I was just writing a column for tomorrow. I was going to say something — not worth getting into the context right now — about not belonging to “the Church of the New York Times.” I was going to say that, one Sunday morning, I took a train ride to Washington (from New York). Everyone was reading the New York Times. It was like the paper was the Scripture, and the train seats were the pews.
I was thinking, as I was writing my column, “This will come off as extreme — over-the-top.”
Wanting to take a break from writing — as one does — I checked the news. I was reading about Jill Abramson, just tabbed to be the new chief editor of the New York Times. I read this: “In my house growing up, The Times substituted for religion. If The Times said it, it was the absolute truth.”
I don’t think I’ll worry much, about my rhetoric re the Times.
Interesting quote from JA. Sort of an admission that her home had no real religion. Sounds like fertile ground for a future Times editor.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIt remains to be seen if Ms. Abramson believes, as did her predecessor Bill Keller, that it is her duty to decide what information should be shared with the public and what information should not. When Keller was at the helm of the NYT, he said he decided what was news and what was not. I can't wait to see how the new kid on the block plays the game, although claiming that anything that appears in the NYT is the truth and placing it's value above that of the Bible should give us a clue.
Apparently, Ms. Abramson was living in a cave during the MoveOn.Org versus General Petraeus controversy, when the NYT was forced to admit that it lied about providing a discount to MoveOn.Org to run an anti-Petraeus ad on the day he appeared before Congress to report on the progress of the Iraq War. He was blind-sided by anti-war liberals at the NYT before the hearing and by anti-war liberals in Congress during the hearing.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseNo shock here. To a lot of liberals, the NY Times is indeed their substitute for God.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseOh, that made me laugh :-)
Indeed, it seems we perennially underestimate just how extreme some liberals will be. On a side note, why is the extreme ones end up in power? I personally have several liberal friends who are very reasonable people, wrong, but reasonable.
On another side note, this extremism is why when people tell me that allowing same-sex marriage won't lead to allowing polygamy and such, I don't believe them. Wake up and smell the liberal coffee!
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWonder if anyone at the NYT ever thought: "This will come off as extreme — over-the-top."
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseGee, I wonder if she will make inclusiveness and diversity one of her primary goals in her new position; because, y'know, that's such a bold, fresh, out-of-the-box idea.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAnyone else remember the NY Times' tv ad campaign about how reading the various Times' sections was THE thing to do on Sunday morning. I thought at the time about the "religion" connection. Those ads may still be running - couldn't say because my tv time has dwindled to near zero.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI can hear Jill's parents now,"Aw...Just look at those apple-cheeked kids in the Ukraine! Walter Duranty says here in The Times that Joe Stalin is the 'kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being he's ever known in his life.'"
Blind faith? Yeah. Blind faith.
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