1918-
Vice-President and Media Critic

Agnew's Speech.

On 13 November 1969 at 7:00 P.M. Vice-president Spiro Agnew made a speech carried live by the three networks that lambasted those networks. The impetus behind Agnew's speech was the press reaction, especially the television news reaction, to a speech on the Vietnam War by President Richard M. Nixon on 3 November 1969. In the speech Nixon called on the support of "the great silent majority of my fellow Americans," asking for their help in achieving his goal of ending the war in victory.

Instant Analysis.

Agnew, in his speech, concentrated on the analysis following Nixon's speech, attacking it as "instant analysis and querulous criticism": It was obvious that their minds were made up in advance. . . . One commentator twice contradicted the President's statement about the exchange of correspondence with Ho Chi Minh. Another challenged the President's abilities as a politician. A third asserted...