The Carpetbagger Report
5.13.2008
The Summary: The Carpetbagger Report (http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/) is written by Steve Benen who is believed to be "the sole author of almost every liberal blog dealing with U.S. politics on the internet". In other words, he's incredibly prolific and incredibly credible. Rachel Maddow says The Carpetbagger Report is required reading for her show. So, there's good, solid reporting and analysis with a focus on liberal issues going on there.
The Good: Concise, well-documented, easy to read articles that are relevant and interesting.
The Less-Good: For someone who has worked in politics and in the media for as long as he has, you'd think Steve Benen would inject a bit more inane triviality into his work. But nope--it's pretty serious.
Accoutrements: Bare bones blog; decent and reasonably-sized comments sections; early and expert insight into political and media issues; some video.
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Posted byslag
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5/13/2008 06:54:00 PM
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Eschaton
4.23.2008
The Summary: Eschaton (atrios' blog) is a staple among progressive blogs. Having been around forever, Atrios has initiated phrases, such as Friedman Units, and events, such as Blog Amnesty Day (which now means the opposite of what he meant by it). Eschaton is big on politics, economics, and media commentary, and its proprietor, Atrios (aka Duncan Black), also works with Media Matters on said topics. Other participants on Eschaton include Echidne, Thers, and Molly Ivors.
The Good: Eschaton is a great way to filter and provide some perspective on the news. Also, some serious economics education is thrown in there from time to time.
The Less Good: Atrios' comments are often short, and his comment section is often long. Sometimes I want more blog to my blog. Also, the site design is...umm...lacking.
Accoutrements: Straight up blog with few frills. Noisy, noisy, noisy comments section. Political, media, economy silliness. Some video (mostly music).
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Posted byslag
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4/23/2008 10:09:00 AM
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Media Matters
3.26.2008
The Summary: Media Matters (http://mediamatters.org/) is a media watchdog group started by David Brock--a former member of the right wing noise machine. The site offers a lot of context for media stories in order to reveal bias. A great place to go for media fact-checking.
The Good: Presumably as a result of David Brock's extensive experience with conservative media, Media Matters is rife with interesting insight and surprising revelations.
The Less Good: Can be a little overwhelming.
Accoutrements: video, comments, media criticism, insider commentary, action center
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Posted byslag
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3/26/2008 03:16:00 PM
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Juan Cole's Informed Comment
The Summary: Juan Cole (http://www.juancole.com/) is THE place to go for Middle East insight and commentary. An academic, columnist, author, and blogger, Cole is also a Professor of History at the University of Michigan. Juan Cole contributes to Global Affairs and Napoleon's Egypt blogs.
The Good: Expert insight into Middle Eastern Affairs.
The Less Good: Very heavy on the wonk (indubitably). Can be a bit esoteric at times.
Accoutrements: Straightforward blog with few bells and whistles, historical and international expertise
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Posted byslag
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3/26/2008 02:29:00 PM
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bloggingheads.tv
The Summary: bloggingheads.tv (http://bloggingheads.tv/) offers video interviews between bloggers from across the ideological spectrum. Socio-political commentary from the likes of Robert Reich, Steve Scher, and Dahlia Lithwick. Also, there's a forum in which readers can participate.
The Good: It's teevee for people who prefer discourse to talking points.
The Less Good: Very low-fi. The blogging heads don't necessarily focus so much on presentation quality.
Accoutrements: video, forum, insider commentary
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Posted byslag
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3/26/2008 01:39:00 PM
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Daily Kos
The Summary: The Daily Kos (http://www.dailykos.com/) (aka the Great Orange Satan) is a cornerstone group liberal blog. Markos Moulitsas created it to be a partisan blog, but with the huge readership and level of participation, there's something for everyone at the Kos.
The Good: David Bender and others have called the Kos an essential read for liberals. There's a lot of in-depth analysis mixed in with a lot of straight-forward partisan ablution. A lot of high-end posters (campaign insiders, policy experts, and mainstream media members).
The Less Good: With the high level of participation comes a high level of noisemaking in comments sections. Also, it can feel like a commune if you get to close.
Accoutrements: group blog, embedded video, reader posts, comments sections get a lot of action (possibly too much), insider commentary
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Posted byslag
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3/26/2008 12:32:00 PM
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Crooks and Liars
3.25.2008
The Summary: Crooks and Liars (http://www.crooksandliars.com/) is one of the first, and still best, liberal video/media blogs around. A great source and referenced everywhere. John Amato started the blog and has since acquired some recurring guest-bloggers.
The Good: C&L is the best place to check out well-selected videos from cable television and elsewhere. Videos are sometimes funny and regularly informative.
The Less Good: The commenters on C&L are a rowdy bunch and sometimes unfocused. And posts lacking video often aren't as unique or valuable.
Accoutrements: video, audio
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Posted byslag
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3/25/2008 01:15:00 PM
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Digby's Blog (Hullabaloo)
The Summary: Digby's blog: Hullabaloo (http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/) offers broad insightful political commentary that is always informative and sometimes funny. Digby often tag-teams with Glenn Greenwald commenting on media, weak Democrats, and campaign strategies, and Hullabaloo offers posts from dday and tristero (no longer active blog) as well.
The Good: Good at making connections between culture, media, and politics and often offers some interesting historical context. I often think of Digby as the most "adult" of bloggers. Very even-keeled and well-grounded.
The Less Good: Can be maddeningly moderate at times.
Accoutrements: Bare-bones blog, no bells and whistles, reasonably active comment section
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Posted byslag
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3/25/2008 12:50:00 PM
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Firedoglake
The Summary: Firedoglake (http://firedoglake.com/) covers politics, media, and law and merges blogging with strategic action by posting online petitions and providing letter-to-the-editor tools for various issues. It also supports an ActBlue page with the intent of electing "more and better Democrats". Also hosts, Emptywheel, Tbog, and book salon blogs.
The Good: Very informative, action-oriented and featuring lots of diverse voices, including many female voices. A lot of participation and good comments.
The Less Good: I like FDL for its action efforts, civil liberties focus, and essential news, but sometimes, I honestly find the writing a little dry.
Accoutrements: insider commentary, action tools, strong community, comments section gets a lot of action
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Posted byslag
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3/25/2008 11:01:00 AM
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Glenn Greenwald's Unclaimed Territory
3.17.2008
The Summary: Reading Glenn Greenwald (http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/) is both a necessity and a pleasure. He's a lawyer who writes primarily about the intersection between constitutional law, the media, and politics. Often, Glenn joins forces with the folks at Firedoglake and others to promote pro-constitutional causes and media reform. In 2006, Glenn posted an About Glenn page, which responds to rightwing attacks on his person.
The Good: Fiercely logical, Glenn Greenwald combines analysis with passion (and sometimes a bit of humor) to explore the depths of issues that have long haunted us but, without Glenn and others like him, would barely see the light of day.
The Less Good: It's hard for me to criticize Greenwald because I almost always agree with him. I will say that, for some people, his highly analytical bent leads to questions about exactly where his loyalties lie. Personally, I've found that taking Glenn at his word (nothing more, nothing less) is really all one needs to do to avoid confusion.
Accoutrements: Bare-bones blog, no bells or whistles, sometimes embedded video, comments section gets a lot of action, not uber-communal, expert commentary (if not insider)
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Posted byslag
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3/17/2008 04:28:00 PM
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Talking Points Memo
3.13.2008
The Summary: Talking Points Memo (http://talkingpointsmemo.com/) is basic US-centric news heavy on liberal/progressive politics. As its name suggests, it either provides or links to a lot of the foundational information expounded upon throughout the day by lefty blogs. Subsections of Talking Points Memo (TPM) include Muckraker, Election Central, Cafe, and Horse's Mouth, most of the names of which are fairly self-explanatory. Horse's Mouth is Greg Sargent's blog, which has been technologically challenged ever since I can remember.
The Good: TPM has smart editors and even smarter reporters/contributers/readers whose powers combine to bring out the essential crux of a given story. Winner of the 2007 Polk Award for Legal Reporting for connecting the dots on the politically motivated attorney firings that contributed to the ouster of Alberto Gonzales.
The Less Good: Very testosterone-heavy, TPM can come off as a bit of a boys' club. Even in the TPM Approved Sites, nary a female voice to be found. If diversity is the spice of life, TPM is fairly bland.
Accoutrements: some video, reader posts, insider commentary
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Posted byslag
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3/13/2008 03:49:00 PM
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