Bloggers On the Payroll, the Next Chapter

Published Feb 07 2007, 03:25 PM by David S. Bernstein

Let's start with the obvious: in any battle between the Catholic League's Bill Donahue and the bloggers from Pandagon and Shakespeare's Sister, the forces of good almost certainly lie with the latter. So, as a matter of principal, I can't help but hope that Donahue is unsuccessful at pressuring the John Edwards campaign to fire Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwen.

That said, when you start working for a campaign, particularly such a high-profile one as Edwards', you take care not to say smart-ass things that will embarass the candidate. That means checking your natural impulse toward phrases like “wingnut Christofascist base.”

If you can't or won't do that, you don't belong on a campaign staff. One more lesson that bloggers and candidates need to discuss before landing in this situation.