For those of you who have read this NY Times article about captured Iraqi war documents being placed on the web, you'll note that the Times did not deem to give Ray Robinson, the blogger interviewed in the article, a link to his blog, nor did they bother to give you his entire background. Ray Robinson worked for the Defense Intelligence Agency as a member of the Iraq Survey Group that collected and in-processed this documentation when it was captured. He isn't just a blogger, but a person with some hands-on expertise.

Too bad that the Times couldn't be bothered to provide a link or give his bona fides.

I guess that would go against their "bloggers are hacks, and we're so accurate" meme, wouldn't it?

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 12:09 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Sometimes it is simply better to shut up and take your lumps. Ben Demonech has not learned that yet:

In his first public comments since resigning earlier today as a blogger for washingtonpost.com, Ben Domenech says his editors there were “fools” for not expecting an onslaught of attacks from the left.

“While I appreciated the opportunity to go and join the Washington Post,” Domenech said, “if they didn't expect the leftists were going to come after me with their sharpened knives, then they were fools.”

Ben, you can't hold the Washington Post to blame for your serial plagiarism, both during college, and afterward.

You don't have an inherent right to work for a major news organization, you don't have a greater level of privilege, and you certainly shouldn't expect a lesser level of accountability.

You don't get a free ride.

Do you think you are French?

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 07:16 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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If a primary goal of newspaper blogging is to attract the attention of readers and start conversations, then WPNI (Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive) knocked it out of the park by launching Ben Domenech's unabashedly conservative political blog, Red America.

The first substantial post, Pachyderms in the Mist: Red America and the MSM, got a huge, on-going, and predictably whiny response from the left side of the blogosphere, who didn't think it was fair having a conservative blogger to balance out Dan Froomkin and William Arkin (a former Greenpeace activist/"National and Homeland Security" blogger, protecting us, presumably, from the threat of kamikaze Japanese whalers).

If generating "buzz" (or for that matter, hysteria) is part of the intent, WPNI has succeeded. The far left are engaging in much wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Keep in mind, little liberals, it could have been worse.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 07:29 AM | Comments (17) | Add Comment
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By now, the importance of the information provided by bloggers before, during, and after a major disaster such as a hurricane, earthquake or a tsunami is well-established.

Here in America, bloggers provided much of the accurate first-hand information during Hurricanes Katrina and after landfall, and to this day they—we—continue to play an important role in informing the public and providing perspective about the successes and failures in coping with the storm's aftermath.

If everything goes as is planned, during up-coming hurricane seasons selected bloggers will have even more front-line access:

After a Beauchamp Tower Corporation emergency meeting with state, federal, and local officials, the decision is made to deploy the ex-USNS San Diego at the earliest possible moment of readiness—whether or not the cargo holds have been filled. Food stores onboard will be at less than half capacity, however water and ice supplies are considered more important, therefore the ship will not wait to load all designated supplies before she gets underway.

The announcement that the ex-USNS San Diego is ready to go to sea is made public. Crew members and volunteers are contacted and told to report immediately to the ship. Bloggers and news crews are screened, checked through security, and allowed to board the ex-USNS San Diego. The Bloggers will report from the ship while underway and document the disaster relief efforts of the ex-San Diego and crew for Hurricane Beryl. [my bold -ed.]

Who among us wouldn't like to see someone like hurricane blogger Brendan Loy on board these ships, blogging in real-time as events unfold, or crisp, riveting post-landfall reporting from someone like Michael Yon?

The entire premise of Beauchamp's Operation Enduring Service concept has been based on "thinking outside the box," blending the old-but-serviceable with the cutting edge.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they'd want to apply it to everything they'll touch.

Update: Welcome Instapundit readers. If you feel you're coming in mid-story, you're right. Start here with "Shall..We...Play...A...Game? Part 1," or as I like to call it, "Pimp My 7,000 Ton Ride."

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 11:21 AM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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No, not really.

Just Arianna Huffington herself, busted for being fake, but accurate about a George Clooney blog post he never wrote.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 03:02 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I'm glad Glenn Reynold's new Book, An Army of Davids (which I did not get a pre-production proof of, by the way) is selling quite well (currently #167 in Books on amazon.com), but I think his formulaic followup book on the chief author of the Republican "Contract With America" might be pushing a good gimmick too far.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 01:46 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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1 You caved to the Christian right again! Or was using his first name too easy?

Posted by: Kevin at March 08, 2006 06:12 AM (o/IMK)

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One of the military experts who hangs out here from time to time just started his own blog. Go harrass Ray Robinson, and say, "hi."

I do think a lot of my fellow bloggers will have a minor bone to pick with him, however. Calling himself "The smartest man alive!!!" even in jest is sure to annoy those who would claim that title, and that's the majority of the blogosphere.

Posted by: Confederate Yankee at 07:15 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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