Published 5 March 20095 March 2009 · Main Posts the aestheticisation of politics Jeff Sparrow There’s a clip floating about featuring a particularly odd exchange between snake-lipped hatemonger Ann Coulter and lunatic eliminationist Glen Beck about the Conservative Political Action Conference, a kind of Lollapolooza for right-wing Bedlamites. ‘One thing that is overwhelming about CPAC is all of the hot babes,’ Coulter says. ‘I would be a conservative if we weren’t so good looking. But wow, we have a lot of pulchritude on our side. […] The males are pretty good looking. […] OK. The other stations would find the dorkiest-looking person, the most empty room at the convention that had 9,000 participants and fixate on the one dorky-looking person.’ Below, an actual poster from CPAC, which puts this bizarre exchange in context. Jeff Sparrow Jeff Sparrow is a writer, editor, broadcaster and Walkley award-winning journalist. He is a former columnist for Guardian Australia, a former Breakfaster at radio station 3RRR, and a past editor of Overland. His most recent book is a collaboration with Sam Wallman called Twelve Rules for Strife (Scribe). He works at the Centre for Advancing Journalism at the University of Melbourne. More by Jeff Sparrow › Overland is a not-for-profit magazine with a proud history of supporting writers, and publishing ideas and voices often excluded from other places. If you like this piece, or support Overland’s work in general, please subscribe or donate. Related articles & Essays 20 March 20262 April 2026 · Main Posts Final results of the 2025 Judith Wright Poetry Prize Editorial team Established in 2007 and supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize seeks outstanding poetry from new and emerging writers. This year’s judges, Shastra Deo, Harry Reid and […] 20 March 202620 March 2026 · Main Posts Final results of the 2025 Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize Editorial team Established in 2007 and supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, the Overland Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize seeks outstanding original short fiction of up to 3000 words themed loosely around the notion […]