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June 18, 2002, 9:40 a.m. Like Taking Condi from a Baby The Palo Alto Daily News goes to town on Dr. Rice. By Howard Mortman

ou know the old saying about bad publicity: At least they spelled my name right.

For Condoleezza Rice, that slogan was put to the test on Monday in the Palo Alto Daily News.

Turns out, the national-security adviser has no pal in the Palo Alto paper, even though the former Stanford provost returned here to keynote the university's graduation ceremony.

The front-page headline: "Not all applaud Condi."

The 21-paragraph story was chock-full of negative morsels. It flowed this way:

Paragraph 1: "… not everybody applauded the Bush administration official."

Paragraph 2: Rice "wasn't well received by about two dozen students who protested …"

Paragraph 3: "With their backs turned to Rice, they held up their black mortarboards — each with a red flier taped to the top, summarizing why they dislike Rice's politics, including the United States' refusal to sign the Kyoto environmental agreement."

Paragraph 4: "'There wasn't much substance in her speech,' said Nnenna Aguocha, 21, one of 4,600 new graduates. 'There was such a big fuss and it fell flat. I was not impressed.'"

Paragraph 5: "Aguocha didn't protest during commencement, but said she agreed with those who did."

Paragraph 6: "'That axis of evil stuff is just fueling the rage against the U.S.,' the graduate said. 'It has a lot to do with U.S. policy.'"

Paragraph 7: "While Rice was speaking, several people in the stands held a sign that read: 'Stop Isolating U.S. — Respect International Law.'"

Paragraph 14: "'She gave some good remarks but nothing earth shattering,' said Alex Rayskin."

Paragraph 18: "Outside the stadium, more than a dozen protesters held signs critical of Rice and the Bush administration."

Paragraph 19: "There were no arrests, officials said."

Paragraph 20:"George Johnson, who served in Vietnam and is a member of Veterans for Peace, held a sign showing Rice, Rumsfeld, Cheney, Helms and Lott as the 'axis of evil,' while Shrub (a small Bush) and Ashcroft made up a separate axis of ignorance."

Paragraph 21: "'She doesn't care about the dead and the next generation,' said Johnson."

So, did anyone actually like what Rice said?

Apparently so. And you wouldn't believe who.

Paragraph 11: Rice "received a standing ovation from the audience that included former U.S. Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr whose daughter Carolyn graduated."

— Howard Mortman is a Washington, D.C.-based writer currently on location at Stanford for a Hoover Institution media fellowship.