MSNBC may not have a very large audience base, as compared to Fox News Channel, but that is not the only way to judge media.
After all, the New York Times has lower readership than the New York Daily News, for instance, but that does not make the Daily News a newspaper of quality, and the same goes for cable television news.
Quality and intellectual challenge are what makes journalism outstanding, and in that regard, Fox News Channel is no comparison to MSNBC.
And the author is not referring here to the traditional talk show hosts–the Reverend Al Sharpton, Chris Matthews, Ed Schultz, and Lawrence O’Donnell in the weekday evenings, although all are enlightening.
And he is not referring to Morning Joe, or Chuck Todd, Andrea Mitchell, Martin Bashir, Dylan Ratigan, Alex Wagner, or others on the weekday daytime, all of whom are great, but not what he wishes to emphasize.
Rather, the author is referring to three true intellectuals, Rachel Maddow, on at 9 pm eastern time during the week, and Melissa Harris-Perry and Chris Hayes, on for two hours each on both Saturday and Sunday.
Rachel Maddow, 39 years of age, has degrees from Stanford University and Oxford University, an earned doctorate, and was the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship. Anyone who watches her or reads her new book, DRIFT, cannot help but be impressed with her pure intellectual brilliance. She is also a delight on a personal level, with a great sense of humor!
Melissa Harris-Perry, 38 years of age, is an African American professor of Political Science at Tulane University, and formerly taught at Princeton University and the University of Chicago, earned a Ph. D. at Duke University, and is the author of two books. Her two hour show on both Saturday and Sunday is extremely enlightening, and her pleasant personality comes through on a consistent basis!
Chris Hayes, 33 years old, is married to Kate Shaw, an Associate Counsel for President Barack Obama, is an editor at large of The Nation magazine, and has a show called Up With Chris Hayes for two hours each on Saturdays and Sundays. Sometimes called the male Rachel Maddow, Hayes comes across as an intellectual on the level of Maddow and Harris-Perry, and he possesses a bachelor’s degree from Brown University.
His show, as with Maddow and Harris-Perry, is extremely enlightening and stimulating to viewers who appreciate good intellectual discourse! His book Twilight Of The Elites: America After Meritocracy, will be published in June, 2012.
Anyone who reads this blog should make it a habit to watch these three brilliant talk show hosts–Rachel Maddow, Melissa Harris-Perry, and Chris Hayes!
Am so glad you wrote about Rachel Maddow Professor. I have been a fan of her since the first day of her show. She is amazingly funny, possesses a spirit and an intellect above and beyond and is just plain fun to watch and listen to. She is so well researched in everything she covers and is the first one to correct herself if there is any error…something we would NEVER see from the conservative boors on the other channels. I suspect we will see even greater things from Ms. Maddow in the future. I would love to see her in the position of chief consultant to President Obama! What a team they would make!