News You Can't Use

Supreme Spectulation

Turns out the media may be far more fixated on a female court nominee than, say, the rest of America. Gallup reports:

"Despite the widely reported expectation that President Barack Obama will be looking for a qualified woman -- perhaps from a minority racial or ethnic group -- to fill the seat to be vacated by the retiring Justice David Souter, 64% of Americans say it doesn't matter to them whether Obama appoints a woman, with slightly higher percentages saying the same about the appointment of a black or Hispanic."

Only 6 percent said picking a woman was an "essential" idea, while 26 percent went with "good idea, not essential."

Former Beauty Queen Speaks

Sarah Palin is defending Miss California against "the liberal onslaught of malicious attacks."

The Bailout Begins

The Seattle Times may be the state's chief beneficiary, but doesn't give the story much space:

"Gov. Chris Gregoire has approved a tax break for the state's troubled newspaper industry.

"The new law gives newspaper printers and publishers a 40 percent cut in the state's main business tax. The discounted rate mirrors breaks given in years past to the Boeing Co. and the timber industry."

Hypocrisy Watch

"Two months after denouncing a troubled financial company for doling out hefty management bonuses, a bankrupt news media company is doing the same thing," the Washington Times reports.

" 'Money for nothing?' blared a Chicago Tribune editorial in mid-March, responding to news that American International Group Inc. planned to give $450 million in bonuses to its top executives during a very public federal bailout.

"But this week, the Tribune Co. - which owns the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, the Baltimore Sun, the Hartford Courant and other dailies, along with 23 TV stations - received permission from a Delaware bankruptcy judge to pay out $13.3 million in bonuses to some 700 local and corporate managers."

Blog Bias?

A Brigham Young University survey of more than 200 journalists will surely feed accusations perception of liberal bias:

"Most journalists were aware of influential blogs on both sides of the political spectrum, such as Daily Kos and Talking Points on the left and Michelle Malkin and Instapundit on the right. Despite equal awareness, journalists spend more time reading posts in the liberal blogosphere.