Latest Embarrassment to the Fourth Estate

Why, it's Mr. Jayson Blair, late of the New Yawk Times.

Read about his unfortunate tendency to fabricate sources, quotes and other such bits of journalism most common folks assume to be -- ha ha! -- true.

Howard Kurtz lays out the basics.

Slate ponders the issue.

And a Times managing editor weighs in.

(Thanks to Romenesko for a couple of these.)

Please Mr. Postman

I've just finished writing an e-mail. Here's the edited, blog-spiffy version:

Dear M -- :

The two biggest events since I talked with you last are the purchase of a little vacuum cleaner and a watch. The Casio I had, after a couple of band replacements and several battery replacements, just had it. The little pin that connected the timepiece part of the watch to one of the bands wore through its tiny plastic tube. Thus, I couldn't get the band to snap on anymore. Have no idea if that makes sense, but it's broke.

So I went by Target and picked up a $20 Mossimo watch ... black band, but a rectangular face, with silver numbers and background. A little fancier than I expected, but the basic watches looked doofy.

While I was there, picked up a Dustbuster-clone vacuum. One room in the apartment is carpeted, so it's needed. This mini-vac is shaped kind of like a shark and is, in fact, called the shark. The package said it was powerful and such, so I bought it.

And such are the exciting events in the life of me.

Yours,
C --

What I'm Doing Today

Every third week, my job at the Tampa Bay area daily newspaper changes a bit. Instead of editing the nation/world, metro or business sections, I tackle zones.

Zones is short for zoned sections -- localized sections put out by the paper to appeal to readers in the suburbs or certain city neighborhoods. They contain a lot of "chicken dinner" news: community events listings, theater reviews, school news. It's the stuff readers can actually use.

But it can be deathly dull to edit. One of the other copy editors here says the sections are aptly named, as she zones out whenever she works on them.

Teaser

Detail on that big creative project to come soon. I promise.

Bio, Again

Every month or two, I update my vital signs. Here's the latest installment.

Name: Clay McCuistion.
Age: 23
Height: 6'1.
Weight: 182.
Distinguishing Trait: Moles on my left ear. That, or chronic anxiety.
Occupation: Attorney general.
Actual Occupation: Proofreading-type person.
Significant Other: Yes.
Main goal in life: To get a full night's rest soon.
Secondary goal: Canonization. Or, barring that, cleaning the bathroom.
Another random goal: Discover the lost city of gold.

Complaining

Having a devil of a time posting.

Blogger ate my last two posts.

Now, the world will forever be without them. What a sad, tragic loss.

Oh well. Off to bed.

"You'll Pay For That Free Music! Bwah-ha-ha!"

This whole music piracy thing is silly. Well, not the music piracy itself. While morally questionable (perhaps), the truly scary behavior is coming from the record industry.

Take it away, New York Times.

Software Bullet Is Sought to Kill Musical Piracy
By ANDREW ROSS SORKIN

Some of the world's biggest record companies, facing rampant online piracy, are quietly financing the development and testing of software programs that would sabotage the computers and Internet connections of people who download pirated music, according to industry executives.

The entire article is here.