Posts by Craig Ranapia
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I strongly believe that blogging should be about more than taking umbrage at the "MSM", but really ...
Well, yes, but irony squared: Anyone remember what the second blog post from the political editor of the Herald was about?
For all us illiterate, factually-challenged psychotics out there, here's the headline and first two pars to refresh your memories:
**I'm bloody angry with Key**
John Key has just issued a press statement saying my story in today's Herald on the transtasman therapeutics regulatory agency misrepresents him.
I'm bloody angry because his press statement totally misrepresents what took place yesterday.
I can understand why you and DPF have much better things to do with your time, but surely it's fair to expect the MSM to live up to the same level of professionalism and ethical representation they demand from others?
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Writing any old cr*p in an blog comments thread hasn't (until now?) had the same status.
What, you mean the same status as The Herald's elevation of Mike Moore and Jim Anderton trying to beat each other to death with their walking frames to real, live news?
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Cheers, Craig. Disrespectful as it is, that's totally brightened my day.
Well, I don't want to come across as someone who'd piss in an open grave but it amazes me that Whakahuihui Vercoe could always get a pass for talking smack about women, gays and immigrants (at least, the slitty-eyed yellow ones) from people who would be having a stroke if it came out of the mouth of Winston Peters or Bishop Brian Tamiki.
I'm looking forward to the liberally whitewashed obits...
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Anyway, talking abour scary bigots a go-go, Russell, glad to see therespectable face of brown-neck immigrant-bashing is dead.
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Don't we all have a bias?
Certainly, but I do try and temper mine with rational thought. I also have a cranky preference for Ministers of the Crown who know what they're talking about - and pay serious attention to people who do, even if they're not saying what you want to hear. It's easy to crank up another fatuous moral panic over the chemical nasty de jour - serious and thoughtful public policy not based on junk science and statistical illiteracy is quite another.
And MPs really have no excuse considering they've access to an eye-watering array of resources, expert advice and one of the best libraries (and most skilled gang of researchers and librarians in the country). Getting a cheap rise out of Jacqui Dean is all very nice (and well-deserved), but she's not an associate minister of health with her name on a pretty shoddy piece of legislation. Anderton is.
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Shit he's bringing science into policy
Not really, Michael - while I understand Anderton has very personal reasons for being passionate about drug policy and suicide prevention (and has done some good work in both areas, to be fair), he has a nasty case of confirmation bias he needs to deal with.
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(one 't' by the way)
Noted - I hate having my name futzed, and do try to repay the courtesy. And thanks for the pointer - no wonder the poor bugger sounded rather cross. Sleep apnoea is a shit of a thing to deal with at the best of times, and losing your father, having a marriage go to pieces while trying to maintain a functional relationship with your son, and being in a workplace that could most politely be described as not entirely functional is far from 'the best of times'.
I agree about Ryan but not Wilson, I love it that she's just so direct.
I like it too, and that's probably all you need on talkback radio or one of those US screaming skull panel shows. But being a good interviewer is like being a good singer - you've got to have the skill, and the instincts,to blow the roof off the joint and play it cool. Whatever the song needs. The Listener story, in a sidebar, notes a classic case of when playing it cool gets results - when David Benson-Pope pretty much committed career suicide live on Morning Report. Don't think Plunket would have caught the significance of B-P saying "it turned out that the rumour we'd heard was true", and followed it up to lethal effect, if he was half way down Benson-Pope's throat.
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<i>3 News seems to be progressively adopting every annoying tic of One News circa five years ago -- in this case, pointless and irritating teasers.</i>
But to give praise where praise is due, WTF is Sean Plunkett on and where can I get some? I don't know if he's switched to decaf or what, but over the last couple of months I've been able to turn on Morning Report without an instant migraine. He is more pleasant to listen to - and a damn sight more effective - now that lunging for the jugular isn't his default interview technique; Kathryn Ryan is much more cconfident with the more 'lifestyle' elements of Nine to Noon. and if Mary Wilson can just chill out a wee bit, I'll have no reason to turn on TV news ever again.
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The Dominion Post's story about the hacking of New Zealand government computer systems -- resulting, it appears, in actual theft of sensitive information -- is a good scoop.
Also rather interesting to see the context - an interview with Security Intelligence Service director Warren Tucker ! Let's just hope that when he gets his book deal, he's a marginally better writer than Stella Rimmington. :)
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Personally, I'd rather watch Classic Millionaire and Ask the Aunties than the news.
Personally, I'd rather watch The Tudors (pouting eye candy! Sam Neil... more eye candy shagging!) or read The Oresteia again, than dedicate any more meat RAM to TVNZ and their corporate dysfunction.
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