The Scrutinator

A friend sent an article by NY Times' Thomas L. Friedman, Leading by (Bad) Example, via e-mail. But the last paragraph was missing, and my friend received it that way, too. (Here's the whole thing.)

Here's what that paragraph says:

"(Yes, all of this is a fake news story. I just wish that it weren't so true.)"

A pretty serious omission, in my humble opinion, even if you see hints that the "story" is fake. It changes how you read the entire piece. (The "...so true" I'll leave to its own discussion.)

Here's the problem: you go to the Times' web-site, and you can't get to the article without paying. So it's pretty difficult (and expensive) to verify. My friend tried to verify it, but was daunted by the fee. I would have been, too.

For now, I'm rejecting the notion that the piece was intentionally written to make that kind of boot-leg shift to misinformation easy, but it kinda seems that way. One line at the end clipped, keep the prestigious Times as the source and you're there! And best you can tell from this side of the TimesSelect wall, it's legit.

Like I say, though, I'm rejecting that notion. But I'm keeping my eye out for a pattern.

Kudos to K for catching this missing line.

Background: the blogosphere commented on TimesSelect, mostly brushing it off as a bad business decision:

• Instapundit: Skeptical of its chances of success.
• Powerline: Good riddance.
• Mickey Kaus, Slate: The NYT's Premium Discontent; Pinch's Perverse Populism; etc.

By The Scrutinator @ 3:42 PM