Steve Barrett

Start them up

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- OK, so there's something ironic about the fact that Mick Jagger's "Start Me Up" was playing as conservative critics of the liberal media gathered in Washington on Thursday evening for the Media Research Center's annual DisHonors Awards for the most biased journalism of 2008. Mr. Jagger's support of conservative causes is, shall we say, limited.

But the attendees -- from radio personalities such as Mark Levin to former U.S. Attorney General Ed Meese to Joe the Plumber to Fox News' Brit Hume -- were not especially in the mood to fret over the political sensibilities of a rock star. They were there to start the crowd up, and it worked.

"Ever heard of Newsweek?" Mr. Levin asked. "It's a magazine that was popular about 30 years ago. It's sort of like Pravda with photos."

Not to be outdone, Attorney General Meese mentioned an internal debate at CNN on the birthplace of Barack Obama: "Half thought it was in a log cabin. Half thought it was in a manger."

More to come in next Sunday's column in the Perspective section of the Times Free Press.

To reach Steve Barrett, call (423) 757-6329 or e-mail sbarrett@timesfreepress.com.