R. Emmett Tyrrell, founder of The American Spectator and Clinton critic extraordinaire, exposes Todd Purdum of Vanity Fair (formerly of the New York Times), and in the process, the biases of the American press. Purdum's gossipy report on Bill Clinton's affairs of late turns out to be not exactly original, according to Terrell: ...fully seventeen anecdotes used by Purdum were reported in my recent book, The Clinton Crack-Up. To be sure, Purdum never mentions my book, not even when he compares Harry Truman's comparatively penurious retirement with Clinton's posh retirement and reckless financial deals -- a comparison I made in Chapter One. So while I disapprove of Clinton's denunciation of Purdum as "sleazy," "slimy," and a "scumbag," I should mention that when he calls Purdum "a really dishonest reporter," the ex-president has a point.
Purdum, at least in Vanity Fair, has been dishonest about his sourcing. Otherwise the chronicle of Clinton that Purdum reports is right on the money. None of the stories I have reported about Clinton's excesses in retirement has been disproved. No reviewer of my book has found any major misstatement.
Compare and contrast the amount of media reporting of Terrell's work with that accorded VF's article. There was an agenda to get rid of Hillary and pave the way for Obama. But honest and more detailed reporting of Clinton's scandals by a right winger is still off limits.
Hat tip: Susan L.
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