When I first saw the latest Richard Cohen brouhaha sparked by this column, I thought he suffered from Chronic Racial Grandpa-ism (CRG), a late in life on-set condition with which many of us are probably familiar. The person in question probably has little if any real racial animus and may even believe in equality as far as it goes. But they are constantly falling into ways of talking about race – and not just talking but thinking about race – that just aren’t how people talk any more. A constant source of cringes and excuse-making for younger relatives.
At 72, Cohen is old enough to be afflicted. But I don’t think that’s really what’s going on with him. There’s something more ambivalent and pernicious.
Meet Joe Olivo. He’s part of a conservative business group that sued to try to stop Obamacare. Yet lots of news outlets keep portraying him as a regular ol’ business owner, including in stories about Obamacare, without mentioning the group.
