Daniel Wattenberg
Articles by Daniel Wattenberg
Maya Angelou: Donald Sterling controversy shows racial progress
Maya Angelou has cited the Donald Sterling controversy as a confirmation of American racial progress: "Do you realize that this man has been banned? With all of his money and all of his history and the white skin which covers his whole body." Published May 20, 2014
Kevin Spacey, supply-sider
Kvetching, always kvetching about liberal domination of Hollywood. But take a closer look for once. It’s a more ideologically diverse community than you might suppose. Take Kevin Spacey, star of “House of Cards.” Published August 23, 2013
Distressed viewers in Connecticut call 911 to report cable TV outage
Hey, Connecticut — do I have to explain everything? The whole reason you're paying your cable carrier for video-on-demand is so you DON'T have to call 911 when there's an outage these days. Published August 19, 2013
Breaking: Stumbling Matt Damon vehicle ‘Elysium’ trails box office leader for second straight day
In an entertainment market where Mother Jones subscribers flocked to ultra-violent action movies, “Elysium” would be a surefire hit. But here on planet Earth, Neill Blomkamp’s sci-fi film — a transparently lefty and unashamedly bloody morality tale starring Matt Damon — is shaping up as an expensive, unmarketable misfire. Published August 13, 2013
Crime victim Kid Rock vows to stand his ground: ‘… I will not hesitate to shoot …’
Memo to home invaders: You can cross Kid Rock's crib off your target list. The Motor City rapper-turned-Southern rocker posted a word to the wise on his website following last week's attempted break-in at his home in Clarkston, Mich. Published August 6, 2013
Paula Deen off the hook? Lyndon Johnson, Lee Daniels and the N-word
With her deep fried food empire lying in charred scraps around her, fallen Southern cooking queen Paula Deen may have been thrown a lifeline by an unlikely savior — Lee Daniels, director of “The Butler.” Published August 5, 2013
Luxury skin care in Michael Bloomberg’s Manhattan: Bird poop facial
Only in Mike Bloomberg’s Manhattan. Craving a Big Gulp? Better have a good lawyer. Want to do something special for your face? Treat it to a bird poo poultice at a luxury spa. Published August 2, 2013
Spaceflight in the age of Obama: Star Trek’s Galileo shuttlecraft unveiled
It may not fully make up for President Obama’s gutting of America’s manned spaceflight program, but for now it will have to do. Star Trek’s Galileo, the fiberglass shuttlecraft featured on the “The Galileo Seven” episode of the classic ’60s sci-fi series, was officially unveiled Wednesday at the Space Center Houston, where it will remain on permanent display. Published July 31, 2013
Jay-Z: Stand your ground against profiling; against home invasion … not so much
In a recent interview with a rap blogger, hip hop icon Jay Z endorsed Trayvon Martin’s battery of George Zimmerman as legitimate self-defense against racial profiling and surveillance by the neighborhood watch volunteer — while in the same interview scoffing at the right to use a firearm to defend against a home invasion/robbery. Published July 26, 2013
No Mideast peace dividend from ‘World War Z’: Arabs rejecting imaginary reconciliation with Israel
So now we know. Where does the desirability of peace with Israel rank in the Arab world? Somewhere below "zombie invasion." Published July 19, 2013
Bruce Springsteen dedicates song to Trayvon Martin
The celebrity re-litigation of the George Zimmerman trial proceeds apace, with Bruce Springsteen the latest to protest his acquittal Saturday by a Florida jury. Published July 17, 2013
News coverage favors gay marriage fans over opponents by 5-to-1: Pew study
Media bias? What bias? Pro-gay marriage stories outnumbered anti-gay marriage stories by five-to-one in a new study of coverage of the debate released Monday by the Pew Research Center Project for Excellence in Journalism. Published June 17, 2013
Stung by Newtown parents, Michael Moore denies urging release of crime scene photos, blames Fox News
In a March blog post Michael Moore urged the release of crime scene photos depicting the shattered, perforated bodies of the schoolchildren slaughtered last December in Newtown. Confronting the eye-opening gore, he argued, was a moral imperative — expiation for America’s tacit moral complicity in mass shootings and a goad to brisk and decisive action expanding gun control and driving a stake through the heart of the NRA. On Tuesday, amid rising solidarity with victims' parents trying to prevent release of the graphic images, Mr. Moore flatly denied having advocated their tactical dissemination — and blamed any misconceptions to the contrary on a Fox News reporter. Published June 4, 2013
Convicted Fox News mole: Ex-colleagues copped to serving ‘red meat’ to right, stirring up ‘crazies’
In unguarded moments off-camera, Fox News journalists acknowledged their mission was to pander to their conservative base, claims company mole Joe Muto in a recent interview to promote his tell-all book. Published June 3, 2013
Burn, Barbie, burn!
Topless German feminists on Thursday crucified and burned Barbie in a protest outside the Barbie Dreamhouse in Berlin. Published May 16, 2013
Chris Matthews ♥ Ronald Reagan!?
Wait. Did I just hear what I thought I heard? Did Chris Matthews just applaud Ronald Reagan for busting a union and winning the Cold War? Published May 15, 2013
Networks hope to repeat success of ‘The Bible’ with lavish new miniseries, including ‘24’ reboot
The networks, in their wisdom, have determined that the reason the five-part compilation of Bible stories from erstwhile reality TV mogul Mark Burnett (“Survivor,” “The Apprentice”) was a historic smash for cable network History was — but of course! — its miniseries format. Published May 13, 2013
Whole lotta nothin’: Bill Clinton failed to broker Led Zeppelin reunion
For all his legendary powers of persuasion, Bill Clinton never could quite sweet-talk Yasser Arafat and Ehud Barak into closing the deal on a final status peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority back in 2000. Looks like he whiffed again with Jimmy Page and and Robert Plant. Published May 6, 2013
Robert Downey Jr.: ‘Iron Man 3’ co-star Paltrow makes him ‘feel there’s more to explore in universe’
The World’s Most Beautiful Woman? That’s nothing, if you’re Gwyneth Paltrow. Just ask her “Iron Man 3” co-star Robert Downey Jr. Published April 30, 2013
Gloria Steinem compares U.S. ‘reproductive freedom’ limits to Saudi Arabian subjugation of women
Longtime feminist activist Gloria Steinem compared some state-level efforts in the U.S. to limit "reproductive freedom" to the wide-ranging and intrusive controls on women in the male-dominated kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Published April 22, 2013
