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Reason Online: An Open Letter to Editorial Page Editors (1/15/08) by Matt Welch
Making a "plea on behalf of the dwindling number of us who read or care about newspaper editorials," Welch addresses media that plan to "endorse McCain regardless of what anyone else says."And not merely "endorse" him, either: You'll compare his "firm principles" to "the gyroscopes that keep ships and planes on course," you'll unleash an additional "anti-endorsement" upon his one-state-over rival, and you'll keep endorsing away all season.... Before passing on your McEnthusiasms to the copy desk, please remember your canonical journalistic responsibility not to make shit up or pass along easily debunkable falsehoods. Particularly when the subject of your affection has provided copious evidence to the contrary of your claims.
A classic example Welch cites is this passage from a Michigan paper's endorsement: "For much of his career, McCain has stood by what he believes, no matter how unpopular. He opposed GOP tax cuts in 2001 and 2003." Odd as it is to be praising someone for always standing by what he believes "for much of his career," it's odder still to cite his anti-tax cut stance as an example of this, since he's subsequently renounced this position in favor of a more popular (to Republicans) pro-tax cut line.
See FAIR's article: Covering McCain: Are Journalists On the Bus or Off the Bus? (2/24/00) by Jeff Cohen.
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