Howard Kurtz: Newsweek Hit on Rush Unfair
Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz said Monday that he
thought a report by his paper's sister publication Newsweek on Rush Limbaugh's
painkiller addiction was "surprisingly harsh."
Kurtz also slammed some of Limbaugh's more militant critics for displaying "a
certain gleefulness in kicking a man when he's down."
"I did think [the Newsweek story] was surprisingly harsh," Kurtz said, when
asked during an online chat what he thought about editor Evan Thomas' decision
to lace the story with perjoratives like "clowning" and "schlub."
"They could have made the same points without some of the loaded language,"
he acknowledged.
The Washington Post media critic described the tone of Thomas' report as
"clearly unfriendly," adding that while some of the criticism being heaped on
Limbaugh may be legitimate, "there's a difference between that and rejoicing
about the fact that Rush Limbaugh is an addict and demanding he be marched off
to jail."
Kurtz also chastised those who claim the painkiller story makes Rush a
hypocrite whose issues are now discredited.
"Limbaugh certainly wasn't defending illegal drug use," he reminded one
questioner. "The fact that people don't always live up to high ideals doesn't
mean the ideals themselves are discredited."
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