George Graham

Its a Mean Spirited World We’re Living in

Most mornings, after I’ve fed the cats, taken my pills, injected my insulin and sipped my coffee, I sit at the computer and catch up on the world. My portal is Yahoo, and if that site is any indication, it’s a sorry world indeed.  The “news” according to Yahoo can best be described as “catty.”

We are treated to incessant sniping at celebrities, at their fashion “gaffes” and weight gains, their spats and break-ups. And the sniggering finger pointing is not restricted to celebrity gossip; it’s evident in political reporting – and even in sports.

Today, there’s a “news” item taking Yohan Blake to task for wearing an expensive wrist watch.  Jamaicans carry off a 1-2-3 sweep of the men’s 200-meter finals as Usain Bolt wins an unprecedented double in the sprints in consecutive Olympics, and what does Yahoo find newsworthy? Blake’s watch.

Apparently wearing the custom made timepiece violated sponsorship regulations imposed by the Olympics organizers.  Wow! Stop the presses! We’ve got breaking news!

In politics, Yahoo features an AP story about negative advertising in the US presidential race. The AP writer is outraged not by the revelation that Mitt Romney was involved in a massive and notorious tax scandal but by the fact that the Obama campaign had the nerve to mention it.

Yahoo finds this indictment of the president so important that it plays it right next to “NJ mom sues after breast-feeding video lands on porn sites.”

Here’s how AP writer Devin Dwyer frames the story:

As he decries the negativity of campaign ads while on the stump in battleground states, President Obama should take a close look in the mirror. His campaign Thursday continued its vigorous pace of attacks on rival Mitt Romney, with a new TV ad alleging the presumptive GOP presidential nominee once participated in “one of the largest tax avoidance schemes in history.”

What will that Obama do next? Has the man no shame?

Just because Romney and his SuperPACs broadcast a blizzard of lies and edit the president’s videos to say the opposite of what he really said, does that justify ripping the scab off another Romney tax scandal?

Apparently not. Not in AP’s book.

I can’t believe the Associated Press is in Romney’s pocket. Or that Yahoo is in on the conspiracy. But OMG, is that an example of slanted reporting or what?

Photo above shows Blake, left, with Bolt being congratulated by jubilant fans.

Click here to view the “Son of Boss” ad.

Click here to read the CNN op-ed on which the ad is based.

About the author

gwgraeme

I am a Jamaican-born writer who has lived and worked in Canada and the United States. I live in Lakeland, Florida with my wife, Sandra, our three cats and two dogs. I like to play golf and enjoy our garden, even though it's a lot of work. Since retiring from newspaper reporting I've written a few books. I also write a monthly column for Jamaicans.com