BROOKE GLADSTONE: Every once in a while, we examine words that percolate up through the media, sometimes with new meanings, and lately we've encountered an interesting one: "Michael Moore" used as an adjective or a state of mind. Mostly his name has been invoked to describe a kind of liberal...the bad kind. As in a recent congressional hearing. [TAPE PLAYS]

MAN: Mr. Speaker, my colleagues across the aisle have two sides to choose from: the John Kerry side that acknowledges the election is over and President Bush has won, or the Michael Moore side that defines democracy as Democrats going to the polls and conspiracy as Republicans going to the polls.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: January is just two weeks old, and Moore has turned up repeatedly on cable news, on CNN's Crossfire and several times on Fox News, such as when Sean Hannity referred to the (quote) "Michael Moore model of hatred." But the coup de grace, for us anyway, was last Sunday, during the series opener of the Fox action show "24," when the fictional Secretary of Defense invoked Michael Moore, the adjective, in an argument with his son. [TAPE PLAYS]

FATHER: It will humiliate the president, and it will be dangerous to national security.

SON: What could be more dangerous than 2500 missile delivery systems?

FATHER: Oh, spare me your 6th grade, Michael Moore logic.

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: You know, you used to have Scoop Jackson Democrats, which meant Democrats who were tough on Communism. You used to have Reagan Democrats, which meant Democrats who voted for Republicans. And now we have Michael Moore Democrats, and it's not altogether clear what it means.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Chris Suellentrop is the deputy Washington bureau chief for Slate.

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: Look, the Republicans are very good at this. The Democrats like to tar Republicans as extremists. That's one of the favorite Democrat words, but Republicans have come up with one individual and particular extremist and tried to say that all the Democrats are that guy. To be fair, not only Republicans are bandying around this Michael Moore label. Peter Beinart, the editor of The New Republic, mentioned Michael Moore in a much talked about article in Washington about how to re-define the Democratic Party, and he talked about wanting to purge the Democrats of what he called the Michael Moore and MoveOn factions. In some sense, people think Michael Moore Democrat means the kind of Democrat I don't like. Peter Beinart used it to mean peacenik Democrat. The Secretary of Defense in "24" used it to mean protester Democrat.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Howard Dean recently put in his name for nomination as chair of the DNC - the Democratic National Committee. Don't you think Howard Dean Democrat has a pretty good ring?

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: [LAUGHS] Absolutely. And if Howard Dean becomes chairman of the DNC, I guarantee you, people will immediately call him a Michael Moore Democrat. [LAUGHTER] You know, whether it's because they think he's against the war or whether it's because they think he's, you know, aggressive and tough and gave the Democrats the, what, the spinal transplant is what it was called. If you were the person that wanted to inject the phrase Michael Moore Democrat into the mainstream, your dream would be to have Howard Dean be chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: But let's talk about the accuracy of the term itself. You said on the one hand Michael Moore-ism can represent any kind of left wing position that you don't like, but the fact is, when you try to apply it, it never, ever makes sense -- not even in connection with Howard Dean, who is pretty centrist in his policies except with regard to the war in Iraq.

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: Look, Michael Moore is identified with a few things. He's identified with opposition to the war, which Howard Dean is also identified with. He's identified with being pro-union. His origins come from protesting corporations. It's interesting that he's sort of transitioned from that into, you know, geo-politics.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: But basically he's not being defined by the political positions he took at all, but by the fact that he's obnoxious.

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: [LAUGHS] Yes. So, Michael Moore Democrat means obnoxious Democrat then.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Have you encountered anybody who has self-identified as a Michael Moore Democrat?

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: I have not. I mean, that was one of the big criticisms of Peter Beinart's piece, was -look, is Michael Moore really one of the two major figures in the Democratic Party? Was he really in charge of a wing of the Democratic Party? No. I mean even people who like him know that he's unfair and biased and obnoxious and sometimes dishonest - but they think, hey - you know what - he's funny.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Thanks a lot, Chris.

CHRIS SUELLENTROP: All right. Thanks a lot.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Chris Suellentrop is the deputy Washington bureau chief for Slate. [TAPE PLAYS]

MAXINE WATERS: Mr. Speaker and members, I dedicate my objection to Ohio's electoral votes to Mr. Michael Moore.

BOB GARFIELD: Coming up, after school specials, the latchkey kids' best friend, and Mom and Dad, the movie. Not suitable for children.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: This is On the Media, from NPR. [FUNDING CREDITS]