Conventional Idiocy: Why the New America is Sick of Old Politics [Hardcover]

Rick Sanchez (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 7, 2010

CNN anchor and TV news social media pioneer Rick Sanchez cuts through the bull to fearlessly share what Americans are really thinking.

It's time for the conventional idiots to wake up—because Americans have had enough. People in social networks are smashing the walls of partisan politics and traditional journalism—and things will never be the same. This is the new America-and Rick Sanchez is plugged in to the national conversation.

As the first national news anchor to combine traditional network news with the power of social-networking tools like Twitter, MySpace, and Facebook, CNN's Rick Sanchez doesn't just talk to Americans—he hears directly from them, unfiltered, every day. As Rick says, "It wasn't me talking. It was we talking."

Viewers tweet at Rick daily, so he knows they are sick of "conventional idiocy" like death panels, birthers, and blind partisanship. Luckily, Rick Sanchez is listening, and he's here to provide the takeaway.

Watch a Video

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Rick Sanchez anchors Rick’s List each weekday and is the former anchor for the 3–4 p.m. CNN Newsroom. He also serves as a contributor for CNN en Espanol. His professional honors include an Emmy® Award and an American Medical Association "Distinguished Journalist Award".

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Celebra Hardcover; 1 edition (September 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451231392
• ISBN-13: 978-0451231390
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 0.9 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,250,194 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 43 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Not Much Here - September 12, 2010

By Loyd E. Eskildson HALL OF FAME

Format:Hardcover

"Americans are sick of being spoon-fed the same old conventional wisdom from so-called experts" says Rich Sanchez. Really - I hadn't noticed. We're still following the same old paths on K-12 education (more money for no improvement), college/university education (more money for fewer days and hours teaching from professors; more support staff), jobs (bicker over Federal Reserve policy and bailouts, while ignoring the two elephants in the room - the millions of jobs lost both illegal immigrants and Asians, defense (still spending more, along with Homeland Security, than the rest of the world, combined - while not feeling safe), foreign policy (telling everyone else what to do when our own economy and democracy are a mess; stationing 5,000+ State Dept. bureaucrats in Iraq alone), and the role of government. And it's no wonder - about 20% of Americans are functionally illiterate, 80% haven't read a book in at least a year, less than one-third know that members of the House serve for two years and Senators for six, and newspaper circulation is falling. And this is supposed to be solved by the 'new social media,' per Sanchez? Look at the reader comments on many of the news sites. Tweeting 140 characters about 2,000+ page bills on finance and health care that few have read is supposed to provide enlightenment?

"Conventional Idiocy" is basically a quasi-autobiography. I like Rick Sanchez, but he's not providing any useful answers or even basic material in this book.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Master of the obvious October 26, 2010

By A. Cuzzone

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book spent 250 pages stating the obvious. I know that the population is sick of partisanship and the money that corrupts politicians and wall street bailouts and wimps in the mainstream news media. I purchased the book to pick up some new insights and facts. There were no new insights in this book. Anyone who reads the newspaper on a semi-regular basis knows everything that is stated in Mr. Sanchez' book. I forced myself to read the first 200 pages and then said "enough is enough".

39 of 57 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Unconventional Stupidity September 11, 2010

By First Time Caller

Format:Hardcover

I got 20 pages into the book before I found this incredible insight regarding Jesse Jackson: While many Americans, thanks to Fox News and talk radio, have unfairly come to regard him exclusively as a "black activist" (quotation mine). Stop right there. Fox News and talk radio have made people regard Jesse Jackson unfairly??? Anyone who grew up in the 1960's is familiar with all of Jackson's shenanigans; especially wearing a shirt for days supposedly stained with the blood of MLK. To quote investigative journalist Kenneth Timmerman: Jesse Jackson is a modern day highway robber who uses cries of racism to steal from individuals, corporations, and government, to give to himself. Jackson's life is one of fraud, deceit and hatred. To say anything different shows Sanchez's real agenda. Like all major networks, the Chicken Noodle Network lost credibility years ago.

Sanchez is just another leftist parrot singing from the same DNC songbook. He is correct that America is tired of the partisan bickering. This book, however, is nothing like what I hoped it would be or what it could have been.

We've heard everything in this book already. Save your money.