Political literacy please

Reader comment on: The New Yorker on David and Charles Koch
in response to reader comment: Excellent support of corporatism!

Submitted by Ron Kampeas (United States), Aug 28, 2010 18:41

"Charles Lewis is a left-winger." This is meaningless without what makes him a left-winger. And don't cite his funders -- how are they left-wing, by the way?

Simply describing someone as "left-wing" or "right-wing," bereft of context, is lazy. Ira, you're a seasoned journalist. Your readers deserve better.


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The Future of Capitalism replies:

How are George Soros and Barbra Streisand left-wing? Come on...

My point was that Mayer describes the right-wing or libertarian organizations as such but made no such description of the left-wing groups she relied on.

I've been writing about Chuck Lewis for more than a decade now; there was a Smartertimes.com item that spelled it all out, and since then he issued a highly political report on the run-up to the Iraq war.

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Other reader comments on this item

Title By Date
The Kochs may be right [177 words]JoeApr 3, 2011 23:56
Kochs support cancer research while shamelessly polluting the environment
[w/response] [59 words]
LTAug 28, 2010 20:02
Interesting Omission by Stoll! [141 words]SteveAug 28, 2010 08:15
Excellent support of corporatism! [31 words]KaiAug 27, 2010 16:26
⇒ Political literacy please
[w/response] [48 words]
Ron KampeasAug 28, 2010 18:41
Coins have two sides [105 words]Peter BoyleAug 27, 2010 11:22
Your critique is boring [83 words]Bob JacobsonAug 26, 2010 21:33
10th Worst Polluters in America [127 words]P.J. NuhnAug 26, 2010 09:27
Re: 10th Worst Polluters in America
[w/response] [18 words]
PeepAug 26, 2010 14:29
Koch assistance Welcome in South Carolina [101 words]Timothy N. MoultrieAug 25, 2010 16:39
At least someone did their research [116 words]Peggy VenableAug 25, 2010 15:24
New Yorker piece badly researched [75 words]Eric CramptonAug 24, 2010 23:45
Stealth - yes
[w/response] [83 words]
JHAug 24, 2010 15:56
Center for Public Integrity is not left wing
[w/response] [133 words]
Randy BarrettAug 24, 2010 14:58
Is this what passes for journalism these days? [89 words]Carol SkaffAug 24, 2010 13:39
Not a dime yet, but we're hoping! [17 words]WildwillAug 23, 2010 16:49
Well said [47 words]TJohnsonAug 23, 2010 16:23
Mr. Stoll's bias is ridiculously evident in his criticism of Jane Mayer's New Yorker article on the Kochs
[w/response] [51 words]
t. barrAug 23, 2010 16:17

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