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David Brooks and Susan Estrich

the breakfast table
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from: Susan Estrich

Back to Breakfast

Posted Tuesday, June 23, 1998, at 4:11 PM ET

Dear David:

Well I certainly didn't think we'd trigger the explosion of Mount Stuart and it reminds me that not only does the media tend to be a lot more thin-skinned than the people they cover, but also that they get away with more. White House aides get called before grand juries for less. I better keep my mouth shut, or I'll be. That was a joke . . .

I'm glad the Standard is following up on what happened in the CNN/Time Report on nerve gas; I thought Walter Isaacson's letter was a class act under the circumstances, trying to affirm his confidence in the CNN sibling (Time/Warner/Turner) but making clear that this time, Time reporters were checking out the story--with the unstated implication that of course there is a difference. But as we've seen, no one's immune, which is the point. How do you fill the news magazines? How do you lure people when oral sex is on the evening news? How do you entertain over-stimulated teenagers? The envelope keeps getting pushed; this story had warning signs all over it--including a witness with memory disorder who they don't bother to tell us, even, has suffered memory loss. But clearly, they wanted the story, and they got what they wanted. The people who hired Stephen Glass wanted young and hip, and they got what . . .?

Isn't this supposed to be what Steve Brill's Content was supposed to do, instead of being the subject of?

I thought it was entirely fitting that Louise Woodward blamed her conviction on the media, in her media-made makeover interview, of course. Even the BBC . . . the least you can do when you get away with murder is apologize.

Cheers.

Susan

P.S. My favorite item on the Patricia Smith controversy--and Alan Dershowitz claiming that Boston Globe columnist Mike Barnicle does the same thing-was the Wall Street Journal report that mentioned that Barnicle does commentaries for CNBC which is owned by General Electric which has some relationship or another with Dow Jones . . . Do you think in the future we will all wear disclaimers? And could you please speak to Rupert about the Dodgers?

the breakfast table
entries
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from: Susan Estrich

Back to Breakfast

Posted Tuesday, June 23, 1998, at 4:11 PM ET
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David Brooks is a senior editor of the Weekly Standard. Susan Estrich is a law professor at the University of Southern California.
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