Giving the media a bad name

If you are ever looking for someone who lends the word “elite” to “media,” then look no further than Andrea Mitchell.

On the June 5 edition of MSNBC Live Mitchell said some negative things about the people of Bristol, Virginia.

She was referencing an appearance by Sen. Barack Obama in Bristol and used these words to describe the area:

“This is real redneck, sort of, bordering on Appalachia country,” she said. “This is not the Northern Virginia, you know, sort of high-tech corridor. And these are voters that he would not logically be, you know, gravitating to.”

Besides the number of times Mitchell, a supposedly well-spoken, intelligent news anchor, said “you know,” there are a number of problems with her statement.

First of all, shouldn’t the aforementioned, “well-spoken, intelligent news anchor,” try to avoid spreading stereotypes on the news? Isn’t the news supposed to be about reporting the facts? Instead, she
basically spouted off disparaging remarks about an an entire area of people.

Second of all, her remarks are not just an insult to the people of Bristol. No, she managed to insult two regions in a single blow. Not only is she comparing Bristol to Appalachia in a negative way, but
inherent in her statement is the idea that there is something wrong with being from Appalachia.

After hearing her remarks, you would be excused if you were from Bristol or Appalachia and found yourself feeling less than whole. Evidently, to Andrea Mitchell, you are a redneck and someone whom
Barack Obama would not, “logically be, you know, gravitating to.”

Finally, Mitchell is simply reinforcing the stereotype of the “elite media.”

The stereotype is that the “elite media” looks down upon the typical American — you know, the kind you might find in Bristol, Virginia, for example.

Well, if there is an elite media, Mitchell is a member. For a well-known “talking head,” she is surprisingly careless with her words.