Soccer Dad

Parka flap

Not surprisingly, Michael Getler. the ombudsman of the Washington Post has given Robin Givhan a pass for her criticism of Vice President Cheney's wearing a parka to the commemoration of the liberation of Auschwitz. Writes Getler:

My view is that the image was fair game for a fashion columnist and that Givhan's explanation provides a look at how critics bring their critical eye to all kinds of situations in ways that often look harsh to those who disagree or disapprove. I would, however, have voted for a call to the veep's office to see if there was some special reason for that outfit. When I tried, officials would talk only off the record. My best guess is simply that it was very cold.

I wish that Cheney's office had responded. But there's more here than simply a fashion columnist having her say. For one thing, it appeared in the Washington Post, imbuing with a special authority. It launched tens of news articles about the criticism that VP Cheney faced for his decision to wear a parka. Did the criticism come from a wide range of people, or was it simply people quoting Givhan? From what I could tell, the latter was true.
Second of all, once Givhan was shooting down VP Cheney's excuse - he wore a dress topcoat to the inauguration - she had an obligation to make sure that her criticism was on target. (For example was Auschwitz colder? Did that make a difference?) Once she was questioning the Vice President's credibility it was no longer simply a fashion criticism.
But Getler's job has never been about assuring accuracy or fairness. It's always been about justifying reporters to us folk who are simply too unsophisticated to understand what journalism is about.

Posted by SoccerDad at February 6, 2005 6:23 AM