Unit 2 Feeder 1 Revised

In the video, Is Racism Fueling Protests? Howard Kurtz asks if the media is stimulating racism directed at Obama. Eric Deggons argues that the media should focus on Obama’s race for stories, in order to find where Obama hatred is stemming from. Deggons uses the hate mail and racial jokes about Obama to support his opinion. Deggons is good at keeping his voice, as made apparent by his brushing off of Amy Holme’s interruption, when he commented on President Carter’s statement. He doesn’t use a substantial amount of hard evidence, and at some points he tends to get off topic or avoid a question, such as when Kurtz questions him about his views on the critics of Obama.
Amy Holmes argues that the way the media portrays race doesn’t influence public opinion of Obama. She uses little hard evidence, one being the drop of support from Independents due to a story on race the Washington Post printed. To reinforce her argument, she points out previous experiences where the media overemphasized certain things, such as Bush and drug use. Holmes is very adamant and rude, which weakens her argument; at one point she attacks the Washington Post for publishing a story, with little evidence, claiming Obama’s race played a role in his opposition. At some points in the debate, Holmes tries to interrupt Deggons to counter his statement.
Chris Cillizza argues that the media has no choice but to run with the Obama and race stories, because it is interesting. Though the argument is substantial and his explanations sufficient, Cillizza provides little evidence to support his theory. Most of his views are opinionated; he states that race is “a part of the nation’s history” and creates ratings. Cillizza maintains a calm and slightly cynical demeanor, which helps to improve his argument.