As the Washington Post flailed about yesterday trying to find a way to blame Nico Pitney for their trying to sell access to Villagers and Villager Enthusiasts, one thing was very curious indeed. As Jamison Foser asks at Media Matters, where was the WaPo’s media critic on this?
How was he scooped so badly by of all places, the Politico and Mike Allen aka beltway Eddie Haskell?
Well, Howie was busy doing important stuff — let the tweets speak for themselves:
The ultimate white guy, who has certainly never written a column about white guys covering white guys really thought he had one awesome story. Howie, you’re a lifetime member of the Ya Ya Wankerhood.
Earlier this week Kurtz mentioned the departure of Dan Froomkin from the Washington Post and put the most cursory pro-employer spin possible on it, stating, "Washington City Paper Editor Erik Wemple reports that the main issue was Froomkin’s $100,000 contract and his declining traffic".
As to the last part, anybody who wants to assert a declining traffic meme can look at the number of comments on their ombudsman’s blog when he’s discussing Froomkin to anyone else.
Secondly, as dickish as publishing Froomkin’s salary is, it makes you wonder just how much more the Washington Post is paying Howard Kurtz to be so pathetic?
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Zed? Good morning Attaturk. I have some lovely french roast brewing should be done in a few minutes.
Kurtz is to journalism as Joe is to plumbing.
I’m still peeved about Froomkin. It was one of the few reasons I had WaPo in my bookmarks. the other reason would be the horoscope.
Okay, I’m glad I checked out the ombudsman’s blog. I found this little tidbit about Mark Sanford claiming that he turned down a $30,000 ‘housing allowance’ and sleeping on his office floor. And nobody had bothered to check that there was no such thing. The ’seed of truth’ (what truth? blargh) is that there’s a $30,000 tax deduction that the Rep can take to offset housing costs in DC. I’d be interested to know if Sanford had claimed that tax deduction or not.
hey beard – my intertubes went down and just came back up. g’nite all.
Good night Suzanne! Sleep well.
I could understand the listing of Froomkin’s salary IF Kurtz ALSO included at least a dozen other people who made more or a similar amount. Saying that Froomkin makes such an amount is absolutely meaningless without the context.
Morning all, Now we can see what Rachel does on vacation
http://www.democraticundergrou…..15;5971557
$100K/yr doesn’t sound all that large to me, especially in the D.C. area.
My guess is that Howie included the number because it’s more than they’re paying *him*.
petulant pissant.
Good morning, pups. It’s Bobo and Krugman today. Bobo, in “Chinese Fireworks Display,” says when contemplating the United States and its future, it’s impossible not to think about America’s role in the world and its relationship with China. Duh. Prof. Krugman, in “That 30s Show,” asks failing to learn from history mean we are doomed to repeat it? Not necessarily, but it’s up to Washington to ensure that 1937 doesn’t happen all over again.
Here they are.
The coffee and tea are ready, and I’ve got waffles with either maple syrup or fresh raspberries (or both!). The cold drinks are in the fridge for later, and now I’m headed out into the garden to do some weeding before it gets too hot. Have a great day.
Busted linky for me…
I’m sorry Foothillsmike, the link doesn’t appear to work.
Try, Try again
http://www.democraticundergrou…..15;5971557
Still no worky it is democratic underground
Neet picture of Rachel fishing
Mornin’, gang -
Please forgive the shouting but y’all will be interested:
Nico Pitney on Washington Journal at 8:00 a.m.
Wonder if some knowledgeable person will manage to get through the phone lines and raise the question of Nico’s *connections* to the WH presser vs. wapoo’s selling contacts between *its* journalists, big pharma and administration people?
Glad you brought that up. I don’t really get it. Was the Obama administration in on it? Who was going to pay? The lobbyists?
did howie ever comment on milbank’s ‘you’re such a dick’ comment. his column the day following that little snitfit, howie put out a nice, sweet promotional piece for nancy snyderman’s new msnbc program. i wonder if his cnn gig is coming up for renewal…
Still no worky…
Beginning to look like one of those days where you wish you’d have stood in bed?
I want to see the picture of Rachel, Foothillsmike! “Right click” on the link to copy it. ;-)
Gibbs was making jabs at Wapo in yesterdays presser. Didn’t think admin staffers had signed on to anything.
LOL Jayt, ’stood in bed’? Are you a vampire? Is this how you sleep? Bah hahahahahahaha!
I tried twice and it has not worked either time
I found it by googling Rachel Maddow – vacation
Made the comment on one of the threads yesterday but let me turn it into a question:
Do any of y’all find gibb’s sense of humor in the least funny?
Sometimes he cracks a good one sometimes it falls flat.
What is with MSNBC = “witness to Jonestown” Oh well at least it isn’t MJ
Have no way of knowing……..spin time on the part of any or all involved/potentially involved. :-((( My best reading is lobbyists *definitely* the “pay-ers”; wapoo the “pay-ee”.
Black eyes for anyone even mentioned.
More and more, Gibbs comes off as NOT in the least funny and none to quick either.
Good morning all.
Thanks for the howie post, Attaturk. I have never payed any attention to the asshole because…. well…. he’s so obviously an asshole.
D’accord but even when it’s a good one, it’s so heavy on the snark that it can be easily misinterpreted and mischaracterized by any journalist on a witch hunt.
fishin’
“I do not normally respond to stories but this one has created enough of a stir that I wanted to take the time….Katherine (Weymouth)”
No bubble awareness whatsoever. Those darn ’stirs’, are the problem, why can’t I just sell whatever integrity wapoo has left without anyone noticing. Now I have to “take the time” to blame the underlings.
The way they ‘think’ is right out there, they don’t even pretend to any ethics anymore and it doesn’t appear they have any awareness of how obvious they are.
Once you start talking price, it isn’t love anymore.
Good looking, legal, striper like that would have made me stand up in bed as well. It has been a long time since I caught a legal (32″) striper though I have caught less than legal size from my back yard.
LOL! Just caught the tail end of a question on the WJ for Jennifer Loven (AP WH correspondent) to the effect of, “How do you think gibbs handles the press conferences?” Her response was (how shall I say?) *diplomatic* to the max.
What is with MSNBC = “witness to Jonestown” Oh well at least it isn’t
MJDoucheboroughfixt.
I used to see Gibbs on Doucheborough, before I stopped watching Doucheborough, and thought he was quite witty. Nice dry sense of humor. Haven’t caught any of his act as Press Secretary yet….
Hooray for a media outlet doing the right thing
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/…..nergy-lie/
We’ve already established what kind of journalist your are, Kathrine. Now we’re simply quibbling over price and the posting thereof.
Once heard diplomacy described as the art of having someone thank you for being told to fuck off. Taken in that light I suppose we know what Jen thinks of Gibbs as the WH
press flackPress Sec.Someone should ask if the WaPo has done this before. Have a feeling it’s a common practice. But I’m still confused on why Government officials would do this. What’s in it for them?
We’ve already established what kind of journalist your are, Kathrine. Now we’re simply quibbling over price…
excellent.
May be scar just didn’t manage to drag himself out of bed to make the usual start time. Think I heard earlier that starbucks will run for its full time period following that Jonestown piece…..not sure for positive.
i really think they would run straight out porn, if they could. their weekend programming is essentially basic cable porn — prison ‘documentaries’ and gruesome crime stories excessively detailed in the retelling. at least it’s not paid infomericals, i guess.
But I’m still confused on why Government officials would do this. What’s in it for them?
could be seen as a good news/bad news sort of thing.
Bad news = bribery is still goin’ on.
Good news = Transparency!!
Swim is up top…
She’s got AP attached to her name (am not familiar with her work) but just the AP part makes her questionable from the get-go.
Morning JOkE is late or a no-show for his own show far to often for me. (aside from the fact that the show is an awfull chucklefest void of almost any real news)
Natural Selection in the Descent of the Fourth Estate
Froomkin’s firing followed by this week’s pay to play triumph just confirms WAPO’s role as all whoroscope, all the time.
Rosebud …
As I have spent numerous blogposts point out, Howard Kurtz isa Republican Operative like his wife.
His job is to create a false “two sides” (there are only two to everythign you know) and demand a “neutral” playing field — in whcih of course the Republicans dominate and control all messages.
I don’t know why Glenn Greenwald hasn’t ripped this noxious creep and his projectile-vomit-provoking wife (whose most important achievement was making Arnold the Governator of California) limb from limb.
At the risk of being trollish, I’d say there are good reasons to criticize Howie, but this posting doesn’t deal with any of them.
Do you really think that WaPo’s business department sought Howie’s opinion on their brilliant idea to sell White House access in the publisher’s dining room? Of course they didn’t. Even Howie would have objected to that.
And what’s wrong with publishing Froomkin’s salary? We want to know the salaries of our government officials and our corporate poobahs, don’t we? What’s the difference? And the salary is quite relevant since WaPo claims the Froomkin contract cancellation was a business decision.
But yes, I think Howie should publish his own salary.