The towel-slapping, anti-woman frat boys (plus Andrea Mitchell) over at MSNBC just had their bells rung by the political equivalent of a punishing Michael Strahan sack. Not only does David Shuster face an indefinite suspension for his boorish "pimped out" remark about Chelsea Clinton. Not only has the network had to apologize multiple times to the candidate its talking heads openly despise and root against (see Olbermann's best special comment of the year, above). Not only does it put Chris Matthews and his gang of Clinton haters on public double probation. But the pimping out moment does something else as well.
It turns the momentum in the all-important Media Primary.
For the very first time in this year-long marathon, Hillary Clinton has turned back the swelling, snarling, sexist media beast like Gandalf confronting the Balrog.
The Shuster lockerrom moment was a tipping point in this battle with the media for the Clinton campaign, an opening to jab a killing spear into the gut of the snarling beast, and an absolutely justifiable reason for a counter-attack. And who better than Senator Clinton to play hope-a-dope against the slugging combination of a misogynist media and the grinning Obama camp, so happy to benefit from the sexism. Softened up by Howard Wolfson, MSNBC's boys club (plus Andrea Mitchell) lay open to the blow:
“I found the remarks incredibly offensive,” Clinton told reporters in this snowy town outside Bangor. Earlier, she sent a letter to NBC brass that called for swift action against Shuster, who was suspended Friday by MSNBC.
“Nothing justifies the kind of debasing language that David Shuster used and no temporary suspension or half-hearted apology is sufficient,” Clinton wrote to NBC News President Steve Capus, who apparently had already called Clinton to personally apologize. “I would urge you to look at the pattern of behavior on your network that seems to repeatedly lead to this sort of degrading language,” Clinton wrote. “There’s a lot at stake for our country in this election. Surely, you can do your jobs as journalists and commentators and still keep the discourse civil and appropriate.”
Brilliant - righteous anger mixed with great tactics, and you can hear the cheers all over the battlefield. With individual donations raining in on the Clinton campaign in record numbers - more than $9 million over the past few days from 90,000 new donors - and a newly-activated army of women who don't want to wait another decade or another century to break the highest glass ceiling in the land, the story has changed. Yes, Senator Obama is likely to win this weekend and Tuesday night on the back of his momentum from Super Tuesday. But unlike before, there's a new grassroots army in the field now. And they're poised to strike.
Over at MyDD, Alegre rightly suggests that MSNBC's behavior has activated Hillary Clinton's base - that their boorishness is now costing their favorite candidate votes. Oh, and as Melissa McEwen notes, the powerful grassroots feminist groups Emily's List has thrown all in with Cinton, in reaction to the media sexism - like the "She Devil" graphics on Matthews' Hardball hatefest.
And talk about validation - when Ann Althouse headlines a post "MSNBC Wimped Out over Pimped Out," well, it's the equivalent of the lone runner arriving from Marathon to announce your victory.
UPDATE: Matthew Yglesias sees an Obama backlash coming, after the media spins back from bashing Clinton, lo these many months:
Predictions are a mug's game, but I was right about the Super Bowl, so I thought I might go on record with mine. I think Hillary Clinton's going to win this thing. I think the college educated men who dominate punditland have spent a lot of time missing the fact that there actually are enthusiastic Clinton fans out there -- they're just mostly working class women and thus mostly not in the room when this CW gets hashed out. On top of that, I think Clinton's succeeded in managing the expectations savvily. If she wins anywhere at all between now and March 4, that counts as a win for her, then Ohio is mildly favorable ground for her and Texas is extremely favorable ground. That, I think, will seal it for her as the anti-Obama backlash brewing in the press hits full stride.
from Amazon.
