20 Comments

I keep crying. It's as though a close friend has died. Eric's blog was the first one I ever signed up for, and it was because I got so frustrated from reading biased and poorly written journalism. There he was, reading my mind, who can resist that? What will we do without him, all of us loyal readers and commenters (and the comments were what made it all so special). Eric was a truth teller, a man with a keen lens through which he could see bias and dishonesty with 20/20 vision, yet he also treated us to his favorite music with every post.

Mr. Fallows, thank you for "framing" Eric in this kind, respectful post. We will always remember Eric Boehlert with love.

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Marycat I share your feelings about losing Eric and how great his newsletters and the comments were.

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I can't stop tearing up. Perhaps ironically, there are hundreds of beautiful comments in Eric's memory below WaPo's piece related to his death. I think he'd love that, and he'd have a few things to say about some of the other articles on their website today. Everything I read reminds me of him.

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Heartbroken over Eric’s death, for his family, friends, and for those of us in a community that followed him and PressRun regularly (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays won’t ever be the same) has allowed us to keep our sanity and morale up, an honest to goodness patriot. Eric was a courageous, unrelenting truth teller, one of a kind. His loss is a tragedy for media mores,(ab -) norms. Thank you Jim Fallows, for your memoriam and for your important voice.

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Thank you. It is shocking to think that we won't have his steady voice and presence. Let us hope his example inspires even more people to weigh in.

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Thank you for this article. I am devastated by Eric’s death. I have been reading him since the early 2000s and he has helped me keep my sanity. I will greatly miss his frequent columns.

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Yes, I agree. Thank you.

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Along the same lines as the Portnoy exchange, toward the beginning of March, a heart-wrenching clip was played on TV over and over of four civilians, including a family of three, killed by mortar fire while trying to escape Kyiv. On CNN, Anderson Cooper asked Senator Chris Murphy whether the attack justified imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine. When Murphy said it didn't, Cooper pressed him. Murphy didn't minimize the atrocities being committed. But he was crystal clear in his defense of Biden Administration policy. I thought Cooper was above this kind of baiting, and felt disappointed in him.

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I did not see that but will look it up. I agree that A Cooper usually resists that sort of approach.

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Thank you for noting Boehlert's death. So very tragic for his family - and for all who cared about keeping journalists accountable. In time, I'd be most appreciative if you, Jim, would share thoughts on journalists who embrace Boehlert's fearlessness and dedication to honest journalism.

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Thank you. I've done so piecemeal but will do a more concentrated update. I appreciate it

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Excellent post, even better than usual, and thank you for dedicating it to Eric Boehlert. I am a huge Press Run fan, never miss one and share them, and am shocked and deeply saddened by his sudden passing. May his memory be a blessing.

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Thank you. This is an enormous loss for his family most of all, but for the reading public and for America's civic prospects. As mentioned above, more for everyone else to do, in his example.

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Hi Jim - I read Breaking the News when you published it. It's good to be reminded of these failures of the media, which seem to only have become worse since your book came out. I'd be very interested in your critique of media coverage of the climate emergency. Why has the media failed to convey the urgency and enormity of the problem? Why do we still have hundreds of stories about gas prices and the energy market disruptions of the Russian invasion that don't also discuss the imperative of a rapid end to the fossil fuel era? Why do even seemingly progressive outfits like MSNBC give this existential challenge so little air time? Perhaps you will tackle these questions in a future column--or if you have already written on this and I missed it, please point me to it! Thanks

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Why has the media forgotten that Jimmy Carter put us on a path to energy independence by increasing not only efficiency but also green energy technology? Could it be because the media disdained Carter as joke, just a lowly “peanut farmer” from nowheresville Georgia? In contrast most of the political press swooned over Reagan, the glamorous Hollywood actor and still hold him in much greater esteem than Carter.

Jonathan Alter’s recent biography of Carter debunks the media narrative that Carter was a filed president by detailing his many accomplishments — and not only in the area of energy independence. Carter also did a lot to increase transparency and accountability in our government. It was Carter who created the position of inspectors general and implemented ethics policies. His almost forgotten Camp David accords were a huge foreign policy accomplishment.

You know the media coverage of Carter had to have been badly skewed if a prominent journalist like Alter was surprised to realize just how effective a president Carter had been. I suspect the fact that that book makes the media look bad explains why there has been so little coverage given to Alter’s book.

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These are all good points, which I say not in a pro-forma way but in the sense of "adding them to the list, for serious treatment as soon as I can manage." Thank you. Agree about Jon Alter's very good book.

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Regarding #1: The best simple description of the economy is the good old "misery index"--the sum of the inflation and unemployment rates--which has been a surprisingly accurate indicator since the 1960s. It's currently above 10, i.e., uncomfortable, but well short of past peaks. See https://inflationdata.com/articles/misery-index/ and https://wraltechwire.com/2022/02/08/revisiting-the-misery-index/ for more on this topic.

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Thanks, yes, I well recall the "misery index" days! Because inflation was *so* high in the late 1970s/early 1980s, it was in the 20+ range when Carter was running for re-election. (The prime rate at one point hit 21% at the time Teddy Kennedy was challenging him in the primaries.)

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Thank you for honoring Eric Boehlert today. I am (was?) a subscriber to his Press Run and appreciated his critical thinking and insights, as well as his "good stuff." I will miss him. Thank you.

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Thank you; I appreciate it.

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