Values Added: Common Ground (Sarah Posner & Mollie Ziegler Hemingway)

[GhaleonQ]

Originally Posted by MarcMerlin

I don't know Mollie at all, but she impresses me as being well-versed in the kind of talking points that might make her a go-to commentator the kind of vacuous exchange that poses as debate on FOX News, but as woefully out of her league when it comes to the kind of thoughtful, analytical discussion like the ones BloggingHeads endeavors to promote.

Independent of political ideology, you have to bring intellect and intellectual credibility to the table to be taken seriously, at least in a world where ideas matter.

I could argue the 1st of half of this sentence, but I don't think I could sufficiently demonstrate that that isn't the case. However, this diavlog was almost solely politician/party-based. Get Ms. Hemingway on religion and culture or basically any expression of political will by religious groups not directly tied to parties or politicians, and you'll see that she's no hack. She has a really fine understanding of the various political and theological identities (something foreign to most reporters) and is incredibly fair to those on the liberal end of both.

The only section where this accusation sticks is the middle. She brought a lot to the other 4 bits, I believe. Her best form (well, in terms of reporting) comes when the conversation strays from individuals in power to religious demographic currents, culture, and how groups enforce identities, so I hope she returns to talk about those sorts of matters.