Time.com has a piece about how TMZ, “the usually Hollywood-focused follower of celebrity gossip and scandal”– not Politico or The Washington Post or any of the usual D.C. media suspects — broke the Bo Obama Story. From TMZ’s co-founder, Harvey Levin:
We’re [in Washington] to create personalities. Even though it’s a lower level of covering politics, I think it’ll bring people in that never had interest in politics before.
But is TMZ’s personality-driven reporting that much “lower” a “level of covering politics,” really?
And:
While Levin is enjoying the lighthearted stories now, he’s not ruling out tougher investigative pieces down the line. And since TMZ is not applying for press credentials, his crews won’t be with the usual Washington press corps.
Not following the D.C. press pack and possibly pursuing investigative stories? Could be the makings of a “higher” form of political coverage…
