Mentalist Oz Pearlman was featured this past weekend at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.The choice of a "mentalist" for the entertainment portion of the program was apt.
Performers in that category combine psychology, suggestion, observation, misdirection and showmanship to create the illusion of mind reading."The Amazing Kreskin," aka George Joseph Kresge Jr., entertained television audiences for years with the same repertoire of illusions and stunts, appearing upward of 80 times with Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show" during their parallel heydays in the 1970s.Pearlman was an appropriate choice to display his talents for reporters on the White House beat.
That could even be categorized as continuing education.Increasingly, members of the legacy media stationed at either end of Pennsylvania Avenue are relying on the practices employed by Pearlman and Kreskin to draw conclusions about President Donald Trump and, more recently, Vice President JD Vance.Keep your eyes and ears open for reporting in print or on broadcasts that relays what the president or vice president is "thinking" or "feeling," as opposed to what they have said or done.
There is no shortage of the former.Sometimes, these opinions and predictions dressed up as reporting are preceded by "sources close to Mr.
Trump" or "White House aides who were granted anonymity because they are not authorized to speak on the record say Mr.Vance believes.
…" A favorite construction is "sources with knowledge of his position."TRUMP HEADS BACK TO CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER MONTHS AFTER GUNFIRE FORCED EVACUATIONIncreasingly rare is the story that simply provides direct quotes or descriptions of actions taken.Though President Trump is by far the most accessible of presidents, reporters looking for scoops and clicks still retreat into the shadows of the "sources say" genre.Between 1,500 and 2,000 people work in the Executive Office of the President, about half of whom are political employees.
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