Alterman,E. Sound and Fury. 1992
Alterman, Eric. Sound and Fury: The Washington Punditocracy and the Collapse
of American Politics. New York: HarperCollins, 1992. 352 pages.
Counter-pundit Eric Alterman's thesis is that the pundits have taken
over the debate on current issues in American democracy, with television
defining the parameters of political discourse. It becomes less important
to frame your arguments coherently, than to jockey for the well-turned
soundbite, the indignant comment, or the timely video image.
He begins with Walter Lippman, the father of punditry, and then skips
over to the Reagan and Bush years. A witty stylist, Alterman makes quick
work of notables such as Martin Agronsky, Fred Barnes, Pat Buchanan, Rowland
Evans, Jack Germond, Michael Kinsley, Morton Kondracke, Charles Krauthammer,
Irving Kristol, Edward Luttwak, John McLaughlin, Robert Novak, Martin Peretz,
Norman Podhoretz, William Safire, and George Will.
Curiously, Alterman claims that "the Carter presidency predated the
explosion of pundit television," but acknowledges that Clinton was an early
favorite of the Democratic punditocracy. It would seem that the phony two-
party system and its controlled media are the real problem, not the pundits
who get rich off of them. Were they to sing a tune that's slightly more
Democratic, watch for Alterman to join in on the chorus.
ISBN 0-06-016874-9
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