Re: Re: WEEI gets a ton of publicity

[hopfgapr@sprynet.com]

I do think that in general (As an elected official, I abstain from the appointment of my wife to a town board, for example) that perception is reality and it's NOT a good idea for a wife to be on a show where the husband is banned.

It would be SMARTER for the hub and wife to work for different newspaper companies.

BTW, I say that as someone that thinks the Glob.. is out of line with the ban.

-Paul Hopfgarten
-Derry NH


Donna Halper <dlh@donnahalper.com> wrote:
> At 09:43 PM 3/28/2001 -0500, you wrote:
>Well Eileen is on shaky ground here as there is a conflict of interest.
>Her husband (Peter May) is a sportswriter for the Globe and is affected by
>the ban.

Umm, I know that's the Globe's spin, but I think it's a bit disingenuous. 
In our industry, lots of us are married to people who work in the same 
business (or even at the same newspaper or radio/TV station).  SO does that 
mean we lose our right to comment on a situation?  As I understand 
journalism ethics, you just issue a disclaimer (which she says she did in 
her article) and proceed.  Just because Eileen has a husband does that mean 
she isn't permitted to have opinions about his occupation (or about her 
own)?  She is a columnist.  She writes opinion pieces.  She is good at it-- 
she won a Pulitzer Prize, in fact.  In this case, she wrote about WEEI and 
about the Globe sportswriters, some of whom appear on radio shows every bit 
as offensive as the ones on WEEI.  Would the column have been spiked if she 
had agreed with the Globe's decision?  Call me cynical, but I doubt it.