This whole post is great, but this part struck me:
Attacking Palin would be bad business for Limbaugh or Beck or whoever
– if only because it would divide their audience. They can’t expect the
mainstream media to do it for them because of the limited influence the
regular media has in Republican circles. And they can’t do it
themselves directly because they don’t act in concert, and anybody who
sticks his neck out first is liable to get it chopped off.
Decades of deriding the regular "liberal" media have blunted its effect on Republican voters. At the same time, guys like Hannity, Rush and Beck have become media superstars who function to boost ratings and advertising.
Now we have Palin, who is impervious to criticism from the liberal media (read: all media) for reasons outlined above, and who won't be criticized by anyone with Republican-credibility because, what do they care? Ratings, baby, ratings.
In 1982 Lee Atwater rubbed a monkey's paw and wished for the New York Times to have no currency with Republican voters, in 2010 his wish comes true.
