To Greg’s point in particular, I think the problem is not just that Palin’s attacks and smears have become so vile and absurd that they no longer merit attention, but rather, that major media outlets pass along Palin’s vile and absurd attacks without telling the public that her nonsense is nonsense.
This, this, a thousand times this. The press does this all the time. You can see it most clearly when anti-science lunatics blather on about “teaching the controversy” but it happens on every subject. Without anyone to name a lie for what it is, any penalty or drawback for lying is removed. It’s pure poison to our political system, and the proliferation of this mindset among journalists and editors is a major factor in why we are where we are today. ANY time a public figure tells a lie, it needs to be called out. ANY time a public figure gets the facts twisted, it needs to be called out and put in context. Public figures complain? Eff ’em; scrutiny is part and parcel of what they signed up for. These people are public servants*, not an aristocracy.
*Sarah Palin is not a public servant. She quit halfway through her term and is now a media personality, much like Anne Coulter or Glenn Beck. Or Jesse James, for that matter…