One of the things many conservatives admire about CNN's Jake Tapper is his willingness to speak truths typically too inconvenient for most in his industry.
During an "Ask Me Anything" discussion on Reddit Wednesday, Tapper not only acknowledged the existence of media bias, he also said "White House press briefings are quite often useless":
JELLHEAD: Hey Jake! You seem to be seen by conservatives as the one non-Fox mainstream anchor bucking the pro-liberal bias in the media. Why do you think this is?
I personally don't see you as significantly more conservative than other anchors except on the issue of abortion, where I think there's the biggest tendency by the media to skew overwhelmingly liberal and ignore the pro-life side. Unlike every other mainstream journalist, you covered the Kermit Gosnell case from very early on, why was that and do you think that's a major factor in why people have this perception?
JAKE TAPPER: I try to be fair and consider as many points of view as possible. I can't really speak to other reporters, but I don't think conservative fans think I share their belief system necessarily, they just think I'm fair and tough on everyone. (I hope liberal fans think the same thing.) I do wonder how I would be perceived by conservatives if I had been a member of the Bush White House press corps. [...]
BUNKNOWN: Do you believe there is bias in mainstream media? If yes, which way does it slant and which networks? Thank you. If the answer is yes, why?
TAPPER: Yes I do but I also think it's more complicated than just liberal bias. I think there are a lot of hard-working reporters in NYC and DC who have never fired a gun, or never worked a 9-5 manual labor job, or lived in the middle of the country, or worried about their next paycheck, or have anyone in their family who serves in the military and I think that creates a cultural bias. But I also think there are a lot of reporters who work to counter that and understand the limitations of their own realities. But yes, I do think there is bias. Reluctant to name names though because I try to be collegial.
Tapper also had an interesting take on press briefings:
BIGCAT9000; How does it feel having to ask people like Jay Carney questions when you know they are essentially there to make the administration look good at all costs? Do you ever feel the desire to jump up to the podium and tell him to cut the s--t?
TAPPER: The White House press briefings are quite often useless. The spokespeople are there to not make news. I get a lot more reporting done away from cameras, at least when it comes to the White House. I have never had the desire to jump up to the podium, and I will leave the second part of your sentence dangling there enticingly.
Actually, I bet a lot of you wish Tapper would have answered the last part of that question despite the vulgarity.
(HT TVNewser)
