When you write and think publicly about the news and politics there is a great amount of pressure to always be certain and to be fast – or ideally both. This is also a type of public performance: one is expected to act as though they are 100 percent certain and correct even when they are full of inner doubt and anxiety. Moreover, to be a member of the Church of the Savvy and "the punditry" means to almost never apologize or course correct if one is wrong.
The capacity to throw one's errors in analysis and prediction down the memory well and to continue forward confidently is almost a requirement to be a successful member of that media and political class. Of course, some members of that class have more latitude for having their errors forgiven and forgotten. White men and white women of a certain social pedigree have that privilege. Black and brown people and others who are not from "traditional" backgrounds in the news media most certainly do not.
