On Sep 8, 2009, at 4:04 PM, Dennis Perrin wrote:
> As Noam has suggested, and I think that O'R and others largely
> prove, inviting dissidents to appear on camera while maintaining
> existing media filters is an effective way to discredit dissent.
> O'R's not interested in "genuine engagement" -- he's tossing red
> meat to his audience, as any serious entertainer would. Watch some
> of Bob Hope's Vietnam shows to see a more extreme version of this.
How's that? O'Reilly has spirited arguments with his guests. If they're good at it, they can give him a run for his money - of course, you have to be aggressive and resist his talking over you. But allowing people to speak their minds on TV - how exactly does that discredit dissent?