Rush Limbaugh; George Will; William F. Buckley and Conrad Black

[Justice]

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0312/28/rs.00.html

I was watching Walter Cronkite yesterday on Reliable Sources, and caught the last few moments of Howie Kurtz taking shots at Rush Limbaugh's 180 change on privacy rights, plus an interesting story about George Will and William Buckley's conflict of interest vis-a-vie Conrad Black.

"Columnist George Will and "National Review" founder William F. Buckley have both written favorably about media mogul Conrad Black, without disclosing that they received payments from Black's company, Hollinger International. "The New York Times" says each was paid about $25,000 a year to speak at an annual conference. Buckley's take came to $200,000. But neither man seems embarrassed by the failure to level with readers. Said Will, "my business is my business. Got it?"

Most interesting is George Will's reaction - which is basically that we should stuff it (gee, Will Pitt's reaction to conflict of interest charges - unfounded IMO - was much more professional - and he wasn't getting money from the Kerry campaign).

The brazeness of the RW will be their downfall.

[evil_orange_cat]

1. Buckley wants legalized drugs... so he's not ALL bad ;)

but they are still scumbags :D

[SpiralHawk]

3. George Q. Pomposity Will

can stuff his self-important bow tie up his sleazy "channel of ethics."

Can you spell F-U-N-D-A-M-E-N-T-A-L-L-Y W-R-O-N-G.

It is such a no brainer.

If ABC does not call him on the carpet for this, then they are branding themselves plainly as "Instruments of Corporo-State White Wash and Propaganda."

I know. I took JO 101 many years ago. This is the among the first things they teach you in journalism school. No payola.

It's fundamentally wrong.

[maggrwaggr]

4. The free press got expensive

the free press is dead.

What's sad is that nobody knows yet. Except us.

[maggrwaggr]

2. gee, someone finally noticing the pundits are paid!

what a shock.

Free Press my ass.

[ProfessorGAC]

5. Of Course, They're Paid. It's A Job!

But in this case, i believe it's a matter of being PAID OFF!
The Professor

[maggrwaggr]

6. well yeah, that's what I meant

If we're paying mullahs in the middle east to represent "moderate" islamic view (which we are) you can bet your sweet ass we're paying "journalists" here to say whatever the hell they want them to say.

[legin]

7. William F. Buckley

Another McCarthy fan and possibly an influence on Coulter's attempted rehabilitation of him.

---------------
<<snip>>

From America's most celebrated conservative writer, William F. Buckley Jr., comes an engrossing and unexpected historical novel about one of the most controversial figures in American political history Senator Joe McCarthy.

<<snip>>

http://www.twbookmark.com/books/97/0316115894/
(published I think 1999)