Given how the media has permuted the meanings of the words 'conservative' and 'liberal' and how such now seems to be extending that same dissonance regarding 'populism', this is excellent journalism as it is a timely discussion concerning 'populism' with someone who is a highly respected author and historian regarding the subject matter.

Average journalism because of the use of phrases like "followed by seven years of Bush's overt hostility toward the lower 98 percent of Americans who aren't part of his base."; one, Bush's 'base' consists of more than 2% of american's and two, the issue goes beyond a singular individual. It could have been a much better piece of journalism if had pointed out the impact of the Supreme Court decision in First National Bank of Boston versus Bellotti, in 1978 and Thom Hartmann's ... More »

Because it portrays the complete cycle from obtaining to discarding of 'stuff' in a easily understood format, it is excellent journalism.

Average journalism because of the use of phrases like "followed by seven years of Bush's overt hostility toward the lower 98 percent of Americans who aren't part of his base."; one, Bush's 'base' consists of more than 2% of american's and two, the issue goes beyond a singular individual. It could have been a much better piece of journalism if had pointed out the impact of the Supreme Court decision in First National Bank of Boston versus Bellotti, in 1978 and Thom Hartmann's 'Unequal ... More »

"We take people to the top of the mountain and then once we get them to the top of the mountain, it's our job to knock them down," Gloria Borger of CBS said in 2006."--- says it all about how the media seek to tell American's what to think. The book 'McCain: The myth of a maverick' does an excellent job of 'fleshing out' this article.

Excellent journalism as it provides what the mainstream media is unwilling to and is well written as well as sourced. Another example the author could have provided is "One of three sewage treatment plants is out of commission, one is working at stuttering capacity while a pipe blockage in the third means sewage is forming a foul lake so large it can be seen "as a big black spot on Google Earth," said Tahseen Sheikhly, civilian spokesman for the Baghdad security plan."

Excellent journalism; well sourced, written,and investigated(even though the DOD can only say they 'dispute' the remarks by Davis). "'Wait a minute, we can't have acquittals. If we've been holding these guys for so long, how can we explain letting them get off? We can't have acquittals, we've got to have convictions.'"---says all that that needs to be said about the military 'tribunals'.

excellent journalism; well sourced,written, and balanced. ". Flossman says all data regarding the placement of the fence is classified because "you don't want to tell the very people you're trying to keep from coming across the methodology used to deter them."--- is about as good bovine excrement as one will ever find.

In that the article brings attention to "A weird new tactic is highlighting the troubling extent to which the news media fails to hold our elected officials accountable." it is good journalism. However, pointing ouit a problem without offering solutions or providing an idea of how the problem came to be (such as the 1996 Telecommunications Act signed by Clinton) is not 'good journalism'.

Only weakness in this article is that this issue exists all over the world, not just Africa.

Given how China has become integral to the world and in particular the United States(as exemplified by the Dept.of Defense voiced concerns about China military spending(really, they did, despite the Pentagon having a budget over 10 times that which China spends on 'defense')) and how little real journalism about China sees the light of day in the mainstream media, this is excellent journalism.

This article shows how business puts itself above citizen concerns, as exemplified by "Only one GM crop is approved for cultivation in Europe, an insect-resistant maize, which is grown on about 110,000 hectares in member states."

Another snapshot of what has been wrought in Iraq and which the mainstream media does not want to report on. It's even worse when the refugees are considered.

NO mention is made of how the nuclear industry has lobbied regards the 'energy bill', no mention of the connections Presidential candidates have with the nuclear industry, no mention of legislative efforts to address the 'Judgment Fund', and several points that could be made makes this story average journalism.

This is not good journalism as it 'fails to connect the dots' that will be result of the following quotes. "In part, he says, manufacturers see moves such as the job buyouts as "a path for them to become low-cost producers by eliminating the high costs of American labor." "Now, in this industry at least, the tough times could even lead to downward pressure on wages in nonunion factories owned by Toyota, Honda, and other foreign firms that operate in the US. "I think you'll see a ... More »

Industry rag reporting says it all; the subject is very important but the article isn't.

Excellent journalism in that it provides a wider perspective than what most media focus on when reporting about Iraq, is well written, personally experienced, and alerts the reader to issues that will be confronting the U.S. and the next President in efforts to manage an human relations disaster.

Excellent journalism as it is timely, very well sourced, and is pertinent to the current debate regarding warrantless wire tapping.

Poor journalism simply because of the phraseology 'a key victory for the White House'; there is so much more to this story that this article actually does a disservice to readers. Junk journalism.

Geez, this worked in Afghanistan for awhile, why not in Iraq? This article shows the quandary that borders on civil war U.S. troops have been subjected to; it is not providing greater context that this article fails to achieve excellent journalism.

As an opinion piece, the article is 'good journalism' as it seeks to provide information and propound a viewpoint. An example would be the information: "If proper U.S. military counter-insurgency doctrine were followed, McNeill admitted, the U.S. and NATO would need 400,000 troops to defeat Pashtun tribal resistance in Afghanistan." (which received negligible coverage in the U.S. mass media) and contrasted it to the Soviets war in Afghanistan. It was also reported elsewhere that ... More »

Good journalism as it brings to the forefront how the 'surge''s 'accomplishments' have been gained and how such are not permanent; "And hidden behind the blast walls and barbed wire, people say, the unresolved issues of the past brutal five years linger." How does a country that fostered a civil war in a country other than itself deal with that civil war? is the question not asked by the article and should have been at least summarily addressed.

The Economist seems to have a penchant for providing reports that are little more than 'sound bites'. For instance "Second, there are plenty of short-term investors these days, many of whom invest with borrowed money and must cut positions quickly when prices move against them." ; those type of accounts in markets are called 'traders', not 'investors'. And the author doesn't even mention the trading programs of institutionalized 'investors' and how they affect the markets.

Excellent journalism; well sourced and informing on a subject that should be in the forefront of everyone's thoughts,especially now that the coal gasification project has been scrapped and Wall Street has decided to withhold funding of new coal power plants. This part "As Andrew Simms of the New Economics Foundation told BBC News (11/29/05), another “dirty little secret” of nuclear power is that “startlingly, there’s only a few decades left of the proven high-grade uranium ore it ... More »

Good journalism because it brings attention to an area most voters don't consider, namely those that are actually participating in 'party' politics. Excellent choice of title but the author could have mentioned who and how such 'super delegates' are picked and how they are influenced,e.g. what does Senator Kennedy's endorsement of Obama mean in terms of super delegates? Or does endorsements from differing levels affect super delegates,e.g., does the endorsement by a major city mayor ... More »

The interview of the author of a book that provides other than campaign or media information is excellent journalism as it provides the public a very good insight into the leading Republican candidate for the next Presidential election.

Not good journalism because the op-ed is almost 13 years old; what was the NYT thinking?

Again, 'THE' financial' newspaper doesn't provide a full picture associated with the subject. This "What is earth-shakingly different between now and two years ago is the focus on CO2," says Eric Fornell, vice chairman of J.P. Morgan's natural-resources banking division." is but one example, meaning it neglects to mention the Bush Administration going back on it's campaign statements by removing CO2 from it's environmental standards and how that was tied to Cheney's task force and ... More »

It's good journalism as it brings to a mass audience the issues currently being legislated in the U.S. Senate. I would take exception to "With presidential campaigns dominating the attention of most politicos, a key fight in Congress is going practically unnoticed. "; it's only the mass media like NewsWeek where the issue is 'practically unnoticed".

The author does a good job of summarizing the books referenced and presenting an overall view. This quote from one of the books "It is well described by Sylvain Cypel, a French observer and editor of Le Monde, who spent many years in Israel, in his insightful book Walled: Israeli Society at an Impasse. He writes, "The occupation automatically reinforced the most ethnicist tendencies." is a quote that could be applied to all occupations. I did find this contradiction in the writing; ... More »

The author provides an insight that offers to bridge understanding between disparate viewpoints while informing the allure of military service for some and the linkage between equations of considering such not desirable and 'volunteerism' in other government endeavors.

Even though this is opinion, perspectives/information are offered that the mainstream media is not providing or even discussing. Additionally, evidence is given as part of the opinion, so I consider this good journalism.

Good journalism; it's sad that such an article could not be published in the U.S. newspapers that are considered 'national'.

Excellent journalism that is well sourced and explores the basics of an important story that is being neglected for the most part by mass media. But, like the mass media, it 'fails to fill in the blanks' that are associated with the story, such as the apparent corruption of the Karzai government, Helmand being a major opium producing area, and other issues related to finances both in Afghanistan and the countries of NATO.

I don't consider this journalism; it's an op-ed that doesn't inform the reader except to the author's opinion. It also mentions another author's perspective as a basis for furthering his own while not providing a link to that other authors opinion.

Excellent journalism in that it shows how the media can manipulate public opinion based on lies.

The author does have very good job in parts such as "The biggest challenge for dissidents and rebels is to avoid feel-good therapeutic activism having virtually no chance of removing evil and tyranny. Idealism without practicality tactics without lofty goals, and symbolic protests pose no threat to power elites." But his solution #2 ignores those governments where NOT voting is a crime. Basically, it's an op-ed for his desire for a Constitutional convention.