Once-Great Politico Sinks Into Sensationalism

Polanski piece shows site's 'clicks are king' mentality

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 9, 2009 5:56 PM CDT

(Newser) – For a while there, Politico seemed to be the best new media journalism had to offer—hard-nosed investigations with a smart, web-centric approach. But lately, it’s been falling prey to the anything-for-a-click mentality you’d normally associate with the Drudge Report or Huffington Post, writes Andrew Sargus Klein. A Wednesday piece with the loud headline “Roman Polanski backers gave $34k to Barack Obama, DNC" is but one example of Politico’s new ugly side.

The piece, which boils down to the unsurprising revelation that many of the Hollywood figures calling for Polanski’s release donated to Obama or the DNC “isn't, say, not allowed, nor is it necessarily unfair,” Klein writes for SpliceToday. But it represents a “type of journalism that simply demands you click on the headline regardless of what lies behind it”—the kind of journalism that “will turn Politico's front page into something more akin to CNN than the New York Times.”

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (1)]

The logo of 'The Politico'. (Politico)

Politico's Roman Polanski/Barack Obama piece. (Politico)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Politico was once on the path to subverting the mainstream media pecking order with its under-the-radar reporting and its impressive web presence. But they've become complacent.
- Andrew Sargus Klein

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Media Gaffe of the Year: the Obama/Osama Mixup

...and other mistakes

(NEWSER) - One is the president of the United States. The other was bent on destroying the United States. So you’d think Barack Obama and Osama bin Laden would be pretty easy to keep straight. But when the former announced the death of the latter, a really embarrassing number of news outlets couldn’t , and the ubiquitous "Obama bin Laden dead" gaffes that followed have been named Poynter ’s top typo of the year. Every year Craig Silverman looks at the biggest media screw-ups; the other notable typos, errors, and gaffes he spotted include: More»

Wasserman Schultz: Divisive DNC Superwoman

Democratic party chief doesn't pull punches, or waste time

(NEWSER) - Debbie Wasserman Schultz does not pull punches. She has accused the Republicans of waging "a war on women," called their Medicare plan "a death trap for seniors," and said that those pushing voter ID laws "literally want to drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws." That combative attitude has made her a lot of enemies, but it's also made her, "practically overnight, the face of the Democratic Party," the Wall Street Journal observes in a profile today. More»

Pa. Paper Reported Sex Abuse Allegations ... in March

Harrisburg Patriot-News' months-long coverage largely ignored

(NEWSER) - The nation—not to mention State College, Pa.—was rocked by the Penn State sex abuse allegations, which were first reported on November 5. Except that's not when they were first reported. The Harrisburg Patriot-News covered the initial allegations to surface against Jerry Sandusky ... in March. That's eight months before he was arrested, and eight months before the nation took notice. The Los Angeles Times reports on the local paper's coverage—and dismay with the utter lack of reaction. More»

Clinton's NBC Gig Proves News Biz Is a Joke

It's become an aristocracy, or entertainment, depending who you read

(NEWSER) - Chelsea Clinton’s hiring at NBC prompted an inspired rant from Glenn Greenwald on Salon . Pointing out the fact that NBC has also hired Jenna Bush, Meghan McCain, and Luke Russert, Greenwald writes, “I really don’t understand what those angry, lazy losers in the Occupy movement are so upset about. America is a meritocracy,” and everyone who has anything certainly earned it. “When all else fails, we have a media filled with insurgent outsiders who will be relentless watchdogs over those in power." And that media? Also diverse—as evidenced by Clinton’s previous work at a hedge fund and her ties to Goldman Sachs. More»

Media Blogger Resigns Amid Attribution Questions

Jim Romenesko was due to start his own blog soon, says Poynter director

(NEWSER) - In an ironic twist, media blogger Jim Romenesko has resigned from the Poynter Institute amid accusations of questionable media practices. Though Romenesko always displayed his sources, journalism school director Julie Moos explained yesterday that he too often included verbatim quotes without enclosing them in quotation marks, the AP reports. Romenesko had been set to start a blog and go part-time at Poynter in seven weeks, Moos added in a later statement . More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Once-Great Politico Sinks Into Sensationalism