[lbo-talk] J. Miller's dwindling allies

Michael Pollak mpollak at panix.com
Thu Oct 27 07:48:57 PDT 2005


On Wed, 26 Oct 2005, Carl Remick cited The New York Observer's take on the Pinch and Judy show:


> http://www.observer.com/pageone_offtherec.asp

This is really quite good. I don't read The Observer because media gossip usually makes me feel like I'm trapped bent over in a klein bottle. But when you want the media backstory, this is really a good place to go. I especially liked this bit:

<quote>

Meanwhile, Mr. Sulzberger had become virtually invisible. The

reporters and editors who had produced The Times' 5,800-word Oct. 16

piece on Ms. Miller's legal battles never heard from Mr. Sulzberger

after the story ran.

Mr. Sulzberger did, however, weigh in to tell Mr. Calame that he

disputed one of his key quotes in the story--in which Mr. Sulzberger

had said, describing the paper's legal strategy, "This car had her

hand on the wheel," meaning Ms. Miller's hand. Mr. Sulzberger felt the

quote hadn't been presented "in the proper context," as the public

editor recounted it. In an earlier interview, Mr. Sulzberger explained

to Mr. Calame, he had said that "there were other hands on the wheel

as well."

Embattled public figures have often blamed newspapers for misusing

quotes. But this was the publisher of The New York Times accusing his

own newspaper of misrepresenting his remarks--shades of Charles

Barkley being "misquoted" in his autobiography.

<end excerpt>

This is against the backdrop (which the story explores in depth) of the seemingly growing consensus that it is Sulzberger who gave Miller her special protection that allowed her to override all controls.

The story makes it sound like everyone at the Times agrees she's got to go and can't believe she's still there -- but Pinch is still protecting her, in passive mode, i.e., that everyone assumes they can't fire her unless he says it's okay. And he's gone underground.

Michael



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