Will Bunch takes a stab, which I find pretty convincing. I mean, were cash- and staff-strapped newspapers supposed to stake out Edwards, months after he dropped out of the race, to see whether or not he was screwing around on his wife? Best part:
What's the solution? Maybe there should be a news organization that makes the sex life of politicians its No. 1 priority, so that other reporters can be left alone to do real journalism. Oh, wait, there already is such a publication! It's called the National Enquirer. They spend thousands on their tawdry probes, and when they're done, the traditional media can judge whether the findings are actually newsworthy (as they were with Edwards) or not. In other words, for better or worse, that is exactly the system we have in place now.Of course, if the prism through which he see everything is to scream "liberal bias! liberal bias!," you're less likely to be impressed with Bunch's take.In a bizarre and often uncomfortable way, that system seems to actually work.