A Slobbering Love Affair: The True (and Pathetic) Story of the Torrid Romance Between Barack Obama and the Mainstream Media

The author does an excellent job of showing how the mainstream media worked to make sure that history would be made, by electing the first black president. And how they had come to dislike both the Bush administration but also Senator McCain who was to old for their tastes. Even how they treated Governor Palin, who being from a big state but also a rural state to most Americans was made of fun of, because she didnt boast of what newspapers, magazines or news shows she read or watched. Never mind that she ran/runs a state with more employees and a budget on par with many Fortune 500 businesses. Never mind she wasnt a snob or insider. They didnt understand her, so they dismissed her. Instead the media had two plus years of listening to a well spoken candidate who like them, was educated at an Ivy League university. As the author shows, the same media never spent much time asking how someone who hadnt even been a Senator for two years was at all qualified. Or how could someone from Chicago politics be seen as honest. And in light of all the recent news stories about the Governor of IL, one wonders if any of these same media folks have any second thoughts. We have Dish Network and until November we had CNN and MSNBC, but changed the plan we had, since we simply got tired of people like Chris Matthews talking about how his leg felt when he heard then Senator Obama speak. Same with Anderson and others on CNN, who couldnt hide their belief that Senator Obama was the second coming of Christ. As a Libertarian I expect the news to report NOT make the news. Not try and sway viewers, but simply report in context, what the candidates say.24/7 cable news has so much time to fill that they often fill dead air time with useless banter. When I see a news person from NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, PBS, MSNBC whom I am told works for the news division, banter on about their personal views on ANY candidate, they lose any unbiased credibilty with me. Maybe this is why revenues are down?

I got Bernie Goldberg's new book yesterday, and read it with great enjoyment. Today, I heard him on the Michael Medved show, as he had to deal with an incredible array of rude, boorish, and poorly informed callers. Wow, did he hit a nerve This book is not an attack on President Obama. What the book does attack is the media, the silly, slavish followers of Obama who did all they could to shape public opinion, and get their man elected. No candidate has ever had the free ride Obama got. The media had a basic rule-----Barrack Obama can do no wrong. I particularly liked the chapters on Chris Matthews and Keith Olberman. I have never seen any media figures act the way those two did during the election. It went beyond a "man crush." They were nothing but shills and salesmen for their candidate. Some of their statements were pathetic. Others , many others, were worse than pathetic. Olberman, in particular, came across as a nasty little weasel, a mean spirited partisan who shed all vestiges of decency. I came away liking Bernie Goldberg even more than I did after I read his other books. He is fun, funny, and a shrewd observer of the way the media works----or, in this case, works for Obama. The entire campaign made my blood boil. Going through the book brought it back again, as I cringed at the treatment of Sarah Paliln and "Joe the Plumber." I like this book. I think it has a lot to say in a small number of pages. Highly recommended.

Without a doubt, the presidential campaign and election of 2008 was a historical time of our lives. I don't hide the fact that I favor small government and believe the president's ultimate responsibility is to keep us safe - trademark characteristics of someone who leans right on the political spectrum. I am also one who relies on the media to keep me informed and regardless of one's politics, you had to be comatose or dead not to clearly see the biased reporting throughout this campaign, all in the mission to ensure Mr. Obama would be elected. As the weeks and months went on, I couldn't believe my ears and anxiously awaited a book covering what I view as the epitome of irresponsible journalism. Bernie Goldberg absolutely nailed it - from this book's title "A Slobbering Love Affair," to the thought-provoking contents, he managed to crystalize the thoughts that had been festering in my mind for more than 12 months. After the initial pages, I was hooked reading some of the quotes from Chris Matthews... After Obama swept what was called "The Potomac Primary," winning Maryland, Virginia and Washington DC on the same night, he gave a victory speech when Matthews blurted out: "I felt this thrill going up my leg." When Obama won the Iowa caucus a month earlier, Matthews was a guest on the Tonight Show and said to Jay Leno, "If you're actually in the room when Obama gives one of his speeches and you don't cry, you're not an American." One more quote from this same appearance on the Tonight Show is as follows: "Barack and Michelle Obama are cool people. They are really cool. They're Jack and Jackie Kennedy when you see them together. They are cool. And they're great looking and they're cool... Everything seems to be great. I know I'm selling him now. I'm not supposed to sell." I'm not sure what planet Chris Matthews is from but that is just a taste of what you will read in "A Slobbering Love Affair." Bernie, this book is great and you'll notice the 5 star rating I gave you... If there were 6 stars to give, I would have done that for this is a classic read and as funny as it is, the fact that unbiased journalism can no longer be expected is an unfortunate drawback that will affect all of us. With consideration for the blatant examples of one sided reporting, the only thing missing from this book is the inclusion of a little sickness bag with every sale. That would have been a nice touch as there were times I needed one. Thank you for writing this book, Bernie - I loved it!

I listen to talk radio, watch tv news (not just FOX) and read presses (online and print). This was easy to understand for me, but this is not why it got a 5. Why it got a 5 is that Bernard Goldberg took his book Bias and put it up to the next level, being specific and showing the devolution of the mainstream/drive-by media. Everything someone who was attentive to the campaign knew is put in a way that makes him/her feel like this is the first time learning about it. For those who do not know what media bias really is, do read this book... I got an early copy of this book somehow, and I finished it in 2 days (which is NOT normal for me...)