Arlington Sun Gazette Now Reprinting GOP Blogs as “News”

December 30, 2010

0Points

This morning the Arlington Sun Gazette website printed a "news" article that simply explains what an Arlington conservative blog posted as its best/worst of 2010. That's it. Doesn't do any additional reporting, or get reaction from anyone else, or even print what the blogger's name is. Ever have a friend tell you about a blog post they read? That's exactly what it reads like. Look, this is going to give Lowell an aneurysm, but I actually like reading Scott McCaffrey's opinions. He's been following Arlington politics long enough to have a great sense of the county's political establishment. I may disagree with 95% of his opinions, but I like knowing how the other side is thinking. And if nothing else, his stories about his cat never fail to crack me up. But good god man, keep that stuff on the editorial page. Considering ArlNow.com is bringing Arlingtonians news faster & in a vastly more visually compelling way, you'd think the Sun Gazette would avoid blurring the lines between its news reporting & its conservative opinions, which are so out of step with the Arlington community. Who knows, maybe in the wake of the Sun Gazette's epically dumb scheme to tear down the wall between news & advertising, maybe that's part of the plan. As McCaffrey himself said, as long "as there is the potential of $$$ for some of us at the end, who's complaining?"

This morning the Arlington Sun Gazette website printed a “news” article that simply explains what an Arlington conservative blog posted as its best/worst of 2010. That’s it. Doesn’t do any additional reporting, or get reaction from anyone else, or even print what the blogger’s name is. Ever have a friend tell you about a blog post they read? That’s exactly what it reads like.

Look, this is going to give Lowell an aneurysm, but I actually like reading Scott McCaffrey’s opinions. He’s been following Arlington politics long enough to have a great sense of the county’s political establishment. I may disagree with 95% of his opinions, but I like knowing how the other side is thinking. And if nothing else, his stories about his cat never fail to crack me up.

But good god man, keep that stuff on the editorial page. Considering ArlNow.com is bringing Arlingtonians news faster & in a vastly more visually compelling way, you’d think the Sun Gazette would avoid blurring the lines between its news reporting & its conservative opinions, which are so out of step with the Arlington community.

Who knows, maybe in the wake of the Sun Gazette’s epically dumb scheme to tear down the wall between news & advertising, maybe that’s part of the plan. As McCaffrey himself said, as long “as there is the potential of $$$ for some of us at the end, who’s complaining?”