The Trig perplex
There are moments as an editor – I’ve had a few – when you realise you’ve made a bad, bad call. This happens as often through the things you miss, or stumble over, or fail to give appropriate attention to, as it does thanks to the things you do resolutely, but wrongly, on purpose.
Crikey – and me personally – has copped a lot of blogosphere heat for running a poll to name the Obama puppy that included the candidate A Mongrel Called Trig. It was a reader suggestion, and it somehow made our shortlist, and then hopped onto the polling page. From there it was just a hop skip and a jump to the outraged comment strings of Andrew Bolt, Tim Blair and others.
There’s not a lot of love in those rooms.
We deserve our lumps here. There was no redeeming – or even comic – feature to what is just a dumb slur on an innocent child. The galling part of course, is giving ammunition to the billious rabble of the blogging far right. But what can you say when you’re so obviously in the wrong. Other than “I was wrong.” Which I was.
As I say, cop your lumps, learn your lesson and move on.
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OK
Bend over…..Whack Whack Whack!
Now move on.
K, well said and ok, fair enough
… it ends now (for me)
Well said. You certainly were wrong. But well done for not fudging your apology.
EDITOR : “The galling part of course, is giving ammunition to the billious rabble of the blogging far right”
No , th galling thing is you actualy tink th galling thing is giving ammunition to Andrew Bolt
Whereas th galling thing to you as Editor should be SOLELY that an indecent error got through , and that is all that should be your galling thing to be galled about………….whether or not it gave (justified) ammunition to your opponents
What you’ve actualy done perhaps unwittingly , is do what th consevative ‘right’ ar accused of ….a “claytons” retraction , and not realizing perhaps that ANYONE with a MD child may potentialy hav been distressed and/or offended
…….and th class remedy you could still consider is a simple Editorial saying :
We were wrong unconditionally in th Obama puppy name Poll and our ONLY interest and sole concern is for any distress caused and in preventing a repetition”
As for your some cioncern for Andrew Bolt & Tim Blair Blogs (obvious seeing you mentioned them) , then whilst I do no longer read them , IF you were indeed criticised by thems it may be th only occasion ever when I’ve ever agreed with Andrew Bolt on anything
Good points Ron. The sentence on “the galling part” would be best cut out – it’s not relevant – the “billious rabble” can please themselves.
I hope (and am pretty sure) the apology is not in response to what may have been written on those blogs, but more due to the response from readers here, and your own realisation of error.
The wrong part was the Trig reference. The galling part was fuelling those cesspits through our own error.
” It was a reader suggestion, and it somehow made our shortlist, and then hopped onto the polling page”. What, no human intervention at all? Looks like you are trying to absolve yourself from responsibility.
“The galling part was fuelling those cesspits through our own error”. I do read the Blair and Bolt blogs, (as well as many others), and I can’t recall any comments of theirs that come close to the combination of spin and hatred reflected in your comment just quoted.
You should be ashamed of yourself.
Jonathon Green and Peter of Yarraluma
Your posts ar opposites and yet tink you both missed part issue
Peter fof Yarraluma first , I disagree completely , tink th editor did not try to absolve himself from responsibility at all , he as Editor accepted full responsibility and simply explained process of how it occurred
Jonathan Green second , I feel your Editorial and then your post both added comment on “right’ blogs reactions WITHIN an apolology , which 2 fold took edge off appology and also indicated more concern (gall) about ‘right’ blogs gleeful reaction than th message presume you wanted which was self gall a human error did occur and may hav distressed/offended some A distinction you may consider for future assuming you ar dealing with thoughtful readers
You know — when obscene, offensive bilge emblazons News Limited and Fairfax publications on a daily basis –you wonder where the Bolts and Blairs get their gall. The consistent dumbing down of readership in the mainstream media is catastrophic. A comp glitch in an online publication is just that. Any wonder we turn to Crikey for news coverage and analysis when our street publications cant move beyond petty smut and advertorials.
I’m just back from a wonderful holiday in Malaysia and was having a read through some past blogs. Regrettably I had the misfortune of reading Ron’s contribution to the blogosphere and feel quite sick at some of the weirdos out there. He is as funny as a busted condom and his running-dog pal, Grog, must have been pickled in same to have thrown his hat into the ring.
Am I the only person on earth who doesn’t know who Trig is, was, coulda been, or never was?
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