OxBlog

OxBlog

Front page
XML Feed

Read Our

"Love your site" -- Dan Savage

"A great read" -- Fareed Zakaria

"I enjoy OxBlog very much" -- Michael Barone

OxBlog: Trying to live up to the hype since April 23, 2002!

David Adesnik, a research analyst in Washington DC, received his doctorate in international relations from Oxford.

Email David

The Media:
NYT
WaPo
OpinionJournal
TNR
Weekly Standard
NRO
Slate
Commentary
BBC

Other Blogs We Like:

George Washington:
InstaPundit

James Wilson:
Brett Marston
Volokh Conspiracy

Alexis de Tocqueville:
American Scene
Crescat Sententia
Crooked Timber
Galley Slaves
Eve Tushnet
Christopher Hitchens

Theodore Roosevelt:
Amygdala
Belgravia Dispatch
Phil Carter
Joyful Christian
Joe Gandelman
Adrianne Truett
Winds of Change
Pejman Yousefzadeh
Global Guerrillas

Calvin Coolidge:
ScrappleFace

Winston Churchill:
Sasha Castel
Innocents Abroad
Andrew Sullivan
Tim Blair

Franklin Roosevelt:
Kevin Drum
Josh Marshall
Matt Yglesias
Democracy Arsenal
Dan Nexon

David Ben Gurion:
GedankenPundit
Kesher Talk

Friedrich Hayek:
Jane Galt
Virginia Postrel
Natalie Solent
VodkaPundit
Matt Welch

Ronald Reagan:
Power Line
RealClearPolitics
Worldwide Standard
RedState
Liz Mair

Daniel Patrick Moynihan:
Daniel Drezner
How Appealing

Friday, March 17, 2006

# Posted 1:41 AM by Ariel David Adesnik

OLD SCHOOL ESTABLISHMENT REACHES OUT TO BLOGOSPHERE: I got an interesting (mass) e-mail today from the Council on Foreign Relations. Its main purpose was to announce the RSS feeds now available on the CFR website, to be followed soon by podcasts.

But what really struck me was this line from the e-mail:

"One of our main goals in this initiative is to get the blogosphere to recognize that, in spite of its well-known disdain for the MSM, there are organizations determined to pursue a serious, nonpartisan approach to presenting facts and analysis vital to understanding our complex world," said cfr.org Executive Editor Michael Moran.

Moran seems to have chosen his words carefully in order to avoid suggesting that he shares this disdain for the MSM. Nonetheless, the idea that CFR, the ultimate pillar of the foreign policy establishment, is trying to score points with the blogosphere by comparing itself favorably with the MSM is pretty amazing.

Even referring to the "MSM" instead of the "mainstream media" or some other term represents a major rhetorical concession. It would seem that we barbarians are now well inside the gates.

(2) opinions -- Add your opinion

Comments:

It would seem that we barbarians are now well inside the gates."

Not yet. You'd have to see what the CFR is saying to the MSM to be sure.

But you'll know for sure the barbians are inside the gates when the foreign policy establishment is finally willing to compete in the world of ideas, not pedigrees.

RSS feeds are a good start - but since they are one-way communciations only, they are just a start.

# posted by

Anonymous : 12:28 PM

inside the gates? i hardly think so. don't be so easily snookered.

barbarians will be inside the gates when the cfr and foggy bottom are purged from top to bottom.

i don't look for that to happen any time soon.

however, i will grant you this: we are AT the gates ... and that SCARES these folks!

# posted by

GunJam : 8:55 PM

Home