Politics Extra: What happened to Callinan's blog?

Friday, April 21, 2006

What happened to Callinan's blog?

Several commenters have asked what happened to Enquirer Editor Tom Callinan's blog.

It was killed Wednesday.

For those who didn't have a chance to read his explanation on his blog before it was taken off Cincinnati.com, it's real simple: he said he didn't have time to commit to it.

9 Comments:

at 11:20 AM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

it's real simple: he said he didn't have time to commit to it.

Mr. Weiser - I'd like to know your simple explanation why Mr. Callinan's entire blog was deleted from the Enquirer's site as if it never existed?

I look forward to your online reply.

For another point of view on the Callinan blogging fiasco, read Brendan's thoughtful commentary in the Cincinnati Beacon.

at 11:37 AM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

Mr. Weiser - Tom Callinan has repeatedly refused to state who brought Suzanne Fournier and her propaganda blog to the Enquirer. Since you're now making the explanations for the Callinan mess, does that mean you it was you?

at 1:30 PM, April 21, 2006

Superfly said...

If Mr. Callinan says he doesn't have enough time to write a blog we should take that at face value. After all, time is one of the only limited variables, regardless of whether we talking about old or new media/economy.

Of course ... whenever anyone endeavors to complete a certain list of tasks and doesn't complete one of them, the reason is usually that the downside of leaving that particular task uncompleted compares favorably with the downside of failing to complete the others. Or maybe they just find it unpleasant. (Ever have icky household chores that linger, uncompleted? Most people do.) Whatever is the case, Callinan has other priorities aside from maintaining forum for explaining his editorial decisions.

I'm one of the people who think that's a big mistake.

But the other problem here is the uncanny awkwardness with which Callinan chose to approach blogging. Some of us were watching carefully, provisionally offering encouragement, and hoping he could pull it off. But posts were unfocused, topic selection was curious, and his policy on dealing with commenters swerved from denial, to dismissiveness, to weird oversensitivity. He didn't approach blogging with any kind of cohesive policy on what issues (and people) should be engaged, and why. And this, plus the fact that he ultimately bailed out, really does give a lot of credence to the folks who question the Enquirer's judgment.

at 1:35 PM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

"Real simple" should be, "really simple."

Ordinarily, I don't point out grammatical errors in blogs but you're a journalist, Mr. Weiser. You should know better.

at 1:43 PM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

What a load! Callinan killed his blog because he was repeatedly asked questions about the Enquirer's outright bias in issues such as it's coverage of the Hamilton County Commissioners office & race. The Enquirer has shut Todd Portune out of its coverage so much that Portune eventually wrote a letter to the editor, only to have the Enquirer not publish it. He then posted the letter on the Cincinnati Beacon out of frustration with the Enquirer. Here is the letter:

http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php/magaddiction/comments/todd_portune_calls_enquirer_to_task/

Callinan was dodging questions about this and other issues related to the Enquirer's biased coverage. He refused to answer questions, mocked the writers and made other glib comments. Here is an exchange about the blog:

http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php/magaddiction/comments/tom_callinan_influence_platform/

And another:

http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php/magaddiction/comments/enquirer_editor_tom_callinan_decides_to_moderate_blog/

And one more:

http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php/magaddiction/comments/cincinnati_enquirer_offline_more_reflections_on_callinans_demise/

Finally, here a google cache of part of his blog for your review:

http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:0NppR5zyopgJ:frontier.cincinnati.com/blogs/editor/+tom+callinan+blog&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=1

Anyone wonder why one of the politer names the Enquirer is known by is the Spinquirer?

RCGIV

at 4:25 PM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

Never once in my life have I heard the Enquirer called the "Spinquirer".

at 5:02 PM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

Never once in my life have I heard the Enquirer called the "Spinquirer".

You should get out more often.

What I've never heard is anyone calling the Enquirer a quality newspaper.

Anyone remember that scene in the movie "All the President's Men," where the WashPost reporters make fun of the Enq? Some things never change....

at 7:39 PM, April 21, 2006

ThatDeborahGirl said...

Well, since Callinan wouldn't answer a simple question, maybe you can help.

Why did you all attribute statements to Stephanie Dumas that she never said? In plain language, why did you put words in her mouth she never spoke and lie about what she actually said?

Also, why did David Pepper get his own article regarding the County Commissioner's race and Stephanie Dumas only received an article in relation to Pepper and her article was a hatchet job with an old photo when she had given the reporter a more recent one?

Also, why did the Enquirer call Kabaka Oba an agitator on the front page of the paper? Considering the nature of his death, doesn't the Enquirer consider this inflamatory?

I'm waiting and I'll sign this with my real name so you don't have to wonder about anonymous comments. You can follow the breadcrumbs to contact me if you like.

But I doubt you will.

Deborah Nesbit

at 10:12 PM, April 21, 2006

Anonymous said...

BREAKING NEWS:

"Grandma in Iraq" Redeployed to New Battle Zone!

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Friday, April 21, 2006

What happened to Callinan's blog?

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