The Washington Post yesterday terminated the “White House Watch” column written by Dan Froomkin. Froomkin did far better and more courageous coverage of the torture scandal than did any other Post columnist or editorial writer. (Washington Post cartoonist Tom Toles also did magnificent work on this score). Froomkin was off to a strong start on the Obama administraiton, highlighting the new president’s hypocrisy and abandonment of principles. A pink slip was Froomkin’s reward.
Froomkin recognized that cravenness is destroying the newspaper and media businesses:
“If mainstream-media political journalists don’t start calling bullshit more often, then we do risk losing our primacy — if not to the comedians then to the bloggers.
“I still believe that no one is fundamentally more capable of first-rate bullshit-calling than a well-informed beat reporter – whatever their beat. We just need to get the editors, or the corporate culture, or the self-censorship – or whatever it is – out of the way”
Apparently, as long as top Washington Post editors can keep reaping the rewards of publishing BS, that is all that matters. And Washington Post honchos will no longer need to worry about complaints from The Powers That Be about Froomkin pointing out their lies and betrayals.
Glenn Greenwald has an excellent column on Froomkin’s firing here.
Very sad. Like I said Jim, the helots must be kept ignorant. Froomkin made a good point about comedians and bloggers.
Jim, just proves my theory that indeed, the Lame Stream Media is nothing more than agents for the state. I heard Scott Horton interview Glenn Greenwald, and he was furious about this.
Somehow, the term “Corporate Culture” would seem a tad contradictory.
The Hartford Courant dumped it’s capitol reporting staf several weeks ago, claiming they were going to concentrate more on “local news”. This is a paper thats been around long enough for me to recall seeing an issue that described Napoleons advances through the continent and it don’t have a capitol beat. Astounding….
This is part of a larger Separation of Powers issues that is receiving no attention whatsoever. The Checks and Balances gloves are off , those in possession of power are going bare-knuckled and it aint amongst themselves, it is with the dumbocrats and their dumbocracy. The People, such as they are still think merely voting in a 40% turnout is sufficient to run a Republic. It aint, and we’re proof of it. The Ass Hat is no longer a Fashion Statement, It’s the Unthinking Mans Crown in his Great Effort to achieve the biggest tanking of an empire in history.
That is bizarre about the Hartford Courant dropping its capitol reporting staff.
It is not like they had to travel a long ways to go to the damn statehouse.
Sorry, on vacation right now, so I haven’t been keeping up with all the happenings here. Saw this piece by Sibel Edmonds on “corporate media”. They really do suck don’t they Jim.
http://123realchange.blogspot.com/2009/07/corporate-media-how-corporate-is.html