A colleague turned me on to AngryJournalist.com last weekend because there was a post and some responses touting the "fact" that copy editors were unnecessary -- reporters could just read each other's copy and that would be sufficient. This earned hearty guffaws from my colleague -- who was amused that the ace reporter had used […]
UPDATE! This post has been updated Many of you will recall the report put out a few years ago by the Bush administration's Department of Homeland Security warning of the rise of left-wing extremism. The report singled out universities for their subversive "peace studies" programs (and the affiliated gender/minority "studies" programs) and groups like Code […]
Earlier this month President Barack Obama signed a law raising the cigarette tax 62 cents a pack, bringing the total federal tax to $1.01. The additional income (assuming that the increased costs don't result in decreased consumption and less net income) will be used to fund the State Children's Health Insurance Program for the poor, […]
Pastor Rick Warren, author of the bestselling book "The Purpose-Driven Life," was on Hugh Hewitt's radio show earlier this week. Warren talked about a variety of things, but one issue that was just mentioned in passing jumped out at me. HH: Rick Warren, to wrap this one up before we talk about the church in […]
The New York Times editorial board vs. The New York Times Company financial guys: The editorial board on Dec. 28, 2008: The argument against unions — that they unduly burden employers with unreasonable demands — is one that corporate America makes in good times and bad, so the recession by itself is not an excuse […]
Jon Meacham is editor of Newsweek magazine. At the Reagan Forum earlier this week, he had this to say: “As a journalist, I did not drink the Obama Kool-Aid last year. I think if he walks across the Potomac, his feet will get wet.” Just his feet? And then there's this question: What does not […]
Last Thursday, the Chicago Tribune published a story looking at White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel's stint on the board of directors of Freddie Mac. To say the story paints a troubling picture of cronyism and corruption is an understatement. In a year-plus tour, Emanuel attended a total of six meetings and made more […]
There's plenty of reasons why newspapers are struggling nowadays. Just yesterday the Houston Chronicle and Atlanta Journal-Constitution announced layoffs. There will likely be more next week at some newspaper somewhere. There's three major reasons behind this decline: the overall economic environment, bad management and the Internet. While part-time, hobbyist bloggers can never replicate even a small […]
VoiceofSanDiego.org has published a softball Q&A with Art Cooley, who helped found the Environmental Defense Fund, entitled "The Guy Who Defeated DDT." Of course, the outright ban on DDT which Cooley and his friends succeeded with decades ago also resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of Africans from malaria. I especially loved this […]
There's an interesting bit in Washington Post media reporter Howard Kurtz's latest piece, a profile of "60 Minutes" reporter Steve Kroft that tells us one of two things: Kroft is either a conservative or a far-left liberal -- there is no middle ground. One reliable source -- Kroft's wife, journalist Jennet Conant -- says he […]