Site Presented By
Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
Walter Shapiro
Published Letters: 17 Editor's Choice: 11
As Salon's new Washington bureau chief and the author of this story, I want to say a few words about the use of anonymous sources in political stories. In an ideal world, I wish everyone would speak on the record and I repeatedly encourage the people I interview to do so. But often, as in this story, the only way to convey what is actually being said in political circles is to mask the identity of the speaker. I find this approach to be far more honest and helpful to readers than merely repeating the kind of on-the-record partisan soundbites that you hear constantly on cable TV. Some may disagree with my journalistic philosophy in this area, which is why I probably will say more on this topic in the months ahead.
Perhaps reflecting the heat of the Connecticut primary race, my description of Joe Lieberman as a "Democratic centrist" has raised hackles. Let me explain my word choice.
According to the National Journal's authoritative rankings of 2005 Senate votes, Lieberman voted on the liberal side of key votes 66 percent of the time. His ranking is virtually identical to that of New Mexico's Jeff Bingaman and West Virginia's Robert Byrd. Nor was 2005 an a aberration. In 2004, according to National Journal, Lieberman's liberal rating was 70 percent, a bit ahead of Indiana's Evan Bayh. That year Hillary Clinton, by the way, was ranked by National Journal at 71 percent.
Lieberman may annoy a significant group of Democrats with his position on the Iraq War, his efforts to work with Republicans and the tone of some of his public comments. But ire should not blind readers to where Lieberman actually stands on the ideological grid of the Senate and the country.
Remember a political label like "centrist" is a comparative. And I suspect that I would also get snarky letters if I started labeling Lieberman's ideological soul-mates in the Senate, like Bayh and Bingaman, "Democratic conservatives" or, to quote a letter-writer, "one step left of Dick Cheney."
I apologize for the spelling errors of candidate names in an earlier version of this article. (They are being corrected on Tuesday morning). Variable poll closing times in New Hampshire (and perhaps other states) raise a more complicated problem. I relied on a chart prepared by Congressional Quarterly, normally a very authoritative source, which listed New Hampshire at 7 pm. As a reporter who has covered the last seven New Hampshire presidential primaries, I should have known that there would not be a single one-size-fits-all answer for this fiercely independent state. But as near as I can tell (without checking every town government website in the state), the 7pm close is indeed the norm.
Even though writers do not create their own headlines, let me rise to make a courageous defense of the usage of "first annual" in both the head and in the text.
What "first annual" conveys is that we are inventing a Salon tradition that will be repeated next Thanksgiving. "Inaugural," which was the suggested alternative from "YourFriendlyPedant," does not make clear that these horn-of-plenty ratings will return at the same time next year. All "inaugural" implies is that they will be repeated at some time. Also, specifically in the headline, it could be confusing to readers to link "Inaugural" (associated with presidents) and "Capitol Hill" (which, of course, refers to Congress).
In response to the comment about the omission of Howard Dean, I wnat to point out that he was not the only public figure who ended up on the cutting-room floor. In an ideal world, I would have also written entries for Rahm Emanuel, Joe Biden, Bill Richardson, Chris Dodd, Tom Vilsack, Mike Huckaby, Sam Brownbeck, Trent Lott, Robert Gates and the entire Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
But, with the possible exception of the Salt-Lake-City-based choir, I will deal with all of them in future articles.
This is an answer to the letter-writer who laments:
"Please, please, for the love of God, stop referring to her as simply `Hillary'! That is the most demeaning, patronizing thing, and everyone is doing it. Please, Salon, rise above it."
The reasons that I do it and will continue to do it are as follows: 1). To avoid confusion with her husband, the former president; 2). Because she as a candidate has fervently embraced the single name with her bumperstickers and her website labeled "Hillary for President." and 3). It is the way that most Americans think of her, rather than reacting when the see the word "Clinton."
If Denis Thatcher had somehow become Prime Minister, I would have followed the same guiding principle -- the first elected official gets the last name, the second in the family is known by her/his first name.
It was a typo in the Edwards press release. It should be 9:50 AM for the press conference. The full day's schedule makes that clear:
FRIDAY, MAY 4TH, 2007
9:00 AM
Senator Edwards to help with rebuilding efforts at a house in the 9th Ward
1824 Congress Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
9:50 PM
Senator Edwards to hold a media availability
1824 Congress Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
10:00 AM
Senator Edwards to take a walking tour of a FEMA trailers in the Lower 9th Ward with State Representative Cedric Richmond and Danny Glover
N. Claiborne and Caffin streets
New Orleans, Louisiana
2:30 PM
Senator Edwards to deliver remarks at the National Conference of Black Mayors'
33rd Annual Convention
Baton Rouge River Center
275 South River Rd
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
As a fan of "Trouble with Tribbles," I just wanted to let JeffM23 know that I've rewritten my maladroitly worded polling sentence.
Much of the initial coverage about Fort Hood turned out to be wrong. Is there anything wrong with that?
The accountability imposed by another country for the CIA's kidnapping and torture reveals much about our own.
Fox News' morning show plays to type, talking about whether Muslims in the Army should face "special debriefings"
219 Democrats and one Republican join in favor of the legislation, which passed by a narrow margin
The survivor and author is upset about comparisons some on the right are making to genocide
Salon headlines in your mailbox
