Over at MediaMinded there's a summary of the feud between media critics William McGowan, author of "Coloring the News" and Eric Alterman, author of "What Liberal Media."

To make a long story short, Alterman apparently (I haven't gotten that far yet) slams McGowan's book based on a negative review in the Washington Monthly magazine. (The same publication that lauded New York Times columnist Paul Krugman in a feature article.)

After McGowan wrote an open letter to Alterman pointing out factual inaccuracies in the original review (which McGowan also contested when the review was first published) and asking for a retraction. McGowan also gave numerous sources Alterman could check to verify the veracity of his version.

Instead of doing a little reasearch or making a phone call or two, Alterman simply says that he trusts the Washington Monthly and its writer, so no other checking is necessary.

Of course, lazy reporting is nothing new for Alterman.