NY Times.........HHMMMMmmmmmm..........

Some of you have noticed, and some have e-mailed, regarding something new going on at the NY Times. Just the other day they introduced, on their web site, a new system called "Times Select". It's actually a tier system. Now they're separating readers into four groups: web surfers not registered with them at all, those registered with the web site, those who subscribe to "Times Select", and those who subscribe to the actual physical paper. Until now, all web content was available to anyone who simply registered with the site. Now all op-ed pieces, editorial, and most of the stuff anyone would really want to read is available only to "Times Select" subscribers. If you already subscribe to the paper it's free. If you don't it's $50 a year.

Now, I'm not one to begrudge anyone being compensated for their work. In fact, I've often wondered why most news outlets didn't charge something, at least for things like their feed services. I realize that most of them operate off of advertising fees and that advertisers like knowing that prospective customers can get to their ads without paying, but still, this is America, and it's always surprised me that these news outlets, mostly corporate-run, hadn't move to squeeze the last drop of blood from the stone.

However, this NY Times thing is weird and worrisome for two reasons:

First, this is the NY Times we're talking about. Long a reliable mouthpiece of those of us on the Liberal Left (or even further, Socialists like moi), it's particularly troubling that the Times is apparently the first of the majors to go this route and restrict information in this way. I wouldn't be surprised at The Wall Street Journal demanding admission fees for their site, possibly including background checks and drug testing, but the TIMES???

The second thing that bothers me is more sinister: The timing. It's interesting that they have done this just as Judith Miller is released from jail. The Times has done a 180 degree turnaround on this lady. Remember, the NY Times published six articles during the run-up to the Iraq War that stated there were large numbers of WMD in Iraq, and grossly exaggerated the Iraqi threat. In May of 2004, after these articles had clearly proven specious, the Times published a front page apology to the American people, an unprecedented action. Now, here's the thing. Four of those six articles were "researched" and written by Judith Miller and appeared under her byline. Miller was nothing more than a conduit for Bush Administration propaganda touting the many advantages of throwing a good old war in Iraq. When the Times apologized publicly, she was totally discredited and exposed.

That was before Plamegate. Now she's out, and the Times is rehabilitating her image and naming her a journalistic Joan of Arc. Keep in mind that she's out because she testified before the grand jury. She says that she could now testify because she had the "proper" release from her source, Scooter Libby, Dickhead Cheney's chief of staff. Libby says she had that all the time. Everybody's lying, probably protecting the Dickhead and Bush's Brain (Karl Rove).

So, amidst all this, when the American people need all the info they can possibly get just to know who in Washington is screwing them at any particular time, the NY Times introduces a format that will greatly reduce the numbers of people who read their op-ed columnists......their LIBERAL op-ed columnists. To me, that looks as fishy as a kippered herring.

Arianna Huffington wrote a blog about this the other day. Yesterday it was re-posted on AlterNet. You can check that out here if you want, but my real point here is best articulated by a comment in response to her blog.

"To the Times Columnists... (Community rating: 0/5) --
>Posted by: Tom Degan on Oct 3, 2005 5:02 AM

Here is a little note to Bob Herbert, Maureen Dowd, Paul Krugman and Frank Rich:

The four of you are undoubtedly the finest columnsts woking today. I used to log on to the NY Times every morning, anxious to read what you had to say in regard to the mess that the disgraceful administration of George W. Bush was inflicting on the country and the world.The Times has now decided to charge us $50.00 a year to read your columns on line at the same time that the Judy Wilson scandal has expolded. They probably did this because, at this point in history, no one in their right mind would purchase the NY Times and hope to get "all the news that's fit to print". My advise to the four of you? It's a sinking ship. Get out while the getting is good. I won't be reading your columns for a while and, for that, I am truly sorry.

Tom DeganGoshen, NY"

Too bad, huh?

L8R.