Iranatics

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I agree with Atrios. And I'll add that I believe most of the domestic saturation coverage of the Iran election postmortem is driven primarily by some news exec's idea that this whole Iran thing could end up being a real "happening" --- maybe even a "color" revolution if the networks play their cards right. And that could at least mean a spike in ad revenues, up to and including the possibility of a new show with an awesome flying-graphics logo, triumphal theme music, and a 21st century Ted Koppel. Wouldn't that be a "coup"? [Nyuk nyuk nyuk BONK D'OH!]

Fact checking, NPR style

This morning NPR had a nice 'fact checking' round-table regarding the Democratic debate in Iowa last night. Economics correspondent Adam Davidson was asked to truth-squad a statement on Iran made by Joe Biden. Biden, who was rebutting some Clinton baloney about the recent non-binding Senate resolution demonizing Iran's Revolutionary Guard, said:

The moment that declaration was made, oil prices jumped over $18 a barrel.

Davidson wasn't buying it, being the economics correspondent that he is. Davidson:

I'd say this is the single most obviously untrue statement I heard in the debate.... Never in human history have oil prices spiked that high or anything like that.

Then Davidson swiftly supported his assertion by reminding listeners of the date of Republican Guard resolution, and presenting a brief summary of oil price movements immediately after the Senate resolution, deftly sending Biden scuttling for the cover of an MBNA mobile hospitality suite. Oh, wait a minute --- he didn't do that at all. Instead, evidently based mainly on his high respect for his own opinions, Davidson declared that the "generally accepted risk premium" added on top of the market price of oil accounting for "all the political tension in all the world is about 10 or 15 percent." And so, he concluded:

...the idea that one vote having to do with Iran at one moment would cause such a dramatic increase in prices is utterly unjustified.

I'm just a simple country editor, but I feel that an NPR fact check should make reference to some facts. This should have been a simple one to put to bed, too. But here I am, cranky as ever before bedtime, and I still don't know whether or not Biden's a big fibber about Iran. And the answer is not insignificant, either, issue-wise: if rattling sabers at Iran can affect oil prices or supplies, Matt and Stacey Merlot should be aware of that before committing to buy a bomb-Iran magnetic yellow ribbon for the Land Cruiser. (They might be able to get one at the NPR Gift Shop.)

This exciting public radio journalism circle-jerk format is so awesome that it deserves its very own special name: let's call it a "fuct check." They do it all the time.