Do Liberals Really Live in a Bubble? 3 Views
3. John Ekdahl
Earlier this week Decision Desk HQ co-founder John Ekdahl asked what he probably thought was a simple question on Twitter.
"The top 3 best selling vehicles in America are pick-ups. Question to reporters: do you personally know someone that owns one?" tweeted Ekdahl.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
While there were those who answered the question civilly, many respondents lashed out at Ekdahl in what ricochet.com editor Jon Gabriel described as "hours of contempt, confusion, and rage."
"Many Americans, left and right, live in monochrome cultural enclaves. Many of my friends at DC think tanks and my relatives on the farm don't interact with many people who live different lives than themselves. Admitting this isn't a black mark on either group; it merely helps us understand our limited perspective," wrote Gabriel.
"Humility is a requirement if you want to learn or write about the many subjects outside your ken. Journalism would be a lot better if our media accepted this truth."
Others, including one writer at Mediaite, were quick to note that at least one of the Tweets done by a non-reporter refuted the statistical claim by Ekdahl, noting that it was flawed.
"It does show that the idea that pickups are the most popular type of car in America is flawed; it's just that there are less models of trucks, so truck sales are heavily concentrated," the Mediaite column noted.
"Plus with 'the media' as we think of it heavily concentrated in New York, with its massive public transit system, it's not entirely the most fair question."
The Mediaite also quoted from some of the more constructive tweets, including one that asked "If you don't know someone who takes public transportation to work daily, should you write about big cities?"
