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September 01, 2003
Review: (book) Lies (and the Lying Liars who Tell Them)
Mr. Franken is a comedian. As such, he makes serious statements and makes them funny. Looking over the list of his books written, one finds a string of parodies, satires, and a pair of humorous looks at non-humorous topics. Lies (and the Lying Liars who Tell Them is a book that falls into the second category...
The tone of the book is set at the outset, right on page xi (that's before the book begins, for those taking notes) "Unlike Senator McCarthy and his intellectual heirs, Ann Coulter and Howard Stern, I do have a sense of decency [italics original]." It should be noted that Ann Coulter's newest book Treason: Liberal Treachery From the Cold War to the War on Terrorism contains a rather lengthy paean to the Late Senator McCarthy...
That seems to be the MO of the book: Taking a look at the right wing and noting when they lie. Not merely are wrong, but out and out lie. Chapters 35 and 36 (which deal with Bush's tax cut) are particularly savage. Using the actual numbers from the Congressional Budget Office, as well as analysis from members of various think tanks (including Brookings), Mr. Franken puts to rest any notion that the "average" person is getting US$1,100 from the government...
It is where he destroys Ann Coulter (and reduces her to a running joke), and in his treatment of Fox News that Mr. Franken is at his best. Mr. Franken tries, and I think succeeds, at explaining Fox News as an arm of the Republican Party, and a lying one at that...
Where Mr. Franken is at his worst is his logic about the media. He "proves" that the media is not Liberal (something I happen to agree with), and then proves (rather successfully) that Fox News is conservative. The problem is quality of evidence. While he uses deft analysis, quotes, and numbers to prove Fox's bias; Mr. Franken does not do his readers the same courtesy for other Media. Indeed, his "proof" of non-liberal media consists more of a German-Philosopher-like thought experiment. It isn't that it is a bad thought experiment, it is just that it relies on a lot of supposition...
Actually, there is one number. A very small statistic that proves more the Media's hatred of Gore than its liking for the Democratic Party. I didn't know that only 24% of all stories (during the 2000 election cycle) about Bush were positive ones. The fact that only 13% were favorable to Gore, however, was sadly evident from Slate's The Road to Chadville (scroll down)...
Mr. Franken's book is both funny and engaging. And Fox News Doesn't want you to read it. Is there any better reason to read?
Rating: This book receives 5 Satirist Satirizing out of 5 Satirist Satirizing.
Posted by Andrew at September 1, 2003 03:47 PM
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Comments
~~From the news article you posted~~
Attorney Dori Hanswirth, representing Fox News, disagreed, saying the intent was different. She contended that Franken's book cover did not qualify as satire.
"This is much too subtle to be considered a parody," she said.
...
Abrams said the big word "lies" over the photo was a signal that the cover was "obviously tongue-in-cheek."
~~
Seems pretty clear to me :-)
Hmm, maybe I'll actually borrow it the next time I'm in town.
Posted by: Dazed_and_Confucius at September 1, 2003 11:02 PM