Thursday, June 18, 2009

Washington Post Drops Dan Froomkin, Obama Critic

Progressive bloggers are livid.

Kos (on Twitter): “WaPo says Froomkin had “run its course”, unlike Broder (‘66), Cohen (‘76), Krauthammer (‘85), and Will (‘79). Those guys are totally fresh.”

Glenn Greenwald gets to the crux:

Notably, Froomkin just recently had a somewhat acrimonious exchange with the oh-so-oppressed Krauthammer over torture, after Froomkin criticized Krauthammer’s explicit endorsement of torture and Krauthammer responded by calling Froomkin’s criticisms “stupid.”  And now Froomkin is fired by the Post while the persecuted Krauthammer—comparing himself to endangered journalists in Venezuela—remains at the Post, along with countless others there who think and write just like he does:  i.e., standard neoconservative pablum.  Froomkin was previously criticized for being “highly opinionated and liberal” by Post ombusdman Deborah Howell (even as she refused to criticize blatant right-wing journalists).

All of this underscores a critical and oft-overlooked point:  what one finds virtually nowhere in the establishment press are those who criticize Obama not in order to advance their tawdry right-wing agenda but because the principles that led them to criticize Bush compel similar criticism of Obama.  Rachel Maddow is one of the few prominent media figures who will interview and criticize Democratic politicians “from the Left” (and it’s hardly a coincidence that it MSNBC’s decision to give her her own show—rather than the endless array of right-wing talking hosts—which prompted a tidal wave of “concern” over whether cable news was becoming “too partisan”).  In general, however, those who opine from the Maddow/Froomkin perspective are a very endangered species, and it just became more endangered as the Post fires one if its most popular, talented, principled and substantive columnists.

Steve Benen adds:

If Froomkin is leaving the Post, it’s a real loss. Froomkin has been a great writer with keen instincts, often picking up on a burgeoning story before it’s gained traction elsewhere. Froomkin was one of the media’s most important critics of the Bush White House, and conservative bashing notwithstanding, was poised to be just as valuable holding the Obama White House accountable for its decisions.

Topics: obama, washington-post, froomkin