Iraqi Pro’s and Con’s, and a Christmas Betrayal

By Paul McLeary   Dec 5, 2005 at 01:11 PM

Daniel Drezner has been thinking about the eventual withdrawal of American forces from Iraq, and Time magazine's long look at... More

When Spooks Were Reporters and Reporters Were Spooks

It’s been a busy week for Fake News. But at least one commentator is pining for the days when even more news was fake.

By Paul McLeary   Dec 2, 2005 at 05:26 PM

It was a busy week for Fake News (Jon Stewart, are you listening?), what with revelations first in the Los... More

Some Reporters Can’t Resist Even a Sputtering Washing Machine

Often, there seems to be a sort of unspoken agreement between the political and reporting classes to wink, nod and let some obvious stretches of the imagination slide when news organizations run with some item that was obviously planted.

By Paul McLeary   Nov 30, 2005 at 04:37 PM

Talking points, spin, partisan positioning -- day in and day out, politicians and their handlers are working overtime to get... More

The New York Times: A Family Newspaper

Something more than simple subjectivity seems to be at work in the New York Times’ notable books of the year list: Six of the 61 nonfiction books were authored by Times staffers, and another four by regular contributors.

By Paul McLeary   Nov 29, 2005 at 04:30 PM

Around this time every year, major newspaper and magazine editors from sea to shining sea -- which is to say,... More

Pajamas Media Rolls Out Of Bed, Falls on Face

When an organization whose goal it is to revolutionize the way in which people receive information asks its readers “What should we be?” more than a week after its much-hyped re-launch, odds are it’s in trouble.

By Paul McLeary   Nov 28, 2005 at 01:37 PM

When an organization whose goal it is to revolutionize the way in which people receive information asks its readers "What... More

Sometimes, the Answer Is the Answer

The New York Observer gives us a Judith Miller article so counterintuitive as to be downright silly.

By Paul McLeary   Nov 23, 2005 at 04:26 PM

There's nothing like a smart, well-written piece of counterintuitive journalism to tweak conventional wisdom and call the legions of pundits... More

Howard Kurtz, Piñata

How real is Howard Kurtz’s conflict of interest between his roles at CNN and the Washington Post?

By Paul McLeary   Nov 22, 2005 at 01:47 PM

There's little the media likes more than a good, old-fashioned pile-on. In the ongoing and increasingly frustrating MillerPlameCooperLibbyNovakFitzgeraldWoodward story, we... More

Little Stories About a Big Company: Wal-Mart

By Paul McLeary   Nov 18, 2005 at 06:23 PM

Mega-retailer Wal-Mart has received a lot of press lately -- and so it should. What makes better copy than stories... More

Wen Ho Lee: The Next Patrick Fitzgerald?

By Paul McLeary   Nov 18, 2005 at 04:12 PM

It's been quite a week for Washington Post reporter Walter Pincus. On Wednesday, he was again sucked into the "Scooter"... More

Doomsday - or Not?

By Paul McLeary   Nov 16, 2005 at 02:52 PM

One of these days the Audit is going to post a list of the 100 worst habits of the American... More

From One Journalist to Another - All the Tough Questions

By Paul McLeary   Nov 15, 2005 at 11:24 AM

One might expect an interview with a television business anchor to focus on the state of the economy, the world... More

Stenographers at Work Again

By Paul McLeary   Nov 11, 2005 at 05:20 PM

The White House is again taking the fight to the enemy -- in this case, critics of the war in... More

Even Reporters Have Mastered the Art of Saying Nothing

By Paul McLeary   Nov 10, 2005 at 02:57 PM

Judy Miller, standing just a few feet away from Matt Cooper, was laughing when she turned to introduce a friend... More

“Digital Munich?” Or Jingoistic Hysteria?

By Paul McLeary   Nov 8, 2005 at 01:20 PM

Here's a short follow-up to yesterday's post on Senator Norm Coleman's little piece of agitprop in the Wall Street Journal.Coleman,... More

Inventing a Fight Over the Internet

By Paul McLeary   Nov 7, 2005 at 03:45 PM

Sometimes, even we're surprised at some of what we read on the Wall Street Journal editorial page. This morning's installment... More