Update: There will be more questions to consider after today. Andrew Breitbart has published new pictures of Weiner on his websites, which Weiner allegedly sent to a young woman from an e-mail account the congressman is said to have used as a kind of alias. The nature of the pictures—which feature the congressman topless, with his face in full view, along with what appears to be pictures of his family and of Weiner with Bill Clinton—mean this story is not going anyway too soon. As the story develops, we’re continuing to see how newspapers and networks are followers on this story, as Shafer said. The Times reports that ABC News has now interviewed the woman who supplied Breitbart with the pictures. The network is apparently still deciding when to air the interview. Breitbart is promising we will know who the woman is by tomorrow.
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I think the media should give it the same attention it reserved for John Ensign or David Vitter, but this will probably be more of a Spitzer affair.
It's a crime if a democrat does it, and worthy of a standing ovation if you're from Louisiana.
The truth is, unless he was tweeting his junk to a lobbyist:
http://wonkette.com/410964/vulgar-ca-assemblyman-caught-on-open-mic-bragging-about-various-affairs-with-lobbyists
why should I care?
#1 Posted by Thimbles, CJR on Mon 6 Jun 2011 at 05:59 PM
One good take:
http://www.balloon-juice.com/2011/06/06/youre-too-young-and-im-too-well-hung/
And another:
http://www.angryblacklady.com/2011/06/02/clarence-thomas-the-original-weinergate/
#2 Posted by Thimbles, CJR on Mon 6 Jun 2011 at 06:23 PM
The problem with Weiner isn't that he's a philanderer..
He's a liar.
Who, besides Thimbles, can get behind a damned liar?
#3 Posted by padikiller, CJR on Mon 6 Jun 2011 at 09:43 PM
"Who, besides Thimbles, can get behind a damned liar?"
Only every fricken republican on earth.
You seem to have quickly forgotten your support of Brietbart, O'keefe, the whole global warming denial movement, ectetra... ectetra...
If I was floating pictures of myself to pretty followers and I knew there'd be a shitstorm if my wife and public found out, I might be hesitant with the truth on first impulse. Human nature is stupid, but it's not a crime and not job relevant unless it involved below age women.
The people you get behind knowingly tell lies to hurt people they disagree with and protect people they support. Not out of embarrassment, but out of hate. So once again, we're not looking at the relevant things, such as bank illegality (which Spitzer tried to bring up before being character assassinated by Roger Stone and the FBI) or Clarence Thomas's judicial corruption (which Weiner was raising complaints about before getting character asassinated by patriotstalker101 and Brietbart). Nope, adults talk about relevant things. We talk about crotch shots and giggle.
#4 Posted by Thimbles, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 12:09 AM
First of all, @Joel, let's put aside the pretense that the Washington Post is a "quality" newspaper any more. That really isn't the case.
But what you are talking about here, and I agree with a lot of your problems about the congenital contrarian Jack Shafer's latest screed, is news judgment. And the most respectable news organizations are still exercising their professional judgment about what rises to the level of news. I applaud them for that, even when I disagree with that judgment.
I wouldn't say that the New York Times is a "follower" rather than a "leader." I think just the opposite is true. While CNN and ABC and NPR are running with every false rumor that comes out on Twitter, and have been embarrassed into retractions on a number of occasions, at least some of the more respectable organizations uphold their journalism standards enough to hold off on a story long enough for independent fact-checking. That makes them "leaders" not "followers."
One should never trust a "breaking" story from CNN, ABC, or NPR. They have lost their credibility in the rush to broadcast every giddy thing that promises scandal and ratings. And now with ABC openly collaborating with Andrew Breitbart, any shred of credibility they had is gone forever. There is a price to be paid for publishing more faux scandals faster and louder.
#5 Posted by James, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 12:48 AM
Breitbart was a whole lot more credible than Weiner was!
That's for sure.
We're talking about a guy who cheated on his wife on Twitter (immature, disloyal and stupid)... Then fabricated a false story (malicious and cunning)... Then lied about it to the whole country (mendacious)... And now, instead of resigning, is dragging his family and the country through a huge ethics investigation (narcissistic and recalcitrant)..
Yep... This is guy we can all get behind! What a man!
I hope the Dems keep as many of these kind of guys as they can find, at least for another 17 months.
#6 Posted by padikiller, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 08:59 AM
You're interested by boxer shorts and the ways people attempt to conceal them? Enjoy your fetish. Me? Not interested. What matters to me is who he voted and spoke on behalf of. Guys like Spitzer and Weiner should be known for the enemies they made and how they made them, not by the ways their enemies paid to expose them.
I'm more interested in stories like these:
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/05/05/113759/this-fact-may-not-sit-well-americans.html
http://thinkprogress.org/report/koch-oil-speculation/
Nope, when unemployment is at 9% and oil is experiencing price spikes and psychos and cynics are playing chicken with the debt limit unless government spending is cut (to make room for more tax cuts) which will make a bad, supply flooded economy choke and sputter, I'm not interested in flaccid stories about wiener / boxer / twitter.
Would you like some more bread with your circus?
#7 Posted by Thimbles, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 09:46 AM
Four posts from a guy who's "not interested" in the Weiner story.
Right, Thimbles. Whatever gets you through the night.
Speaking of which... I don't care about the Weiner's sexual proclivities..
But I do care about his ability to fabricate a lie and foist it upon his constituents.
A guy who will so readily lie about a silliness like this should not be entrusted with any responsibility.
#8 Posted by padikiller, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 12:57 PM
Right on Padikiller ... if a politico can fuck over his wife with no compunction then he can surely do the same to his constituents.
#9 Posted by Mike H, CJR on Tue 7 Jun 2011 at 01:54 PM
Give me a frickin break. Politifact and Factcheck do booming business with politicians that lie every single day. Every single day. Politicians lie to their constituents and reporters. Right to their face.
In fact, politicians are caught lying so often that journos don't even pay it any mind any more. "Lie of the Year"? Not even a mention out of Washington news organizations. Politicians from both parties lie to journos right to their face, demonstrably lie, on matters of great import. Every. Single. Day, All day. And journos don't care.
So I don't get this moral high horse AT ALL. This handwringing is just stupid, and hypocritical to the extreme.
#10 Posted by James, CJR on Wed 8 Jun 2011 at 08:23 AM
There is a clear difference between misstating or overstating the facts in the course of a political debate and fabricating and propounding the false report of crime in order to avoid personal accountability for the misuse of government resources for the purpose of sexual self-gratification.
Anyone who claims to be unable to distinguish these circumstances is either duplicitous or obtuse.
#11 Posted by padikiller, CJR on Wed 8 Jun 2011 at 09:54 AM