USA Today invited Michael Moore to be a “correspondent” at the GOP convention, but now they’re surprised that he’s become a disruptive figure. Would they be surprised if they chose Ariel Sharon to be a correspondent at the Palestian legislative assembly and there was a ruckus there?
And while the media are all running around, following Moore in a huge scrum, a convention happened to be going on nearby. Oh yeah, the reporters are supposed to be reporting on that, aren’t they?
Actually, it looks like the media got divided into two groups: serious political reporters who could not care less about Moore’s appearance and the papparazzi who like to chase celebrities.
It quickly became a crowd-control issue, and officials began trying to corral the unruly scribes. “You were told to stop,” shouted one police officer as reporters tried to break through his hallway cordon. “If you don’t, I can arrest you.” This set off grumbling in the mob, with several reporters asserting their sacred First Amendment right to chase a celebrity through the corridors of a sports arena. ...
Finally, after starts and stops lasting almost a half-hour, Moore sat down in the press section inside the arena, where the convention was in progress. But working reporters fumed at those who had collected around Moore. “I’m Dave Espo and I work for the Associated Press,” a veteran reporter thundered to the police. “This is our work space and we need to get our work done. Please get these people out of here!”
And then what does Moore do? He flashes the “Loser” sign at John McCain, a decorated war veteran and former POW and a US Senator, in full view of everyone in the place. Good going, USA Today. Didn’t they teach you in Journalism 101 that your job is to report the news, not make the news?
