. The formats are completely different. Yes, Rush will take shots at Obama and liberals, as is his job to report on the news and such as he sees it. At the same time, don't forget that he also takes shots a Republicans, as is his job. Now, is there anything wrong with him generating money for himself? Dare I say the word "CAPITALISM"? At the other end of the spectrum, I believe Howard Stern goes to extremes to generate money for himself. Nothing wrong with that from where I stand, or sit as the case may be. I am not a huge Rush fan and rarely listen to him so this is not coming from one who is drunk with Rush-love.

My advice? Stick to what you know and are good at. The hosts should stick to tech stuff and Rush should stick to....well...whatever he's good at which I suppose if political analysis.

Just my thoughts. Not here to fight. Just offering up my $.02 to hopefully make the show listener-friendly.

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The show is already politicized...
Apr 28, 2010 8:11AM PDT

...you just don?t notice it because the decidedly libertarian bent most likely aligns with a conservative worldview. The daily small-government-is-good, open-systems-are-superior, and the free-market-will-save-us style rants are inherently political in nature. How do you think this sounds to the more socialist members of the BOL audience who hold very different views on the role of government and control in society? Yet those people still listen. If you strip passion and beliefs out of the show entirely you are left with a bland show and just plain bad radio.

Molly doesn?t like Rush. BFD. Molly has opinions about lots of things that I think are completely wrong as well. But she is still a good journalist with a quick wit and I believe, she is still worth listening to. You can?t sanitize the world and keep other people?s viewpoints from infiltrating the conversation. What a boring place that would be.

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Couple of things...
Apr 28, 2010 4:05AM PDT

I totally agree with you that once politics or someone's personal preferences, politically, get in the mix, it's easy to potentially lose half your audience. This country is still an essentially 50-50 country, politically-speaking.

Look what's happened to Oprah Winfrey. She actively expressed her support for Obama and lost a significant amount of her audience. It would have happened if she did the same for McCain, too. Heck, part of that could have been because she took a position between the Democratic party's choices: Obama and Clinton. It's a dangerous exercise and wise to avoid.

That said, the show does emanate from San Francisco. 'Nuff said? (lol)

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And the tech industry is filled with libertarians
Apr 28, 2010 4:28AM PDT

so you could just as easily assume that the opposite is true.

Its best not to assume you know the political leanings of anybody unless they offer this information.

That said, I am offering it to you. As a left leaning libertarian who voted for Obama, I welcome the BOL crew to make fun of or criticize the president, or any other liberal politician or pundit if it makes for good radio and has something to do with tech (qualifications which Rush's comments about Gizmodogate certainly met)

Seriously, people need to grow a spine and not take everything so personally. It's arguable that BOL has a serious libertarian bent and that it offends non libertarians. Should Molly stop her rants for fear of upsetting the socialists in the audience?

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OK
Apr 28, 2010 6:54AM PDT

Agreed that people should lighten up a bit. And it's true that people see/hear through their own filters. I'm pretty sure I detected somewhat of a pro-Obama bias in the run-up to the election on the show that came out at times, but those were my filters in play. It wasn't often. There was a guest on once who was unabashedly pro-Obama during that period, but I don't think the hosts took the bait, which was a good thing.

So techies are pro-Ron Paul?

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Agreed!
Apr 28, 2010 7:48AM PDT

I agree - it doesn't come out often and it's not over-bearing (usually). Yeah, I vaguely remember that show. So maybe shame on me for not giving props to the crew that time.

Ron Paul? Hmmm.....interesting. Depending on the definition of "techies", that could be a huge number of people, no?

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I remember the Rush comment
Apr 28, 2010 10:17AM PDT

but didn't think much of it and it was valid for the discussion. I've seen them hammer Obama's administration about ACTA many times, but that probably is just selective hearing for some.

Also, did you forget that you signed in with a different account and answered with a different log-in name? Why do you need two accounts to begin with? I know of some reasons why but they are all used for the wrong reasons and I'm not going to insinuate the reasons.

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I remember the ACTA condemnation of the Obama administration
Apr 28, 2010 11:59AM PDT

as well. And as someone who voted for Obama, I can wholeheartedly say he deserves it. Political thought in the US has been reduced to an either/or, us v. them mentality and people have become far too cocooned in their ideologies. Modern media gives us the the opportunity to hear only what they choose to hear tuning everything else out. I think its good for everyone to hear a little of what the opposition has to say every now and then and realize that even though we may disagree on some points we may agree on others. It keeps us from turning each other in to caricatures.

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A lot of them are big Ron Paul fans. Definitely.
Apr 28, 2010 8:12AM PDT

Not me though.