Huffy is doing it again. Any good news that does not fit their narrative must be instantly spun to the negative.
Case in point a recent poll by ABC News, the BBC and ARD German TV that attitudes are improving towards the West in Afghanistan. Rachel Maddow even touted this poll as good news on her show. Huffy now has “experts” (their spin machine) refuting the results of the poll. Polls have errors and I am not defending the results of the poll specifically because I do not have enough info but I do ask,
Why challenge this poll Huffy when there are hundreds of polls?
The answer is simple on any subject where Huffy is trying to create a narrative all contrary evidence must be refuted. There is no reason to question the news services that conducted the poll. They have no reason to push poll to skew the results. Spinning news to fit memes is exactly what Republicans do when results are contrary to their intentions.
There have been a few odd things happening lately which have made me suspicious.
First, I was Fanned by a person back in December, following an exchange of comments on one thread. I have repeatedly tried to Fan him back, but every time I do, his name pops back up on the “New Huffpost Followers” dashboard. Every time. I have sent in complaints about it a number of times, with no response.
Second, I suddenly stopped getting notifications of replies to my comments. I keep checking the settings, but notifications are still enabled. This began in December as well, it worked for a week in January, and now has stopped again. But I still get notifications of comments by certain bloggers, and notifications of new articles by Jason and Amanda.
Third, tips I send in are acknowledged… but nothing beyond that. I have sent in a number of tips regarding my personal raison d’etre, gay rights. Some of those articles have been covered, by HP writers, several days later, but there is never an acknowledgment of the source I referred HP to.
Also, I have been seeing a lot of innocuous posts disappear, for no discernible reason. I have had some snarky posts disappear as well, although I do try to identify them as humorous or snarky and make sure they don’t violate various boundaries. The most offensive of them have gone through, but a few of the more moderate have been squashed.
Incidentally, when I added “[crossposted to Blogger to cheese off the MOODerators]” EVERY one of those posts went through. Posts that I also shared to Twitter also went through.
The high amount of posters with no or little history lately, the high amounts of comments pending for extended lengths of time, and all the strange little glitches in the “social networking” features, I can’t reason it out. And HP isn’t even acknowledging any of it.
And when a couple friends and I were commenting that Hawaii’s passage of “civil unions” was not a cause for celebration because, to us, it means nothing, there were a bunch of deletions left and right.
I just sent an email asking what their guidelines are. I saw two post that advocated the death of bankers, which to my knowledge violated their guidelines. I am not expecting a response, but it made me feel better knowing I called them out on their hypocrisy.
I’m still reeling over that one post you and I were responding to getting deleted like that.
About the only glitch I have seen that I appreciated was seeing replies on the right side of the page, before they were approved. I often saw perfectly rational responses deleted before I could respond, but at least I could respond to the reply elsewhere on the thread.
Now you know why I call them MOODerators. I don’t want to sound sexist, but I really had to wonder what kind of chemical imbalances the mods were going through at the time.
The community moderator thing was a failure from the start, but AH seems to get a giggle out of it.
I would like to say that I appreciate that PlanetPOV is refusing the usual ad banners. Something needs to be said about the ads for luxury high-ticket items on articles about the recession and unemployment and all.
I really questioned AH’s motives when she was gushing about her five Blackberries not too long ago, especially when my partner’s cellphone was disconnected just before that because we didn’t have the money to pay the bill.
Randi Rhodes has read TWO articles from the Huffington Post on her show today. One was an article about credit cards skimming off 3% of all charitable donations made by credit card — meaning their profits are going up substantially now on the back of the terrible tragedy in Haiti.
The other is Bill Maher’s blog post about moving your money into smaller banks.
Now — I love Randi. And she is very critical of her sources.
So to me this is a sign that HP is gaining credibility among more and more progressive public figures.
Hi Nellie! Good to see you!
I’m not familiar with Randi but would applaud anyone who would expose the credit card companies for their scams. That bit of information is disgusting! Can’t they let up even for this??
As for Bill Maher, I don’t know if he is riding AH’s coattails or whether she is riding his…a mutual admiration society maybe? The scary part is your last sentence. I hope that HP is not “gaining credibility” among progressives if they are buying into what AH is selling! To put it mildly, AH’s motives are extremely suspect IMHO.
I don’t want to sound like I’m defending credit card companies. But the “skimming” is probably their normal credit card fee. So for every charity they “skim”.
Like I said before the small bank thing is pure demography because many progressives like myself have started changing our ways of dealing with banks years ago.
It’s also stupid because the biggest loans we take, home loans can always be purchased by other banks anyway and many times for sound reasons. It’s difficult for credit unions and small banks not to over leverage themselves if they have no outlets for their larger loans.
It will be interesting to see HP’s take on the banking regulations. Most of these problems would never have occurred if we had stopped the mergers — keeping the companies at a manageable size — and prevented the kind of speculating that went on.
The site has become so critical of anything the president tries to do, I have to wonder if they’ll change their habit of demonizing the banks when Mr. Obama tries to regulate them.
The problem with the credit card transactions is that the merchant who is accepting the donations would have to have special flagging on their accounts to reverse the discount fee on those transactions. Visa and MasterCard are pretty good organizations(i worked at Visa for 5 years) but they would not have any regulation on the bank and their fees. One thing that PuffHo does not know is if the banks have waived those fees? Or if that non-profit has special pricing. I worked at Wells in this division and directly with credit approval and pricing and in some circumstances, the fees were donated as part of the charity, but not as a charity overall long term.
I am going to find that article and read it though.
It’s a typical Huffy half-truth, knee jerk reaction. They are just playing to their base and the narratives they are trying to create.
I will ask this again. When will some “reporter” ask AH in what community bank and/or credit union she has her money. Now you can add Randi and Bill!
In Randi’s case, I’m kinda disappointed. She constantly tells her audience to stay away from the blogs if they’re looking for facts. She likes C-SPAN and the Newspapers. It’s a little jarring to hear her quote from HP.
Very important point. Funny thing is that AH, like Palin, is allowed to spew any amount of crap without being called out on it.
I would say she’s already a fine middle class “champion” with 6000 slaves, politely called citizen journalists. And now after she was crusading the entire States with her 3rd world gobble, I would expect she’s asked which bank or banks hosts the millions she raked in. I could bet it’s the tiny branch of Bank of America though….
Hi, folks. A frequently scrubbed HuffPost refugee who seen the light and likes what she sees on this site. Bravo to the brave soul who posted it there. I am so glad to know that the indigestion and urge to throw my water bottle at the computer screen after spending 10 minutes on HuffPost was not mine alone. I am going through this site and loving the comments, etc.
Now, if we can just have some nipple slippage pix and neurosurgeon discussing economic issues (i.e. Obama is wrong about everything)…no?…
🙂
Welcome aboard LAB, nope, you’re not alone! Most of us made it out safely, no computer screens were hurt in the process, glad you did too. The Planet is a great place to exercise you’re thinking abilities…I know I can safely say we all look forward to your input! You’d have to be pretty darn BAD to get scrubbed around here!!
Thank you, guys!! How kind you all are!
I was so irritated by the misleading headlines, the politically tone deaf “Obama has betrayed us and look, he didn’t walk on water” bleatings by folks like Sirota and Westen (sp) and the suck up fests that passed for comments after those articles. God forbid you disagree – if you were lucky, you might get in, but more likely, scrub a dub dub. On that site, it is as if you are in a Superman bizarro world where facts interrupt a narrative.
LABC, I agree. It got to where I was unable to even post one-liners over there. Never got banned, but I know I got flagged a few times.
There are a couple of contributors there that I still enjoy…Robert Elisberg and Shannyn Moore when she writes about Ms. Mooseburger. Besides those two, I have found it quite liberating NOT to go there and have to put up with the constant personal attacks and the censors, not to mention the terrible misleading headlines that everybody complains about…sometimes even the trolls.
I like Robert Creamer, too!
Me too. And usually Mike Lux.
LABC…Yes, agreed! What has amazed me since arriving at the Planet is the depth of the articles written by our members. For instance, Chernynkaya posted an excellent article on the Health Care bill, comparing the House and Senate versions. She put a lot of work into it…and it shows. If you have time and the interest, read it. I think you’ll agree. It’s what I would call “real” journalism.
HP has lost more than they will ever know!
I did! That is what sold me on signing up here. I am going re-read it, but bravo to Cher for doing that. It was informative and thorough – two words missing from MSM these days.
Em and LABC– shhh. They will very soon figure out how much I paid both of you and then THEY”LL want a cut too! 😉
Amen the Huffy memes and disinformation to promote group think is atrocious. If I wanted to be part of an orthodoxy I would be a Republican.
Exactly – the irony of this is completely lost on HuffPost…
I’ve been saying for quite a while that I thought the Repubs were in Bizzaro World. I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one, they even look like it…strange faces with a lot of strange angles..very weird indeed!!!
Welcome, welcome…a warm welcome, LABC! I don’t know what the administrators of this site have planned, but I would bet that it won’t be nipple slippage pix! LOL
It may take you a little time to acclimate to the elevation in thought here, but hang in there! I can tell you from experience that the FREEDOM is exhilarating!
The one thing that sets this site above the others is the fact that WE are the ones who control the content, and we do so without moderation. We manage ourselves, quite well, I believe. We will all look forward to your becoming an author on the Planet. 🙂
Welcome to The Planet, LABC63!
You are indeed among many colleagues here from HuffPo who also had enough of being spun and censored over there.
This is the place for truly Free Expression and thoughtful discussions on any topic.
Hi LABC– welcome to the oasis! Now take your time and enjoy, I hope.
Hi LABC, welcome to the planet. We are a great group here, if I say so myself. I cannot even get through 10 minutes of the PuffHo these days. Most of my time is now HuffNo. Enjoy it here, it is an adult site, meaning no trolls
Welcome LABC!
It’s so good to know you like what you see here. I hope we’ll see a lot of you.
Welcome LABC we have all been there for sure.
By the time I stopped posting on HP most of my posts were scrubbed or moderated into the Huffy abyss.
Did HUHPuff write about this poll in 2005? 2006? 2007? While like many here, I am skeptical of single and “insta-polls”, this poll has been done for years and one can look at the trend line results. What is so bad about about a little optimistic hope? Is there an alternative given such as pulling out all he troops and letting the Taliban rule?
This is exactly why I have more and more HuffNo days. Try to post something to refute their claims and watch it get scrubbed faster than they can lift the lid on the Ajax bottle.
It’s odd, but I have rarely gotten scrubbed. My theory is– and it could be a fantasy– it that I was there like a good soldier for many months before I got a clue. I think I somehow became “safe” and they stopped watching me on most threads. But even at my worst– and I’m talkin’ NASTY– I never got scrubbed.
The notable exceptions are on posts written by bloggers (the posts that are on the left hand side of the pages) and particularly the likes of Scarborough or Blankley), where it is impossible to comment on ANYTHING.
Or maybe it’s just that I know how to misspell every other word.
Once you get in the sights of Huffy’s moderators you get scrubbed quite often like I was. Especially if you try to complain about the site itself.
Mine were mainly when I wrote a derogatory word about hairyanna. Most other times I was not scrubbed. It is hard to go back there and write in code language again.
It is! I recently started commenting there again, and had to re-write everything to sound ignorant. Like, stoopid.
I went and looked back at my comments I’d made there recently.
I ALMOST deleted myself. They scrub over half of my comments and the ones they let through just make me look as dumbed down as the rest of their site.
It was embarrassing!!!
I am proud to say I banned Huffy before they could ban me. I just refuse to make any contributions to such a dishonest site because I know even posting to argue with the group think benefits them because all they want is more clicks and posts to make more ad revenue.
I have a HuffNo life in one way. I never read any user post and just go their to get info to fight against the lies. The trolls and lemmings have taken over.
Good morning, KQ! Good to see you here!
This would be a perfect example to save for Nellie’s “Project POV: Brainstorming”. If you didn’t have a chance to read it, I would encourage you to do so. She has a great idea about archiving items such as this and putting together articles calling out the MSM for their obvious skewing of the news. I didn’t read Grim’s entire article…I didn’t have to. It was apparent in the first several paragraphs.
We have been working together and I will probably do a periodic piece picking out stories like this that are simply written to create controversy or defend a media narrative.
Hi KQ! Sorry I didn’t see your comment earlier. Lots going on today here. I’m glad you’ve been working with Nellie! I look forward to reading your always astute comments! 🙂
No problemo it was probably on older comments by now.
KQ…
I must confess, I did not read the entire post. However, HP not posting legitimate pre, post, or “here is what I think” comments is a primary reason why we parted company
boomer1949
You didn’t miss much. People are what they think about most of the time. Pundits like Limbaugh think about hate and racism all the time so that’s what they spread and talk about. Aryanna thinks about money and power all the time and that’s why she obsesses about the banks and telling everyone else how to think. The editors at Huffy have become a bunch of yes people to the Queen Bee and they write to satisfy her goals. When something does not fit their preconceptions or agenda it must be immediately discounted.
KQ, I saw someone else mention having a regular feature that exposes the bullshit of the MSM spin machines (that includes HP).
I think that’s a great idea. Would you or anyone else want to helm that? I’m slammed but I can at least throw out one suggestion for a title, “Stalking Heads”.
I will probably do it but I don’t want to commit for at least another week. I’m overdoing it now and I’m not talking about with the Planet so much but at home. I probably won’t even participate in the chat phase of the Pox Populi because it moves to fast for me to keep up typing. It’s been months since my heart health has been this good even though I still have post op pain. I got so overzealous with an arm movement I was not suppose to make reaching for something that it felt like I was ripping my sutures out. My lovely care giver, aka she who must be obeyed, is pretty pissed off with her patient over that one.
I like the name “Stalking Heads” it’s a good start and I might even go with it. Also I should get together with nellie to coordinate with the project champion.
Yeowtch!
Sometimes I forget for a moment, reading all your in depth posts and comments, what’s going on!
Please, rest and no worries about the feature, when you’re ready will be the perfect time for it, absolutely no rush on this.
Glad your heart health is good, does my heart good to hear that!
Please allow me to echo those sentiments!
Bad boy! She who must be obeyed, simply MUST be obeyed because she loves you and wants you around to grow old together.
I know she who must be obeyed has my best interests at heart.
“She who must be obeyed”. “Rumple of the Baily” ? Good books, good series.
The thing that I find disturbing is the number of genuine poster unaware of the deception that is Huff and maybe always was Huff. Step away for a short time, come back to read the headlines, the negative articles and it just hits you in the face like a bag of potatoes, Faux Progressive Huffington Post.
Why can’t they see it too?
The most popular story on HP this evening is “Conan O’Brien statement: I will not ..blah blah blah…”
That’s the majority of their readership. Brains unplugged.
Brains unplugged indeed.
I hardly ever go there and only when I get email alerts about bloggers I like posting something. Even then I’m reluctant to spoil my mood by stepping into that cesspool of utter madness and never read the comments on any thread while I’m there. I enjoy having my sanity back and plan to keep it that way.
I liked that line “brains unplugged” too. 😛
Yup they claim to be independent yet they believe everything Huffy says like lemmings.
What, no female celebrity’s dress slipped and showed part of her nipple?
Come on Huffpo, where’s my Nipple News today?!
Did you catch what Joan Walsh said about Huffy posting the VP Biden Onion picture?
It took me a bit, not long. But before I was an active commenter HP just had (undeserved) clout as the progressive aggregator. It didn’t take me long to catch on, especially since there are a lot of us subversives still there pointing it out to any genuine type similarly bewitched by the pied piper’s siren song. But I was one of those who had to catch on with the help of others – of course, I didn’t need any help after the Biden thing and Bankington obsession. Oh, I figured that all by my lonesome.
Well done!
I feel sorry for the others still being hoodwinked, trampled on, left without a voice, therefore in my book being abused and stripped of their rights to free speech but if they can’t figure it out for themselves, I can’t help them, although I would like to.
So the poll is all wrong compared to the sloppy half-baked article they had on the main the other night, saying how Afghans all feel like it’s the end of the world. What hypocrites.
Using anecdotal evidence is another Republican ploy Huffy has brought to the progressive blogsphere.
Forget the the entirety of the facts and claim the exception to the rule is the reality. It’s like Republican arguments for tort reform. There simply is no evidence that states tort reform works. In fact malpractice insurance companies just make more profits of the scheme and doctors still have high premiums. But Republicans and now Huffy never lets facts get in the way.