Watched fifteen minutes of @Morning_Joe today and it got me thinking about the difference between analysts, pundits, hacks, and propagandists and why we need a lot more analysts in our public political discourse. They are the rarest of the breeds.
.@Morning_Joe is largely populated by pundits. Pundits are people paid for opinions that appear to be rooted in analysis, but are largely spouting rationales for their a priori beliefs. The @NYTimesOpEd page is pundit heavy: Friedman, Brooks, Dowd, all pundits.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd Bret Stephens has some traits of a pundit, but he is, in reality, a hack. A hack is a partisan who attempts a sheen of analytical rigor, but is, in reality, a hack. Hugh Hewitt is the most obvious (and odious) example of a hack. That he gets treated like an analyst is a disgrace.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd Propagandists are obvious. Rush, Hannity, et al. They're not worth thinking about except as examples to highlight the M.O. of hacks. Marc Thiessen at WaPo is a hack, not a propagandist because he makes the moves of an analyst. He's not a pundit because his arguments are so bad.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd Almost all ex-politicians are hacks (Rick Santorum), though some (Rahm Emmanuel) carry the sheen of punditry. That's all B.S., though. Political consultants divide between hacks and pundits with some edging toward analyst. Carville = Hack. Axelrod = pundit/occasional analyst
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd There are, to my knowledge, almost zero non-White pundits. Maybe Van Jones. To carve space in the media political opinion ecosphere, non-white people need to be analysts or hacks. @esglaude is an analyst. @AnandWrites is an analyst.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites To be non-white and write for important cultural institutions means you have to be an analyst. Jamelle Bouie, @AdamSerwer, Michelle Alexander, all analysts. White guy hacks (Sullivan, Chait, et al), can secure sinecures without trouble.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer Frank Bruni is a pundit with occasional fits of analyst. Ross Douthat is an analyst. A weird one, but one nonetheless. Friedersdorf presents as an analyst, but deep down, he's a hack. Just about everyone else Fox is a propagandist, while CNN is almost all pundits, few analysts.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer Identifying an analyst is relatively easy. They cite evidence. They seek nuance and they have specific claims underneath a larger thesis that are capable of being evaluated. It is very difficult to productively argue with a pundit because they don't give anything to latch onto.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer Analysts still convey opinions, but they are flexible and nuanced thinkers. They will admit uncertainty and issue appropriate caveats. Their goal is to better understand the world. A pundit's fundamental goal is to shape the world to their liking underneath a scrim of argument.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer Thomas Friedman's most recent op-ed touting some kind of bizarre "unity ticket" is a perfect example of punditry. It is, in reality, deeply stupid political analysis, but he's trying to shape opinion, not truly analyze the world. nytimes.com/2020/02/25/opi…
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer In contrast is @jbouie's most recent column which explores current political undercurrents through an analysis of our political history. It is literally illuminating. Friedman's piece, on the other hand, makes us collectively dumber. nytimes.com/2020/02/21/opi…
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer @jbouie I don't think networks like CNN or MSNBC either understand or care about the distinction between analysts and pundits. MSNBC saying they'd get more Sanders people on the air to counteract their hosts like Chris Matthews isn't a remedy. More pundits or hacks isn't helpful.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer @jbouie MSNBC has a guy in @AnandWrites who models analysis, carefully and cogently explaining why Bernie Sanders has political appeal. Find more people like him, fewer like Donnie Deutsch.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer @jbouie I had an off Twitter question about people like Chris Cillizza. Clearly not an analyst. Not quite a pundit. Not necessarily a hack because his stupidity is bipartisan. Had to come up with another category: barker. Cillizza is a barker, a pure noisemaker to drum up attention.
@Morning_Joe @NYTimesOpEd @esglaude @AnandWrites @AdamSerwer @jbouie You know where you can find good analysts? Late night comedians. Trevor Noah, Colbert, John Oliver, Sam Bee, Hassan Minhaj, all very solid analysts. Bill Maher is a pundit, though.
