Like rubbernecking past a car wreck, I can't resist octogenarian retired CEO Al Neuharth's weekly column, every Friday in USA Today.Plain talk, indeed! Readers must think the Gannett family is pretty dysfunctional this morning: Neuharth is using his column to attack USA Today Editor Ken Paulson and Editorial Page Editor Brian Gallagher over their recent positions on anonymous sources. (The issue at hand: former reporter Toni Locy, now in legal hot water over anonymous sources in her anthrax reporting.)
First, Neuharth tries to deliver word of his displeasure gently, referring to Paulson and Gallagher as "longtime, highly regarded associates of mine.''
But then, jab! "What Paulson, Gallagher and many other otherwise good editors of good newspapers still don't get despite repeated regrettable repercussions: Considering any anonymous sources as reliable 'whistle-blowers' is a mistake. Too many of them just blow smoke.''
Plus, just for good measure, he takes an extra jab at Paulson, referring to his excellent Op-Ed piece Wednesday as, among other things, "long.'' Brutal! Is there a greater sin in Big Al's famously short paper? Come on, Al; cut 'em some slack. We're all in this together!
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