Decision ‘08

The Case Against Pinch

Mickey Kaus has the bill of particulars against the Times publisher:

1) Falling for Howell Raines’ con and hiring him as editor over Bill Keller, only to have to fire him after a scandal and staff rebellion, during which the publisher made an idiot of himself by brandishing a stuffed moose–Bad Move;

2) Bullying his way into control of the International Herald Tribune–probable Bad Move;

3) Leading the aforementioned misguided Judith Miller crusade that has now ripped his paper apart–Bad Move.

4) Taking his star columnists out of the public discourse by trying to charge money for Web access to them–Bad Move.

And, of course, Pinch’s overarching, original crime: Freeing a respected national newspaper to become an unashamed cocooning organ of New York liberal political and aesthetic prejudices.

Good stuff…