Adding to what Amanda says, while I agree that the journalist class tends to be "socially liberal" in that they understand that women work and have sex and gay people exist, their social liberalism doesn't really extend to policy much. I think they understand that racism exists, but are skeptical of affirmative action or any other policies to try to deal with the problem. Likewise they understand that poverty is a problem, but aren't really supportive of government efforts to do anything about it.
So, yes, I believe that the Beltway journalist class tells the truth about themselves when they say they're "socially liberal." But it isn't a liberalism which extends to actual policy in any concrete fashion, so it's sorta meaningless.
