At CNN, Howard Kurtz will call it a day!

MONDAY, JUNE 24, 2013

One of the strangest shows ever: Next Sunday, Howard Kurtz will end a 15-year run as host of the weekly CNN program, Reliable Sources.

Kurtz will be going over to Fox, where he will start hosting the weekly program, Fox News Watch.

Kurtz is smarter than most major journalists. Over the years, he has sometimes done good work—and he has hosted one of the strangest programs in cable news history.

The strangeness of Reliable Sources has rarely been mentioned within the guild which is known as the “mainstream press corps.” All your favorite fiery “liberals” have also agreed to stare into air as this program proceeded.

What made this long-running program so odd? Just this:

On Reliable Sources, Kurtz claimed, week after week, to be conducting a show “which trains a critical lens on the media.” But here’s how CNN did that:

First, they hired Kurtz, a member of the upper-end press corps, to host the weekly program. And then, each week, they would assemble a panel of three or four other press corps members to help him conduct his discussions.

Could any other industry even dream of presenting a program like this? Can you imagine a weekly show about health care in which a hospital executive served as host, with three or four other hospital executives serving as his panel?

In any other industry, a show like that would be known as an infomercial. For the past fifteen years, CNN has called its show “a critical look at the media.”

We first posted this obvious point in 1999. Have you ever seen even one of your favorite liberals second this obvious point?

Your favorite stars want to get on TV. Toward that end, they may not tell you the obvious things they are thinking.

It’s your role not to notice these things. After all, they’re on your side!