The Washington Post is all about modernity.
POLITICO learned today that the Washington Post has terminated its relationship with liberal columnist/blogger Dan Froomkin. Froomkin authored the "White House Watch" blog and was told today that the blog had essentially run its course.
Washington Post Media Communications Director Kris Coratti tells POLITICO that "our editors and research teams are constantly reviewing our columns, blogs and other content to make sure we're giving readers the most value when they are on our site while balancing the need to make the most of our resources. Unfortunately, this means that sometimes features must be eliminated, and this time it was the blog that Dan Froomkin freelanced for washingtonpost.com."
Froomkin was none too happy with the decision, telling POLITICO that he's "terribly disappointed."
"I was told that it had been determined that my White House Watch blog wasn’t 'working' anymore," said Froomkin.
Sure, Froomkin was one of the Post's most popular columnists, but so what? The Post has to make sure it manages its resources and give its readers the most value, always looking forward and reassessing its offerings to keep the site fresh.
And yes, Froomkin was a casualty, given how staid and crusty he had become. Totally unlike David Broder, who has only been at the Post since 1966, or Charles Krauthammer, consistently wrong since 1985. And is there anyone more relevant and hip with it than elitist "liberal" Richard Cohen? He's only been at the Post since 1976, so he remains fresh and has plenty of course to run. And any dude who wears a bow tie, like George Will, is the epitome of relevant, even if he has been using his Post real estate since 1979 to simply make shit up.
And since the village protects itself against all reason, it was mighty nice of the Post to reward those who haven't hit upon the truth in decades, like Bill Kristol. Being wrong about everything means he's perfectly suited for the Post's op-ed pages.
So it's quite clear Froomkin was the odd man out -- he's been right a lot, he was popular, and he's not a 980-year-old relic of a bygone era. It's only natural he'd be the columnist to get the ax.
