All you have to do is watch the US TV news networks or read an American newspaper or website right now, and President Biden is the superhero for whom the country has long been waiting. The cold, hard eyes of the press no longer stare at the White House. They’re filled with love, almost tearful.
And this Biden bloke could get away with anything. He could take a naked power nap with an inflatable nurse on the South Lawn and the news networks would switch off their live feeds and pretend it wasn’t happening. Bugger the ratings boost they’d receive.
Saint Joe is now 78 years old – the oldest incumbent the Oval Office has ever seen. The Resolute Desk has an old man sitting at it who is resolutely part of the political establishment. And he has been for almost 50 years. There isn’t actually anything new to say about Saint Joe. He’s Irish, he’s Catholic, he has suffered awful personal tragedies. You know all this already.
Call me old-fashioned, but I thought the core purpose of being a journalist was to hold power to account? Even if you like the guy. It’s actually even more important if you like the guy, because those personal feelings can blind you to the facts. It’s your job.
Public relations, though, that’s an entirely different trade. Drink more cola. Pump more gas. Eat more fast food. My toothpaste is better than theirs, etc.
Almost the entire news machine in the US has become a public relations operation for President Joseph R. Biden. ‘State media’, so often lambasted as utterly fawning by the American press, would be red-faced in shame. Chairman Mao would be well pleased.
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