Eh. To be fair, I think part of the reason why the story was covered here on Mediaite was to placate to the right-wingers who constantly call the site “Mediaite Matters.” I mean, really, if you had posted that National Enquirer story about Sarah Palin not being the mother of Trig the comment sections would have blown up with insults from those thoughtful Beckies (i.e. INB, Olby, Michelle, Grammie, Righter, timstank, etc.) about how hateful and “hacky” this site is.

I do think, however, to say — “The days of a paternalistic media protecting the populace from questionable information has passed. Good or bad for the country and the world, it is. That is where we are today” — is a bit disingenuous. If that’s the media culture that “you” want to live in, that’s fine. But saying something like that is like saying “well, Huffington Post took a sh*t on the floor, so we will too,” even though you know that heading in that direction is only making matters worse. But it’s all entertainment nowadays, so post on!

If it wasn’t clear — as someone on “the left” I actually am not upset that you posted the story.

I disagree tjl, and we have covered stories like how the media is covering the Trig birthers (like Andrew Sullivan): http://www.mediaite.com/online/the-andrew-sullivan-sarah-palin-birther-lover-triangle-continues/

This reminds me of a sadly-high-on-Google attack piece someone wrote about me after I dared to mention the Enquirer’s John Edwards story before it had, you know, been confirmed by John Edwards.

http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=715

Here’s why I had a “woeful inability to mask his prejudice, or a professional immaturity that borders on incompetence”…A stroll down memory lane:

“By referring to “reports” of Edwards’ “affair” Krakauer implies that there are credible allegations from responsible journalists and sources. The truth is that there is only a single allegation by an anonymous source as reported to the “National Enquirer” (to which I refuse to link) which is nobody’s idea of a responsible journal. And not a single reputable news organization has yet to follow the Enquirer’s smarmy lead, although Matt Drudge headlined it (good company).”

I’m not comparing the two to make the point that THIS enquirer story is true, or that it is not true. But the fact remains, it is foolish to ignore a scandal story outright to protect a public figure. You have to be cautious and skeptical about the way you report on it – and I believe Mediaite has been – but covering the story is very different than acting like it’s true, which we are not doing.

One final note – I find it ironic that the left gets all self-righteous over the National Enquirer scandal stories when it relates to Dems, but when the NEW YORK TIMES makes similar implications about John McCain, it’s somehow less smarmy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/21/us/politics/21mccain.html

After so many real scandals, by the likes of Clinton, Edwards, Spitzer, Sanford, Craig, Condit, Dan Crane, Duke Cunningham, Richard Curtis, Foley, Hart ,Walter Jenkins, Kilpatrick, Bob Packwood, Paul E. Patton, Fred Richmond, Jack Ryan, Schwarzenegger… what surprises me is that there are people who still react with outrage that this was even mentioned.

With all the real political scandals out there, how can anyone be surprised, or even find this one so hard to believe?

When did Mediaite open its doors, so to speak, for business. I can’t find it mentioned anywhere.

Thanks

Steve — like I said, I’m fine with the story being posted and I think Frances did a fine job reporting on it. My biggest “beef” is with the notion that paternalistic media protection has passed, so posting this is OK — our country needs paternalistic media protection! How else do we get birthers, truthers, and the like.

The NYT took slack from the right for “ignoring” the ACORN story, which ended up being much ado about nothing. And the NYT is not perfect, but the comparison to the Enquirer is a bit ridiculous — as they say, a broken clock is right twice a day.

Who knows if this is a legit story. Only time will tell. And you’re right, people go too far. Again, I have no problem with the post. I guess it’s a bit idealistic to hope that we’ll one day get past all this speculation and insinuation and get back to reporting on stories. (And I realize that’s not the job of Mediaite, which is why I have no problem with the story)

Grammie says:
May 1, 2010 at 11:54 am

In July 2009, Abrams launched Mediaite, a media news site Abrams described as “appreciating the celebrity of the media,” with Managing Editor Colby Hall noting that it “plays into the vanity of these individuals” without being “over-snarky or mean and nasty.” [10] The site combines editorial content with analytic rankings of media personalities. (from Wiki)

Who is Vera Baker? Well, what a shock! She’s is a political fundraiser.

obama has been letting his corparte campaign bundlers pals from the oil, big pharm, banking and big oil industries f*ck the american public – why wont i be surprised to find out that he let one of them – f*ck him too

Found this online . Interesting…

October 29, 2008

The Lady Vanishes

I’ve learned from an intelligence and strategic communications source that on May 18, 2004, Obama came to Washington, DC on a fundraising trip. His trip also included an appearance at the May 2004 AIPAC Policy Conference.

Prior to Mr. Obama arriving in Washington, a McLean Clark National Operations Director met with Vera Baker of Baker-Wambu & Associates. I spoke with this director yesterday afternoon.

McLean Clark is a public relations and communications firm that worked for Barack Obama in connection with his 2004 Senate race. Baker-Wambu & Associates was a top fundraising firm for the Congressional Black Caucus, and Ms. Baker was also listed as the National Finance Chair for Obama’s Senate campaign. The McLean Clark director, also working for the campaign, functioned as a driver for Baker and Obama during the visit.

Ms. Baker called the driver before Mr. Obama arrived in town and asked him to pick her up from an undisclosed location and drive her to the Hotel George, where Mr. Obama would be staying. As part of his staff, Baker was apparently able to check Obama into his hotel. Ms. Baker then left the driver in the lobby and went upstairs to change. This is interesting because the driver did not see her take any bags with her as he remained downstairs. The driver was unsure where the clothes came from, or if perhaps Baker had previously been to the hotel.

After Ms. Baker changed, the driver and Ms. Baker then went to pick up Mr. Obama from Reagan National Airport.

The driver then took Baker and Obama to Georgetown, where they met with a big donor. I was unable to determine who that donor might be. The driver next took Baker and Obama to the DC Armory; he was told to drop Ms. Baker and Mr. Obama off at the AIPAC conference where President Bush gave a speech. After dropping them off, the driver’s services would no longer be required. Baker and Obama were to have secured rides home on their own.

After the conference, however, Ms. Baker called the driver and told him that they did not have transportation, and asked him to come pick them up. The driver returned to the conference and picked up Mr. Obama, Ms. Baker, and a third person, the woman with whom Ms. Baker was to be staying.

According to the driver, he drove to the woman’s home, but she alone departed. Ms. Baker remained in the car with Mr. Obama. The driver then brought Baker and Obama back to Hotel George, where he dropped the two of them off for the evening.

The story originally provided by the intelligence and strategic communications source was verified by speaking directly to the driver (who was granted anonymity) Monday afternoon. In and of itself, the fact that Ms. Baker went back to Mr. Obama’s hotel the night of May 18, 2004 is not proof of an extramarital affair. But the subsequent mysterious disappearance of Vera Baker is surprising, and perhaps suggestive.

Despite its successes, Baker-Wambu & Associates suddenly shut down in 2006. It is hard to find precise dates or a specific reason why the successful consultancy closed. Baker later claimed she worked at Alta Capital Group in Chicago, a municipal bond broker-dealer, but there doesn’t appear to be a residence for her in the Windy City, nor did she appear to have ever held a residence in New York, as others have claimed. Baker later appeared in Martinique. Again, we don’t know precisely when, but we do know that she was still there very recently. Her latest business venture, a consultancy named Cape Caribbean, LLC, has, again suddenly, pulled its web site offline.

On the “About Us” page captured from the site before it was shut down, Baker provided a brief professional bio:

Prior to launching Cape Caribbean, Ms. Baker worked for Alta Capital Group-a full-service municipal bond broker-dealer. She joined Alta Capital Group after serving as a Principal at Baker-Wambu & Associates, a strategic political and fundraising consulting firm based in Washington, DC. Previously, she served as the National Finance Director on Senator Barack Obama’s 2004 Senate Campaign. She also served as the Deputy Political Director at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
I was unable to ascertain what Cape Caribbean, LLC actually did as a consultancy. Nor was I able to determine what Ms. Baker—the political fundraiser—actually did at Alta CG.

What I have confirmed via both the intelligence and strategic communications source and the (now former) McLean Clark National Operations Director is that NewsMax, the National Enquirer, ABC News, and NBC News have all had the basic facts of the Baker-Obama liaison for some time now, and so far, none have come forward with any reporting.

Let me say that again—they spoke with the driver, and have not moved with the story. They had less evidence of an non-existent affair between John McCain and Vicki Iseman, so why are they not pressing this story, which actually has a person confirming that Baker and Obama were dropped off at his hotel late at night?

NewsMax, typically a fervent conservative monthly, has not pursued the story. source claim they were perhaps dissuaded by the current political climate and fear of possible difficulties if Obama is elected.

As a tabloid, the National Enquirer could have a profit motive in holding the story until after the election. If Obama loses the election as the result of a scandal, it would be a short-term sensation. But if a scandal were to explode around a new President-elect, it could be a lucrative story for the tabloid for far longer.

ABC News and NBC News have contacted the driver (he told me), who verified the first-hand account related to reporters for each of these news organizations. These news organizations may be “slow rolling” the story, purposefully slowing its release so that it breaks only after the November 4. This may be for both ideological reasons—many journalists support Obama’s political platform—and for the more pragmatic motive shared with the Enquirer of better ratings and higher profit if a dramatic scandal embroils a new presidency.

Meanwhile… Where is Vera Baker?

Why did she suddenly leave a lucrative consulting practice for an unknown position in an entirely different line of work, before skipping the country entirely? Did she have an affair with a man who may be our next President, and if so, should that change our minds about how we think about him?

With Vera Baker, we have many questions.

remember in 2007, an angry Michelle Obama told Hilary that she was inept at keeping her house in order, in fact blaming Hillary for Bill’s cheating… if this is true, now what Michelle?

Fail, fail and fail again. Nice try Mediaite, but the thin justification for running what amounts to a smear on both the president and Ms. Baker doesn’t pass the smell test. In the case of Mr. Edwards, a photog snapped him leaving, not the hotel, but the room where his alleged mistress was staying — plus the Enquirer was staking out that hotel based on prior rumors about an affair. If you’ve read Game Change, you know that there was a hell of a lot more evidence, including worries expressed by members of the Edwards campaign, to back that story up. Just be honest. (Just as in the CNN questioning GHWB, the reporter asked the question after Clinton oppo people confirmed that “Bush had his own Jennifer” — a woman he continuously promoted in government jobs BTW — and challenged the media to give her equal time to Ms. Flowers.) In this case, the so-called “evidence” is some driver who dropped them off and didn’t pick them back up? Really??? Plus, this is from 2004. 2004! Why don’t you guys just run some stuff on the Dubya boffed Condi meme and call it a day! The Equirer has “reported” that, too….

Let’s all say it together, folks: Mediaite ran this story for the hits. I’d respect you a lot more if you just admitted it.

And yes, too many newsrooms use Drudge as a crutch. Mediaite should indeed report on this silly, lazy practice. But damn, fellas, do you have to ADOPT it?

Put me down as Disgusted, and disappointed.

Let’s see if anyone mentions it tonight at the dinner; anyone want to bet their retirement on it?

The mainsteam media in this country has NO INTEGRITY at all!

How can Mediate report on the media, and not look at how the media is dealing with this story? Do we ignore the elephant in the room? After the John Edwards story broke in the National Enquirer, various mainstream media outlets accepted that they had dropped the ball. This story forces them to deal with all the same issues in the context of a potentially even bigger scandal. How they respond over the next couple of days is worth examining. In short, pundits and reporter on both the Right and the Left need a watchdog here, and Mediaite is well position to serve that role.

NORBIT you are so right aboout the “lamestream media”. I doubt they will report any of this at the dinner tonight. Thank Goodness we have a “RAG” like this one to keep us well informed of all the important news happening each day.

I’ve learned from an intelligence and strategic communications source that on May 18, 2004, Obama came to Washington, DC on a fundraising trip. His trip also included an appearance at the May 2004 AIPAC Policy Conference.

So this happened in 2004, six years ago, and no one has found the video. This really sounds like a nothing story.

Originally, the writer Frances Martel claimed that a link on the Drudge Report added “credibility”

And the writer Frances Martel is a well known right-winger which hurts the sites credibility when this kind of story is covered.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/201005010006

Mediaite is really out to lunch on this one. It’s an old story from years ago that has already been thoroughly debunked. This writer shouldn’t be allowed to post here any longer if this site wants to have any kind of credibility.

I don’t care if Pres. Obama had an affair in ’04 either, but this is a site about what and how things are being covered in the media.

On a side note, I’d wager that the same people criticizing Mediaite over it’s reporting of the story, would be arguing it was fair game if were Pres. Bush.

Progressives have always argued that any whisper of an ethical breach is significant with conservatives because they are conservatives. A strange point of view considering what that argument suggests about progressives and expectations of morality.

“We have a smart audience of savvy media watchers”

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

I just hope the people you are talking about aren’t the ones commenting.

You’re losing your cool, Karl…

This writer shouldn’t be allowed to post here any longer if this site wants to have any kind of credibility.

Frances Martel never had any credibilty. She’s a well known right wing extremist and anti-Semite.

Actually, I have long assumed that Mediaite and the National Enquirer had a professional association wherein they shared headline writers…

http://www.stopbigmedia.com/

HanzoSword please show us where and how this story has been been “debunked.”

‘denial” aint “debunking” y’know…

Cecelia says:
May 1, 2010 at 5:55 pm

Actually, I have long assumed that Mediaite and the National Enquirer had a professional association wherein they shared headline writers…

BULLSEYE

It goes without saying that sex and hypocrisy often go together. The media justifiably goes after married, right-wing Christian politicians, who engage in extra-marital affairs. They also go after powerful Democrats such as Clinton and Spitzer, but Spitzer is already a guest anchor on Dan Abrams’ old network, MSNBC.
Sex also makes hypocrites out of media outlets who “are just covering the story.” Bill O’Reilly often feels the need to broadcast actual (and unnecessary) footage of some 2 bit sex scandal in the name of allowing the viewer to make up his own mind. And MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann, bitched nightly about covering Monicagate yet covered it just the same.
This past week, mediaite’s Tommy Christopher sunk to a new low by publicizing some local Chicago strip club’s Sarah Palin look-alike contest. The paper thin justification for this was done by nobly admitting up front that the contest was meant to humiliate Ms. Palin, and by pondering who would attend, since the contest was jokingly billed as Tea Party fundraiser. If the audience of mediaite is half as savvy as Mr. Hall says it is, they can see through this transparent attempt to have it both ways.
Yet I have to give mediaite credit for reporting the Obama story. The Enquirer has gained some credibility on its own in reporting not only Edwards but also Monica and other political sex scandals accurately. This story deserves some skepticism, but is worthy of being followed.
The media, including the NY Times, did not check all the facts before reporting that Pope Ratzinger “failed to act” against the Wisconsin priest who molested deaf boys story.
President Obama should be grateful that he played basketball in Hawaii, and not lacrosse at Duke…

dailyraphirmations.com

The National Enquirer does have creds now.
They broke the Edwards story wide open while the rest of the media ignored it. IT WAS REAL
They have valid sources and considering they are in this business to sell papers, they are building up to releasing a video and other evidence already in their possession.
Sadly, they will bring down the Obama Administration even further.

I’m a right winger, and no lover of Mr. Obama’s policies (and, by extension, the man himself). After looking at the National Enquirer/Globe coverage, I think they should have sat on this a bit longer — at least until they had more evidence than a limo driver shopping a story. The paper trumpeted video evidence that MIGHT exist, but which they did not claim actually existed.

I might not like the guy, but for the good of his family and for the good of his office, I hope the allegations are completely and utterly false.

<>

You’re pretending to be a website devoted to covering and analyzing the media, and you’ve got people working for you that are dumb enough to believe that a Drudge link adds “credibility?” Is this for real?

Drudge links to crackpots, gossip, and rumor-whores without anything substantial ALL THE TIME. It’s a daily occurrence and part of the reason for his popularity, and also the primary reason he’s NOT CREDIBLE.

And by the way, if I take a dump on the Capitol Building floor, that will have “significance and impact,” but it doesn’t mean Mediaite should be covering it. Stop standing around waiting for Drudge table-scraps and try doing your job. If you’re not smart enough to know Drudge’s agenda and bottom-dwelling ways, you don’t belong in the media analysis business.

Wow. Way to jump the shark.

Up until 5 minutes you had some semblence of integrity. That was until you cited the outlet who brought us 10 years of “Batboy” as a credible source of honorable conversation in this country.

The dumbing down of America is on you. Sleep well.

ingenieux says:
May 2, 2010 at 12:13 am

“That was until you cited the outlet who brought us 10 years of “Batboy” as a credible source….”

Ah, that was the “Weekly World News” and WWN ceased its print publication in 2007.

MediaWhore says:
May 2, 2010 at 12:10 am

“Drudge links to crackpots, gossip, and rumor-whores without anything substantial ALL THE TIME”

WOW! I didn’t know that all these links on Drudge are….how you say? “crackpots, gossip, and rumor-whores?”

AP WORLD
AP NATIONAL
AP WASHINGTON
AP BUSINESS
AP ENTERTAINMENT
AP ON THE HOUR
AP HEADLINES
AP BREAKING
AP/REUTERS PHOTO WIRE
AP AUDIO
ANANOVA
BLOOMBERG
BUSINESS WIRE
DEUTSCHE PRESSE-AGENTUR
DOW JONES
EFE
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE
INTERFAX
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC WIRE
ITAR-TASS
KYODO
MCCLATCHY [DC]
PRAVDA
PRESS ASSOCIATION
PRESS TRUST INDIA
PR NEWSWIRE
[SHOWBIZ] PR WIRE
SCRIPPS HOWARD
US INFO WIRE
WENN SHOWBIZ
XINHUA
YONHAP
ABCNEWS
ACCESS HOLLYWOOD
AD AGE DEADLINE
BBC
BBC AUDIO
BILD
BILLBOARD
BOSTON GLOBE
BOSTON HERALD
BREITBART
BROADCASTING & CABLE
CBS NEWS
C-SPAN
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
CHICAGO TRIB
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE
CNN
CNN POLITICAL TICKER
DAILY BEAST
DAILY KOS
DAILY SWARM
DAILY VARIETY
DER SPIEGEL
E!
ECONOMIST
EDITOR & PUBLISHER
EMIRATES TODAY
ENT WEEKLY
FINANCIAL TIMES
FORBES
FOXNEWS
FOXNEWS NATION
FREE REPUBLIC
GAWKER
HOT AIR
HELLO!
HILL
H’WOOD REPORTER
HUFFINGTON POST
HUMAN EVENTS
IAFRICA
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIB
INFOWARS
INVEST BUS DAILY
JERUSALEM POST
LA TIMES
LUCIANNE.COM
MEDIA WEEK
MSNBC
NATION
NATIONAL ENQUIRER
NATIONAL REVIEW
NEW REPUBLIC
NEW YORK
NY DAILY NEWS
NY OBSERVER
NY POST
NY TIMES
NEW YORKER
NEWSBUSTERS
NEWSBYTES
NEWSMAX
NEWSWEEK
N. KOREAN NEWS
PEOPLE
PHILLY INQUIRER
PHILLY DAILY NEWS
POLITICO
R & R
RADAR
REAL CLEAR POLITICS
REASON MAG
RED STATE
ROLL CALL
ROLLING STONE
SALON
SAN FRAN CHRON
SEATTLE TIMES
SKY NEWS
SLATE
SMOKING GUN
SPLASH NEWS
STAR
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD
TALKING POINTS MEMO
TIME MAG
TMZ

All these links are crackpots? DO TELL!

Drudge broke one big story in 1998; the Enquirer broke one big story in 2008 – both are now desperately hoping that lightening will strike twice, and apparently dragging Mediaite down with them