First Time as Tragedy, Second Time as Farce

That was how Karl Marx characterized the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte and his pretender nephew Napoleon III, but it would just as aptly describe Lou Dobbs’ second act on CNN. During his first act, he was the “CEO’s CEO,” conducting chummy interviews with business leaders for whom he felt kinship. He would prattle and gossip with them off-air prior to interviews, just two chummy well-heeled CEOs passing the time. But then he bumped heads with CNN management, and then got the .com bug and jumped to Space.com. 

That was the tragedy part. Now comes the farce...

When that didn’t pan out, his return to CNN didn’t bring the ratings he once had, so he developed a new persona: Populist crusader. His attack themes of the “War on the Middle Class” to “Exporting America” trash the folks he once sucked up to so much and not so coincidentally are also the titles of books Dobbs has authored.

There is nothing wrong with populist attacks, if they rang true. But with Dobbs, it has the odor of someone who changed tune because the audience wasn’t buying the old songs he was singing. There is plenty to debate about globalization and corporate greed, but the screeds that now pass as news on CNN would make Roger Ailes blush. Here’s the title of his latest commentary on the CNN website: “Democratic hacks embrace lunacy of amnesty.”

Is Dobbs an anchor or a commentator? A desert topping or a floor wax?

In the modern era of journalism, you really don’t have to choose anymore. After all, Dobb’s populist rants have boosted his ratings and sold books. Hooray for CNN, lament for journalism.

--Tom Galvin

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