Month: August 2010
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AP debunking of Vitter’s “death panels” rhetoric
If you missed it, Senator David Vitter (R-LA) made comments last week that played on the continuing misperception that health care reform has created “death panels” (see my article [PDF] in The Forum for more on the myth). While Vitter’s comments are deplorable, I think it’s worth crediting Ben Evans of the Associated Press for
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Twitter roundup
From my Twitter feed (8/5-8/6) BrendanNyhan with 1 source BrendanNyhan With the courage of a defeated politician, Bob Inglis calls out conservative misperceptions about Obama, etc. http://j.mp/afusLz Confessions of a Tea Party Casualty | Mother Jones Why GOP Rep. Bob Inglis is looking for a new job. about 10 hours ago BrendanNyhan Should fast-food restaurants
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Twitter roundup
From my Twitter feed (8/4-8/5) BrendanNyhan with 1 source BrendanNyhan .@davidfrum makes the case that “socialist” attacks on Obama are bad for conservatism http://j.mp/bypEB4 Is Obama a Socialist? | FrumForum Much of the conservative world agrees that Obama is a socialist. Here is why I do not. 3 minutes ago BrendanNyhan A visualization of the
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New CNN poll on birther myth
CNN has released a new poll on the birther myth and the news, as usual, is depressing. Only 42% of the public thinks Obama was “definitely born in the United States” and 27% of Americans specifically stated that President Obama was “probably” or “definitely” born in another country. Here’s the wording of the question and
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Twitter roundup
From my Twitter feed (8/2-8/4) BrendanNyhan with 1 source BrendanNyhan FL Sen. candidate Marco Rubio backtracks on support for supply-side myth, admits “The tax cuts don’t pay for themselves” http://j.mp/cVEq15 Think Progress » Contradicting His Earlier Denial, Rubio Admits ‘Tax Cuts Don’t Pay For Themselves’ 25 minutes ago BrendanNyhan Meanwhile, Fox’s Stuart Varney pushes myth
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Cato expert: There are no “death panels”
One of the strategies for correcting misperceptions that I’ve proposed is to locate experts from the same side of the aisle who might be especially credible to the misinformed. An August 2009 article by Kate Snow at ABC News, for instance, emphasized that “even those who do not support the version of the health care
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Stimulus for government mascots!
Back in 2006, I poked fun at silly government agency websites for kids (here, here, and here), which included feature lovable mascots such as Rex the “flashlight-toting mountain lion” from the Department of Homeland Security, the NSA’s Crypto Kids team (including Crypto Cat and Decipher Dog), and Thermy the Thermometer (my personal favorite): I was
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Twitter roundup
From my Twitter feed (7/30-8/2) BrendanNyhan with 1 source BrendanNyhan David Kopel at Volokh Conspiracy takes down absurd “Obama the Muslim” column in Human Events http://j.mp/ctilNo The Volokh Conspiracy » Human Events’ ridiculous “Obama the Muslim” article about 2 hours ago BrendanNyhan Given role of economy in elections, why is Obama so passive on Fed.
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Hertzberg: Nyhan’s commenters are great!
The New Yorker’s Hendrik Hertzberg has posted a response to a comment made by Rob last week on my Electoral College post (which quoted Hertzberg). Read his post for more, but I mainly want to highlight his praise for my commenters, who he calls “unusually well-informed”: Brendan Nyhan, who picks up on (and usefully amplifies)