Blog Politics

An article from Sunday's LA Times Op/Ed Page
On MEDIA
Sept 19,2004
Bloggers' 'Moment' Doesn't Make for a Revolution
It's an Internet win, but far from traditional journalism's death knell.
by Ben Wasserstein

"...there is little doubt that a few people using their computers certainly gave CBS News and anchor Dan Rather a beating. Right-wing blogs — "blog" is short for web log — and forums such as Power Line, Little Green Footballs and Free Republic were the first to question the authenticity of four memos released by CBS News, purportedly written by Lt. Col. Jerry B. Killian, who supervised George W. Bush's Texas Air National Guard unit in the early 1970s. The memos were part of a "60 Minutes" story reported by Rather, questioning President Bush's fulfillment of his Guard service. The buzz created by the blogs became deafening and the story moved like lightning onto the Drudge Report, and from there to talk radio, cable news and newspapers' front pages — and it's not over yet.

Bloggers cheered that the new-media David had slain the old-media Goliath...."

The URL for the entire article is here: The LA Times site requires registration.