I just noticed that the Washington Post online has a Best of the Web feature on their "politics" page that's provided by Real Clear Politics. Now, I like Real Clear Politics. When I'm looking for a right wing web site that provides an excellent cross-section of right wing opinion, I often head there. But the Washington Post is letting them name the "Best of the Web?" That's...odd. And here's the result:
So let's see what the The Washington Post actually believe is the "Best of the Web," shall we?
The Weisberg article is a traditional bit of centrist tut-tutting by a master of the form. "Happily helpless, Democrats can denounce Mr Bush for getting it wrong without assuming any responsibility themselves....as a rule, Democrats are no more interested in a frank discussion of fiscal realities than the president is." And so on. Next, Gerard Baker explains that "there has always been something a bit phony about John Edwards" and worries that the candidate "catapulted from obscurity to the front line of American politics because he sounded like Jimmy Carter and seemed to think like Bill Clinton is hoping to win the presidency on a platform borrowed from George McGovern. Move over to James Taranto attacking both Clinton and Edwards for lacking a "comprehensible" strategy on Iran. Then there's Fox News analyst Susan Estrich talking up Tom Vilsack. And, of course, we have Ann Coulter being Ann Coulter.
This is what the Washington Post is using its authority to name the "Best of the Web." This is what unsuspecting readers who trust the newspaper's name will surf to, assuming the articles offered to be the most trenchant, incisive, and fair columns written that day. Three right wingers and two nominal center-lefties with a strong aversion to Democrats.
Man. That liberal media. So biased.
Update: Ankush seems to think this is an ad. Given the placement (middle of the page, no nearby ads, Post content beneath) and the formatting (same as the Post content beneath), I disagree. But if anyone knows for sure, I'd be interested to hear it.
