The truth comes out

[Please scroll down, or click here, to vote in the Conservative Slogan Contest. Your votes matter.] The Press Corps is getting fussed, and inadvertently revealing the MSM's priorities. Here's what happened:

NBCNEWS chief White House correspondent David Gregory warned President Bush's spokesman on Monday not to be a 'jerk!' The heated exchange came during a press gathering at the White House. Gregory asked White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan about the Cheney hunting accident. 'David, hold on, the cameras aren't on right now,' McClellan replied. 'You can do this later.' 'Don't accuse me of trying to pose to the cameras,' Gregory said, voice rising. 'Don't be a jerk to me personally when I'm asking you a serious question.' 'You don't have to yell,' McClellan said. 'I will yell,'' said Gregory, pointing a finger at McCellan at his dais. 'If you want to use that podium to try to take shots at me personally, which I don't appreciate, then I will raise my voice, because that's wrong.' 'Calm down, Dave, calm down,' said McClellan. 'I'll calm down when I feel like calming down,' Gregory said. 'You answer the question.' 'I have answered the question,' said McClellan, who had maintained that the vice president's office was in charge of getting the information out and worked with the ranch owner to do that. 'I'm sorry you're getting all riled up about.' 'I am riled up,' Gregory said, 'because you're not answering the question.'' [Emphasis mine.]

Let's ignore entirely the puerile nature of Gregory's conduct. I'm fascinated by the language I highlighted. The VP, in what even his meanest critics know was an accident, inadvertently shot a hunting companion. A few things are obvious: VP Cheney must be devastated; this type of accident is part and parcel of the risks inherent in hunting; and the MSM collectively feels incredibly slighted that the first phone call was to Cheney's 911 squad, and not to the Press. It's this last point that has the press in a frenzy, and allows a reporter to characterize his questions about this non-event as "serious." This once again explains why the American media, which is, after all, a business concern, is in free fall. Americans know what is serious: terrorism, freedom of speech, the economy, etc. And the MSM knows what is serious: its ego, and its effort to derail the Bush presidency. That's a Venn diagram with no overlap. Talking to Technorati: Media, Mainstream media, Cheney, Dick Cheney, Hunting accident