Politics Daily
Inside Politics Daily
Valentine's Dinner Odds in Blizzard Season
Scott Brown and the Palin Path: Will He Choose Brassy or Boring?
Democrats Leave Health Care Behind for Jobs, Toyota, Gays in Military
Murtha Turned Against War, but Not Grab-While-You-Can Politics
Rep. John Murtha, Advocate for Pa. District, Pentagon, Dies at 77
Liz Christman, Enemy of the Passive Voice, Who Rocked Some Jaunty Hats
Is Obama's Search for 'Common Ground' Real?- Tim Tebow's Brilliant Fake Leads to Pro-Life Score
'Snowmageddon' in D.C. -- The Politics, Talk Shows and Snowball Fights Go On
Sarah Palin Serves Tea Party Delegates Red Meat and Certainty
My Left Breast Put Fancy TSA Scanner to the Test
From a Grass Roots Tea Party, a PAC Blooms
Weymouth's Weak Apology to Wash Post Readers
Posted:
07/5/09
The Washington Post's publisher and CEO, Katharine Weymouth, apologized in Sunday's paper for what she calls "a planned new venture that went off track.'' She's referring, of course, to the plan – scotched pronto once it was reported - to sell access to government officials and to her own newsroom staff at a series of small dinners in her home.The initial story, broken by Mike Allen in Politico, reported that the paper was trying to line up corporate sponsors who would pay big bucks to lobby officials and befriend reporters and editors right in the publisher's living room – at $25,000 a pop, or $250,000 for a series of soirees.
Initially, Weymouth faulted her marketing department, and said that the bald cash-for-access trade advertised in a flier sent to lobbyists was not at all what she had in mind. Only, was that because the language in the advertisement was so vulgar and, well, accurate, or because she really saw that the setup was, from soup to cheese course, an ethical non-starter?
Since then, somebody seems to have convinced K-Wey that blaming underlings is not the cowgirl way; I wouldn't say she's come to Jesus, exactly, but it's a start: "The flier was not approved by me or newsroom editors, and it did not accurately reflect what we had in mind,'' she says in the apology. "But let me be clear: The flier was not the only problem. Our mistake was to suggest that we would hold and participate in an off-the-record dinner with journalists and power brokers paid for by a sponsor.''
But the mistake wasn't in the suggesting; it was in actually planning to hold and participate in off-the-record dinners with journalists and power brokers paid for by a sponsor. The paper's editor, Marcus Brauchli, had planned to attend the dinners. And last week, a piece on the scandal by Post media writer Howard Kurtz reported, based on interviews with two executives familiar with the planning of the events, that "Weymouth knew of the plans to host small dinners at her home and to charge lobbying and trade organizations for participation. But, one of the executives said, she believed that there would be multiple sponsors, to minimize any appearance of charging for access.''
She still has not addressed how she could possibly have thought multiple sponsors would minimize any appearance of charging for access -- when she actually would have been charging for access.
Now, in any case, she promises, "We will not organize such events. As publisher it is my job to ensure that we adhere to standards that are consistent with our integrity as a news organization. Last week, I let you, and the organization, down. The Washington Post remains committed, now and always, to the highest standards of journalistic integrity. Nothing is more important to us than that, and nothing will shake that commitment.
So, what happened? Like other media companies, The Post hosts conferences and live events that bring together journalists, government officials and other leaders for discussions of important topics. These events make news and inform their audiences. We had planned to extend this business to include smaller gatherings, a practice that has become common at other media companies.''
No, conferences and panels open to the public without charge or for a nominal fee are not the same at all, and if she knows of any other media company that charges to put government officials and reporters together with the lobbyists who'd like to influence them, I'd like to know about it.
"From the outset,'' she writes in the apology, "we laid down firm parameters to ensure that these events would be consistent with The Post's values. If the events were to be sponsored by other companies, everything would be at arm's length -- sponsors would have no control over the content of the discussions, and no special access to our journalists.''
Only, if they're having dinner in her home, how is that not special access?
As long as so many unanswered questions remain, I don't see how the paper – where my husband is a reporter – can possibly put this behind it. As she must know as well as anybody, that isn't how it works.
And when the photos Annie Leibovitz recently shot of Weymouth and Brauchli as the new Kay Graham and Ben Bradlee are published in Vogue someday soon, well, the captions might not be quite what they'd hoped.
PD toolbar!
and download the new Politics Daily toolbar!
-
PRINT
-
IM
-
E-mail
8 comments
+ add your own
Melinda Henneberger
Melinda Henneberger is the editor-in-chief of PoliticsDaily.com. She spent 10 years as a reporter for the New York Times, in the paper’s Washington and Rome bureaus... moreRelated Articles
Related Articles
- Obama Will Skip Alfalfa Club Dinner Saturday Night
President Obama will not be making a repeat appearance at this year's Alfalfa Club dinner, an exclusive annual event famous for its speeches and jokes but always closed to the press, Politico reports...
- FBI Illegally Obtained Phone Records for Years
The FBI systematically violated the law by citing non-existent terror threats in order to seize phone records from 2002 to 2006, the Washington Post reports . According to interviews and bureau memos,...
- The Right's New Reporting: Big Journalism and the Daily Caller
Two new Web sites crashed the D.C. media scene in the past week. Both are the works of well-known conservative media personalities, and both say their goal is to do what the old media seems to do less...
Comments (8)
wheeljc
10:12AM Jul 5th 2009
WAPO merely confirmed what many had already assumed -- that the main stream media was in bed with the Obama administration. What was not known until this past week was how WAPO was compensating itself!
Regardless of what the publisher says now, there will be a major question of INTEGRITY hanging over the WAPO for years to come -- same is true for the Obama Administration (but are we really surprised given the cabinet members selected??).
Regardless of what the publisher says now, there will be a major question of INTEGRITY hanging over the WAPO for years to come -- same is true for the Obama Administration (but are we really surprised given the cabinet members selected??).
RATE THIS COMMENT:
(4)
(4) 
Debi G-AZ
12:02PM Jul 5th 2009
I agree !
I doubt the dishonest media will ever be truly exposed in their Cover up of all the wealthy hoods in the cabinet.
I doubt the dishonest media will ever be truly exposed in their Cover up of all the wealthy hoods in the cabinet.
RATE THIS COMMENT: (5)
(5) Belkin
12:47PM Jul 5th 2009
"we laid down firm parameters to ensure that these events would be consistent with The Post's values."
_________________________________________________________________
When apologising, it's always best to call your readers fools.
I'm only guessing here, but I bet she inherited the paper.
_________________________________________________________________
When apologising, it's always best to call your readers fools.
I'm only guessing here, but I bet she inherited the paper.
RATE THIS COMMENT: (5)
(5) Stella
1:13PM Jul 5th 2009
I don't think she should explain anymore. The more she explains, the smellier it gets. She needs to cut her losses and clam up already. There is no innocent or plausible explanation for this one.
RATE THIS COMMENT:
(3)
(3) Mesaman
3:23PM Jul 5th 2009
At this point, an apology just doesn't quite get the job done. She's dirty, unethical, and should be charged with criminal activity. At the very least she should be forced to resign from WAPO. If she fails to resign, or if she is not fired. You have proof that the Washington Post is only good for covering the floor of your parrot's cage. Personally, I hope they go under.
RATE THIS COMMENT: (3)
(3) Fredric Williams
4:03PM Jul 5th 2009
This may be a result of having a lawyer with no training in journalism, but plenty of experience in the Post's advertising department and a bit of experience with a major Washington lobbying firm rise to a position she inherited from her grandmother. She is a cross between George Bush the Heir Transparent and Sarah Palin the Novice.
Working for the government's newspaper and with many years of catering to advertisers (many of whom are lobbying the government), she hasn't ruined the paper's reputation. It was always a marriage for money, and a bit corrupt. She simply made it clear that the Obama Administration is following and perhaps expanding on the tradition of government sold to the highest bidder.
Working for the government's newspaper and with many years of catering to advertisers (many of whom are lobbying the government), she hasn't ruined the paper's reputation. It was always a marriage for money, and a bit corrupt. She simply made it clear that the Obama Administration is following and perhaps expanding on the tradition of government sold to the highest bidder.
RATE THIS COMMENT:
(1)
(1) wheeljc
11:00AM Jul 6th 2009
Since the publisher is attempting to convince 'her former readers' of her 'intended integrity', would she please provide the names of her 'dinner contacts' in the White House and Congress?
RATE THIS COMMENT: (1)
(1) joedenver60
11:23AM Jul 6th 2009
Its good to see, journalist critical of their peers, its makes most of us comfortable to know that we are now coming to grips on the seriousness of, what is going down the pike. The reasons she did what she did, certainly did not look credible, and her apology did somewhat seem sincere, I hope she has learned a good lesson.....good article
RATE THIS COMMENT: (-1)
(-1) 
Politics Daily on Facebook
Now Commenting
- lopjackie21 on:
Robert Gibbs Gets Hands-On About Mocking Sarah Palin - CB-SENIOR CHIEF RET on:
Rep. John Murtha, Advocate for Pa. District, Pentagon, Dies at 77 - Dave on:
Robert Gibbs Gets Hands-On About Mocking Sarah Palin - rironhorset on:
From a Grass Roots Tea Party, a PAC Blooms - melanie on:
Tim Tebow's Brilliant Fake Leads to Pro-Life Score - crabbychief on:
Robert Gibbs Gets Hands-On About Mocking Sarah Palin
Submit Your Favorite Links
No.
Props
Props
- 34
- 35
- 29
- 31
- 26
- 21
Follow Politics Daily
Other News
- Get busy, Democrats
- Behind Liz Cheney's group, a weird legacy of torture
- The race is on for Murtha's seat
- The real political realities
- Senate blocks NLRB appointee
- Gay Soldier Invited Back to Guard Unit
- Schumer's Wall Street Donors Look for Revenge
- Michael Steele Suggests Racism Fuels His Critics
- Robert Gibbs Pokes Fun at Sarah Palin
- World Likes Obama Much More Than Bush
- Ellen's First Night
- The Perfect Homemade Candies
- The Mystery of Yo-Yo Ma's Name
- White Out
- How Palin Could Win
- Few New Ideas in Jobs Bill
- Unions Give $$$ to Target Tea Partiers
- D.C. Braces for 2nd Blast of Winter
- Clinton Hostage-Taker Now a Fugitive
- Toyota Recalls 437,000 Prius, Hybrids Globally
Politics Daily More Links