tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post5009428999546062290..comments2023-10-16T07:13:12.123-05:00Comments on A plain blog about politics: Catch of the DayJonathan Bernsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-6168346763534023062013-02-13T13:53:14.808-06:002013-02-13T13:53:14.808-06:00Yes -- which is disappointing since it's part ...Yes -- which is disappointing since it's part of the brand new TNR. Jonathan Bernsteinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-81176741476517441472013-02-13T13:37:12.525-06:002013-02-13T13:37:12.525-06:00Agree, and I'm not even a huge fan of Ezra and...Agree, and I'm not even a huge fan of Ezra and crews technocratic neoliberalism.<br /><br />The thing I disagree with Ezra is his characterization of himself as non-ideological and purely driven by undercurrents of data. It is impossible to evaluate the efficiency of a program without knowing the end goal. The end goal can only be determined by idelogical.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-72761864255605138682013-02-13T12:50:32.460-06:002013-02-13T12:50:32.460-06:00I think the difference between DeLong's questi...I think the difference between DeLong's questions and Ioffe's profile kind of match up with the differences between Wonkblog and the conventional media. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-54084688504500624942013-02-13T08:01:53.412-06:002013-02-13T08:01:53.412-06:00I'm fine with Ezra, but if that's what he ...I'm fine with Ezra, but if that's what he thinks I'd disagree with him there. Brooks' presentation of his opponents' arguments is almost always misguided and foolish. So if he's explaining them in a way that people think something misguided and foolish is actually accurate and sensible, well, I don't think that's a good thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-78278595069821002532013-02-12T12:37:57.513-06:002013-02-12T12:37:57.513-06:00It's important to note why Ezra Klein admires ...It's important to note why Ezra Klein admires Brooks at this point in time: not for his logic or for his viewpoints, but because he is able to write column inches that present the opposing argument in a way that people can grasp.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-55733711462496217272013-02-12T12:35:28.616-06:002013-02-12T12:35:28.616-06:00One could group the l'enfant terrible Nate Sil...One could group the l'enfant terrible Nate Silver in with Klein and his kind.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-89912152616861324952013-02-12T12:30:33.975-06:002013-02-12T12:30:33.975-06:00Agreed. I think the binary of "politics vs po...Agreed. I think the binary of "politics vs policy" is deeply pernicious.<br /><br />A standard leftist critique of Klein's journalism is that it lacks "a theory of politics" by being too focused on "technocratic," "wonky" substance and not attuned to the way in which political interests struggle within the framing and choices embedded in policy models and their presentation before mass audiences. I do think there's something to that critique, suggesting Klein's occasional and partly systematic blindspots around strategy, mobilization, and political economy.<br /><br />BUT Klein's journalistic enterprise has a much more well developed understanding of politics than does the Politico/Buzzfeed/Sunday-morning/cable-news coverage *precisely* because he focuses substantively on policies and on political actors' and parties' preferences. That's essential for understanding politics. Because other journalists don't pay due attention to this, or even actively report inaccurate policy information, they wind up producing coverage of politicians and parties that is misleading and anti-informative.PFhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00263515090451316188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-37200875102655139742013-02-12T12:23:45.245-06:002013-02-12T12:23:45.245-06:00Isn't it interesting that new model Ezra Klein...Isn't it interesting that new model Ezra Klein takes David Brooks as a role model? I thought it was, and I think the way that Klein has moved into Beltway respectability is actually worth delving into. Johnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-20292001662225487372013-02-12T12:19:23.858-06:002013-02-12T12:19:23.858-06:00The weird thing about it to me is that it's no...The weird thing about it to me is that it's not like The New Republic is allergic to the kind of work that Ezra Klein is doing. If I'm not mistaken, Brad Plumer went to Wonkblog from being an assistant editor at TNR, and Jonathan Cohn's blogging about health care has been very much in line with Ezra's.<br /><br />It seems to me like the most interesting split in new forms of political journalism over the past few years has been the Politico/BuzzFeed model - determining that the way to increase the marketing share is by "winning the morning" and producing click bait - versus the Wonkblog model, which figures that there is a real untapped market for intelligent policy analysis that isn't personality or narrative driven. I think the most interesting thing about Ezra Klein's rise is that he made it happen by trusting the intelligence and intellectual curiousity of his audience.Aidannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-27639622401343571202013-02-12T12:03:45.872-06:002013-02-12T12:03:45.872-06:00I completely agree.I completely agree.Aidannoreply@blogger.com