An Unsealed Room

By Allison Kaplan Sommer

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NO, I’m NOT Worried That Joe the Plumber Will Take My Job…

January 8, 2009 - 7:26 am - by Allison Kaplan Sommer

That’s what a Dutch reporter asked me today when she called me looking for a way to contact our incoming Everyman for an interview.

“Oh, boy, aren’t you afraid that Joe is going to stay and take over the Pajamas Media bureau? Then you’ll have to replace him in Ohio! ” Cute. (Hmmm, maybe I will work on my drain-unclogging skills. You never know…bet it pays better than writing…)

Seriously, why do journalists need to get their knickers in a twist about PJTV sending Joe Wurzelbacher here to get an everyman’s perspective on what’s going on in Israel?

It’s that old false construct again of blogging/citizen journalism vs. professional journalism. It’s not an either/or situation. No one is suggesting Joe is going to try to replace Christiane Amanpour, Ethan Bronner, or Caroline Glick. He’s just going to offer a different perspective, a different point of view, which is what people turn to blogs and Pajamas for. It’s an alternative, not a replacement.

I, for one, am totally curious as to how Joe is going to react to what he sees here and what questions he is going to ask the folks he interviews. And I say that as a card-carrying Columbia Journalism school graduate and lifetime member of the MSM until I crossed over to the Dark Side….

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2 Comments, 2 Threads

  1. 1. Anita Hope

    People always tend to attack and become ughly when they feel they may be in the wrong. It is quite apparent the MSM are bitting their nails and kicking each other that PJM has hit them right between the eyes with a new idea that just might present the truth to the world , “that is real”.
    Glad to see you are up and reporting and will continue to look for your analysis on a daily basis. Hope you and your family are well & safe.

    January 9, 2009 - 3:16 pm   Link to this Comment
  2. 2. exDemocrat

    I’ll take JTP over our current Goebbelian media any day.

    January 10, 2009 - 6:47 am   Link to this Comment