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| Fifth Column |
| WaPo Omsbudsman Awakens: Bitch-Slaps WaPo (1 down; hundreds to go) |
| 2004-09-06 |
Ombudsman: Is That What He Really Said? By Michael Getler - Sunday, September 5, 2004 "Cheney Calls Kerry Unfit," read the big, front-page headline over a story in Thursday's Post about attacks on the Democratic challenger at the Republican convention in speeches by Vice President Cheney and Democratic Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia. "Unfit" is a powerful, personally damning word; it has become even more explosive in the past several weeks because it is in the title of a best-selling book, "Unfit For Command" by John E. O'Neill and Jerome R. Corsi. The book is the cornerstone of a nationwide effort by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth to challenge Sen. John F. Kerry's war record. The problem is that Cheney never used the word "unfit." Yet the headline can be seen as reinforcing the Swift boat challengers' attack. The headline writer no doubt drew inspiration from the first paragraph of the story by reporter John F. Harris, who wrote that Cheney "reached back decades" into Kerry's life, "arguing in taunting language that the Democratic presidential nominee has demonstrated through his public statements and votes that he is unfit to be commander in chief in an age of terrorism." |
| Posted by:.com |
| #1 Maybe they wrote the article before the speech. That's what Harpers does. Pre-drafting is much healthier for journaists psychologically. So of them truly fear writer's block and this new innovation really can improve their quality of life. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-09-06 10:52:14 PM |