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May 13, 2004

Finally, Something Not Your Fault, Only Poynter's

by Ron Hogan

Every time the Book Babes top themselves with another boneheaded piece of publishing industry commentary, one wonders if they've finally managed to reach their limit. And yet they always manage to come up with something just a little more insipid, something so outrageous it may even bring Ed back from his jaded disdain for some choice rebuttal. This week, I think it may have happened. In response to Margo's recap of the Linda Jaivin controversy down in Florida, Ellen starts attacking coverage of the Abu Ghraib atrocities:

[D]on't you think that it's reasonable for people to expect that depravity won't be served up with our cornflakes? This expectation has been sorely tested this week. Over and over again, we see the same photos of prison abuse in Iraq. And now, you can even witness the slaughter of an American innocent on the Internet. When does freedom yield to a form of depravity, of witnessing torture and death as if it were normative?

Claiming "it's about figuring out what facts are fit to print," she suggests that it's time to exercise a little self-censorship, further suggesting "that at some point unfettered free speech leads to barbarism." Which may well be why, when she realizes that this is actually a column about the book biz and that she'd better mention a book, she reaches back to recycle the American Psycho brouhaha. Maybe she thinks Bret Easton Ellis taught our soldiers the fine art of torture. (If it isn't completely obvious by now, given my earlier cites to Sy Hersh in this blog, I'm as sickened and repulsed by the unfolding story as anyone--but I'm not blaming the messenger for that outrage, or suggesting that the news media shouldn't report on such atrocities because they might make me sad.)

Comments

Sometimes I think some idiocies are beneath response. Anyway, I'm far too busy pounding my head on my desk in disbelief to reach the keys.

Posted by: TEV at May 13, 2004 01:29 PM

I'm a bit swamped, but a response and a call for mobilization will be coming -- just not immediately. The time has come to deal with the jejune antics of these two ragamuffins in a big way. More to come.

Posted by: Ed at May 13, 2004 01:57 PM

I'm sure the naked man who was being dragged from a leash regrets the fact that he's upsetting Ellen's breakfast. He'll try harder next time.

Posted by: moorishgirl at May 13, 2004 02:28 PM

Wow, if the line's over here, I think the Book Babes went about five hundred feet over the wrong way. Christ almighty.

Posted by: Sarah at May 13, 2004 03:46 PM

Jejune? Wow!

Hey comrades, it's time to get used to the BBs and Laura Miller and David Brooks and and a host of superficial careerist publishing professionals clattering and jabbering...

I had this flashback to Aug 1968,Chicago, Grant Park. The crowd as it was being gassed and mugged continued to chant "the streets belong to the people." Could that be said about the Internet?

If you think the BB's were doing an Eva Braun imitation you missed Peggy Noonan in da WSJ earlier in the weeK. By the way, Tim Noah does a nice wrap up of so called conservative response to this current mess (more messes to come).

Ron— Jim Shepard soon, I think...

Posted by: birnbaum at May 13, 2004 11:27 PM
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