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Monica turned journalism inside out (The demise of MSM alert)
Charleston Daily Mail ^ | December 22, 2007 | Don Surber

Posted on 12/22/2007 3:13:48 PM PST by Zakeet

THE Second Amendment provides a good test of the American politician. If a candidate is not going to trust the people with guns, why should we trust said candidate with the government?

The equivalent test for journalists will be taken next month as the press marks the 10th anniversary of the breaking of the Monica Lewinsky story.

How a newspaper or columnist describes this event tells a lot about how that newspaper or columnist views the audience.

I am not talking about whether it is described as presidential perjury or a sex scandal. That is a right-left spin thing that now has little relevance.

I mean how the story was broken - by Matt Drudge through his drudgereport.com.

The story did not break in "Newsweek," even though its reporter, Michael Isikoff, had the goods. His editors sat on his story.

Whoever shopped the story to Isikoff, then shopped it to Drudge, who posted it online. This made the Internet buzz, as people debated the subject in AOL chat rooms.

The Washington Post broke the story in the print media on Jan. 21, 1998.

On Jan. 26, 1998, President Bill Clinton wagged his finger and told a press conference: "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky."

Thus began one of the most entertaining years in American politics.

The lasting effect is what the scandal (readers may choose the adjective) did to the American press corps.

Overnight, a then-31-year-old former gift-shop clerk at CBS became the most important man in American journalism.

His Internet site averaged 85,000 unique visitors a day in 1997.

On Monday, 18.3 million people visited his site. That is more than all the people who watched ABC, CBS and NBC news combined that night.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: anniversary; drudge; isikoff; journalism; lewinsky; mediabias; msm; newmedia; newsweek; spiked
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To: ElPatriota
Mrs Clinton, since when... putting up with a womanizer that does not even respect you, even in a position as public as the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES of America... since when that became a virtue?... especially for a woman so in tune with women's rights? Hmmmm?...

it'll never happen; unless the interviewer, wants to take a short evening walk in Ft. Marcy Park....what "($hrillary: we don't need no) freedom of the press".

41 posted on 12/22/2007 4:43:00 PM PST by skinkinthegrass (just b/c your paranoid, doesn't mean they're NOT out to get you....Run, FRed, Run. :^)
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To: Donald Rumsfeld Fan

“Now, I have to go back to work on my State of the Union speech. And I worked on it until pretty late last night. But I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me. I’m going to say this again. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky. I never told anybody to lie, not a single time; never. These allegations are false. And I need to go back to work for the American people. Thank you.”


42 posted on 12/22/2007 4:49:45 PM PST by Zuben Elgenubi
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To: Bernard
We looked for it or any other mention of the now-forgotten chick, Ms. Monica, in the Clinton Library, but nada. She was completely left out of history by the First Perp and Mrs Facilitator. They did made up a marvelously crafted video to prove that the whole Impeachment thingee was part of a demonstrable VRWC.

Now, if you want a hugh dose of good old fashioned fiction, try the foreign money-funded Clinton Massage Parlor/Library. It is unbelievable how they take facts and squeeze them until they no longer exist, turning all potential negatives into hoorays for the Clintons. And the library is the place where all info re Hitlery is in a permanent lock box, unavailable to the voters. This in spite of the "open government" that she pretends she will establish once elected. GAG! These people are demented!

43 posted on 12/22/2007 4:49:49 PM PST by Paulus Invictus
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To: dayglored

And she wasn't that bad looking during her early years

There were some freepers who were mystified as to why Clinton had an affair with Monica when there were certainly some better-looking women who he might have bedded

My only thought is that one average-looking woman who is willing to make an effort at making you happy has more worth than 10 beautiful-but-self-absorbed ice maidens who are not willing to make an effort

44 posted on 12/22/2007 4:50:41 PM PST by PapaBear3625
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To: Zuben Elgenubi

skinkinthegrass, quit hitting the d*mn post button already. :-)


45 posted on 12/22/2007 4:51:52 PM PST by Zuben Elgenubi
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To: ElPatriota

sorry, for the x posts, cr@ppy ISP. :/


46 posted on 12/22/2007 4:53:01 PM PST by skinkinthegrass (just b/c your paranoid, doesn't mean they're NOT out to get you....Run, FRed, Run. :^)
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To: Zakeet
Now here is the test for readers as they read in the next month rehashes of the Lewinsky scandal: Does the newspaper or columnist view the emergence of Drudge and the Internet as a good thing or bad?

Here's the real test that this author fails to realize: "The story did not break in "Newsweek," even though its reporter, Michael Isikoff, had the goods. His editors sat on his story."

Does the newspaper or columnist view the loss of sitting on a story as a good or bad thing?

-PJ

47 posted on 12/22/2007 4:54:24 PM PST by Political Junkie Too (Repeal the 17th amendment -- it's the "Fairness Doctrine" for Congress!)
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To: skinkinthegrass

:)... the MSM simply can not hide their bias anymore!... and that is good.


48 posted on 12/22/2007 5:01:42 PM PST by ElPatriota (Duncan Hunter 08 -- I am proud to support this man for my president)
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To: BerryDingle

“Thats more “experience” than Hillary has.”

Speaking of experience, a vote for Monica would be better than a vote for Hillary. Monica has had more experience and time spent in the Oval Office taking care of presidential business than Hillary has!


49 posted on 12/22/2007 5:06:52 PM PST by seekthetruth
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To: OCC
introducing me to Free Republic! Well, it was actually a link Matt had up to FR at some point in early 1998.

Me, too.

people debated the subject in AOL chat rooms.

Was it the AOL chat rooms that made the story? I remember I was following Drudge for some. I took a peak at Drudge just before going to bed on a Saturday night, and he had the siren up with some teaser text. I watched it develop over the weekend, and mentioned to my allergist Monday morning that a big story was going to break. Rush then turned it into a story too big for the Drive-by Media to ignore.

Good times.

50 posted on 12/22/2007 5:17:38 PM PST by Jeff Chandler ("Liberals want to save the world for the children they aren't having." -Mark Steyn)
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To: Zakeet

I love Drudge. He has changed the face of journalism himself.

Hope he stays around for a long time.


51 posted on 12/22/2007 5:31:47 PM PST by freekitty ((May the eagles long fly our beautiful and free American sky.))
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To: Jeff Chandler

I was actually looking at CNN.com at work and one of the user comments from the story pointed me to the Drudge Report. The Drudge Report has been my first stop for news ever since!


52 posted on 12/22/2007 5:33:10 PM PST by OCC
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To: OCC

I heard about Drudge on Rush’s show.


53 posted on 12/22/2007 6:04:39 PM PST by Jeff Chandler ("Liberals want to save the world for the children they aren't having." -Mark Steyn)
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To: Forgiven_Sinner
"...And thank you for leading me to Free Republic in January 1998. I read the Drudge report, and then followed a link to the Free Republic...."

Totally. Me too.

54 posted on 12/22/2007 6:58:39 PM PST by -=SoylentSquirrel=- (I'm really made of people!)
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To: Zakeet
I am still outraged that Bill Clinton, a pile of excrement, used the most disparity of power that can exist between a superior and a subordinate to destroy a young woman's life because he felt like it.

That he had no sex life with his "wife" is no excuse.

That he is incapable of normal sexual relations is revealing, but not surprising, given his history.

I feel sorry for Ms. Lewinsky. She was taken advantage of, used and misused, and cast aside by a worthless pile that is Bill Clinton.

And now his "wife" is running for president on this jagoff's record?

jeez

55 posted on 12/22/2007 7:00:01 PM PST by Octar
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To: Zakeet

FR “moment-of-silence” bookmark


56 posted on 12/22/2007 7:07:43 PM PST by Dad yer funny (FoxNews is morphing , and not for the better ,... internal struggle? Its hard to watch)
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To: airborne
New name, same old Freeper! ;^)

I lurked on FR from 1998-2001 and finally registered after 9/11. Changed names last summer, but did not do it the right way, so I lost my old identity!

57 posted on 12/22/2007 7:38:34 PM PST by OCC
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To: skinkinthegrass

psst. wakeup you fell asleep on the posting button ;-)


58 posted on 12/22/2007 8:24:54 PM PST by festus (Fred Thompson '08)
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To: Zakeet

Anyone ever notice that Clinton’s women all had the same physical characteristics? The pudginess, the 80s hair-dos, that type of facial features, the homeliness of it all. It’s just eerie, like looking at the women the FBI profiles on those crime shows or something.


59 posted on 12/22/2007 8:30:40 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist (Congratulations Brett Favre! All-time NFL leader in career passing yards)
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To: OCC
Thank you Monica for introducing me to Free Republic! Well, it was actually a link Matt had up to FR at some point in early 1998.

Same here. Was introduced to Drudge & FR (don't remember the order, but close together - too long ago :) in '98. I attended the March for Justice in October of '98 on the mall in DC (Drudge was there, among many others), the House Manager's rally in May of '99 (also in DC - met Jim Robinson), and have been an avid FR reader, occasional poster, ever since. Those were the days :)

60 posted on 12/22/2007 9:36:22 PM PST by MCH
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