NYT Buries Bellesiles Story

[ml/nj]

I saw the AP report yesterday in the (NJ) Star Ledger, while I was having breakfast, that Columbia had withdrawn some award they gave for Bellesiles his now thoroughly discredited book, Arming America. It was on the back page of the first section, but it was there.

I had already been through the NY Times and I did not recall seeing it. Later I did a search at the Times website and found something so I thought it might have appeared the day before in the print edition. I made a mental note to go back and look.

Today I looked.

It wasn't there. I looked again at the Friday paper and I still couldn't find it. But I did see a note that all NYT book reviews since 1996 were available on-line. So I looked. The search (http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?query=bellesiles&date=full) returns everything about "Bellesiles" (some with a dollar sign meaning you have to pay if you want to see it) including the reviews. It also had the reference to the story about the revocation of the Columbia award. This time I noticed that it was listed under "BUSINESS / MEDIA & ADVERTISING" !!! I had looked at the Front page, the National News sections, the Local News section (Columbia is local here!), and the arts and book pages. Stupid me! Why didn't I look in the Business Section?!

It was there.

ML/NJ

[Paul Atreides]

I would love to see the NYT tank, have to sell to a conservative, and all of the socialist staff thrown out like garbage.

[speedy]

And take their asinine TV commercials with them, especially the helmet-hair yuppie woman who finds that the only thing she likes "better than doing the crossword puzzle is actually finishing it." I pray for the day this evil rag has to close up shop.

[lelio]

Heh, I love that commercial, especially when she has that glassy I'm-on-drugs look in her eye when she picks up the phone to say "I'll like Sunday delivery of the NYT" in a robotic voice.

[Paul Atreides]

I'm glad to say that I haven't seen that one. I live in flyover country (Alabama). However, our paper is owned by the NYT.

[speedy]

Have you seen the newer one, with the intense mother-father-daughter trio? The daughter is a really severe-looking 14 year old, dressed almost like a Nazi camp guard, who says with a glinty-eye that she reads the Times to keep up with developments on the world wide web. Clearly their target demographic is the classic Upper East Side limousine liberal. I have to admit the ads are so bad I watch them start to finish each time they come on.

[speedy]

Be glad you don't have to see it. It's a joy living in NYC, but the Times has a way of putting a damper on the whole experience.

[SteveH]

I followed the link (no login needed)

http://query.nytimes.com/search/query?query=bellesiles&date=full

and got:

BUSINESS / MEDIA & ADVERTISING | December 14, 2002
Prize for Book Is Taken Back From Historian
By ROBERT F. WORTH (NYT) News


I was also able to note that most of the preceding articles on the Bellesiles scandal were under the National Desk (hmm...?)


I'll bet this was a real hot potato in the NYT editorial room... ;-)

[FreedomFlyer]

At least the Times story didn't try to make it seem as if Bellesiles got railroaded. The Times story was the fairest one so far, much fairer than the AP.

There is something up on WeeklyStandard.com, but I'm not a subscriber.

[ml/nj]

At least the Times story didn't try to make it seem as if Bellesiles got railroaded. The Times story was the fairest one so far, much fairer than the AP.

If a tree falls in the forest ...

ML/NJ

[FreedomFlyer]

bump