Top Ten ‘-Gate’ Scandals Of 2009

2009 has been a year of controversies. Some of them were big, like Climategate, spurred by a set of hacked emails which caused widespread public questioning of the reality of global warming. Some of them were not very big, but were nevertheless blown up by blogs and cable news, like Jackass-gate, when President Obama referred to Kanye West as a "Jackass" in an off-the-record interview that got out. Many were united by that ever-persistent "-gate" suffix. In this slideshow, Mediaite fondly looks back on a year of -gates (and wonders if it's time to give the "-gate" suffix a rest): >>>Next page: Climategate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 1. Climategate The biggest -gate of the year, the Climategate scandal may have helped contribute to the growing percentage of the public that does not believe in global warming. A few illegally leaked emails are hardly grounds to dismiss all of climate science, but language about "trick"-ing the data definitely set back believers in anthropogenic global warming. Even Jesse Ventura piled on: >>>Next page: Gatesgate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 2. Gatesgate The arrest of Professor Henry Louis Gates by Sergeant James Crowley set off a media firestorm with a catchy name. The national debate about race that it inspired was sidelined somewhat by the spectacle of the "Beer Summit" at the White House, but hey, teachable moment. Who knew Joe Biden drank Buckler? The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c White House Beer Simulation www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Health Care Crisis >>>Next page: Crashergate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 3. Crashergate When Michele and Tareq Salahi got past security at the White House state dinner, it was rightly cause for concern, with some calling for White House personnel to lose their jobs. It also put White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs on the defensive: >>>Next page: ACORNgate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 4. ACORNgate In today's media environment, it's rare for one outlet to definitively own a scandal -- much less a -gate -- but Andrew Breitbart's Big Government did just that with ACORNgate. It's debatable how much the (shameful) advice of low-level employees on how self-described pimps and prostitutes can get government assistance is really reflective of the organization as a whole, but it was a hell of a splashy way for Breitbart to launch his site. >>>Next page: Ornamentgate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 5. Ornamentgate Note to President Obama: letting a controversial designer put ornaments of Chairman Mao and drag queen cult icon Hedda Lettuce on the White House Christmas tree does not exactly burnish your Middle American credentials. >>>Next page: Doorgate? >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 6. Doorgate (or not) In the "-gates which did not catch on" department, Fox host Neil Cavuto tried to popularize "Doorgate" to describe Congress' failure to 'open the doors' on the secretive health care debate. He even included a running count of the number of days "Doorgate" had been going on (nine and counting in this chyron). Needless to say, it did not exactly become a household phrase. >>>Next page: White Coat-gate (or not) >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 7. White Coat-gate (or not) -gates that did not catch on, part two: the New York Post tried to whip up outrage about the Obama administration's handing out lab coats to supportive doctors for a photo op. About the only folks to talk much about it were blogs wondering why it hadn't really caught on. Mediaite's Tommy Christopher: "why the blackout on 'White Coat-gate?' The short answer? Because it’s not news." >>>Next page: Bow-gate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 8. Bow-gate Now here's an Obama-related -gate that did blow up -- at least on the Internet. When President Obama bowed to Japanese Emperor Akihito, the conservative blogosphere exploded with outrage that he had displayed weakness and even American capitulation. Either way, he definitely flubbed Japanese etiquette somewhat. >>>Next page: Trucegate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 9. Trucegate A -gate that isn't all about President Obama? In this case, the bone of contention was MSNBC's war and ceasefire with Fox News -- and Keith Olbermann's reported dissatisfaction with his bosses' diktat to lay off of Bill O'Reilly. When you hear "Olbermann" and "might quit if the dispute wasn’t resolved to his satisfaction" in the same sentence, you know stuff just got serious. >>>Next page: Jackass-gate >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter 10. Jackass-gate After the ravages of Kanyegate, there was Jackassgate: Obama called Kanye a "jackass" in an off-the-record CNBC interview that accidentally got Twittered out. A nation was stunned. Seriously: we know it's partly ironic and all, but maybe it's time to start saving "-gate" for scandals that have a little meat to them? >>>Follow the author of this post on Twitter

Top Ten ‘-Gate’ Scandals Of 2009

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Top Ten ‘-Gate’ Scandals Of 2009

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