Discussion #24: The Gray Lady Winked: How the New York Times's Misreporting, Distortions and Fabrications Radically Alter History, by Ashley Rindsberg

Welcome to Citizen Scholar! Since launching four months ago we&#8217;re reaching hundreds of people a week, so we thank you for your support. If you enjoy our writing on civic virtue and individual excellence, we humbly ask you to share Citizen Scholar with your family members and friends who may enjoy it. The contents of the audio and text formats are identical and meant to accommodate your preferences. Please let us know if you have any feedback - we&#8217;re always looking for ways to improve!<br/><br/>Introduction<br/><br/>&#8220;Every day, the New York Times carries a motto in a box on its front page. &#8220;All the News That&#8217;s Fit to Print,&#8221; it says. It&#8217;s been saying it for decades, day in and day out. I imagine that most readers of the canonical sheet have long ceased to notice this bannered and flaunted symbol of its mental furniture. I myself check every day to make sure that the bright, smug, pompous, idiotic claim is still there. Then I check to make sure that it still irritates me. If I can still exclaim, under my breath, why do they insult me, and what do they take me for and what the hell is it supposed to mean unless it&#8217;s as obviously complacent and conceited and censorious as it seems to be, then at least I know that I still have a pulse. &#8230; I credit this daily infusion of annoyance with extending my life span.&#8221;<br/><br/>-Christopher Hitchens, Letters to a Young Contrarian, 2001<br/><br/>The New York Times is a victim of its own great reputation. Conventional wisdom holds it up as the gold standard of American journalism - an objective and comprehensive portrayal of important news. A large portion of Americans - especially elite Americans - perceive it to be a cut above other journalistic institutions. It is known for breaking important stories and bringing readers the facts in an objective, sober tone - earning it the nickname The Gray Lady.<br/><br/>In The Gray Lady Winked, American journalist Ashley Rindsberg argues that this picture is incomplete. In his view