The first came from [conservative blogger] Ed Morrissey, who asked Graham and Swindle, "Can you explain the significance of John McCain's command experience in the Navy...as well as whatever leadership he has shown in the Senate....and can you address...that Barack Obama doesn't have any executive experience at all?"

The next query came from [conservative blogger] Matt Lewis. Referencing retired General Wesley Clark's recent comment that McCain's military service and POW experience did not qualify him to be president, Lewis asked Graham and Swindle if Clark's remark was part of "a concerted effort by the Obama campaign, or can liberals simply not keep themselves from attacking the military?"

Then the call was over.

Of course, McCain no longer needs the press, because he can go direct to voters with his amazing new ad slogan, "Don't hope for a better life."

[Mother Jones via New Republic]

• Matt Drudge, longtime nemesis who briefly was nicer to Clinton and then went back to completely hating on her. He recently "had the nerve to show up at Mrs. Clinton’s departure speech on Saturday"
• Chris Matthews, MSNBC host who said Clinton had succeeded thanks to her husband's infidelities and who called her staff "kneecappers" for seeking scalps over that comment and another allegedly misogynist statement from another MSNBC correspondent.
• Keith Olbermann, who actually left MSNBC once over its aggressive coverage of the Monica Lewinsky scandal but who became disillusioned with Hillary and issued several "Special Commentaries" against her and Bill involving, in one case, the Clintons' alleged race-baiting of Barack Obama. He also maybe said Hillary should be beaten. Physically.
• Todd Purdum of Vanity Fair. Duh.

At one point in time, being on the Clinton shit list might have meant you didn't get any favors from the White House or its federal agencies, and maybe also you committed "suicide" some day or had a terrible deadly "accident" on a deserted road. But what can the Clintons possibly do now? Cross your name of their hypothetical vice presidential inauguration list? Have David Brock hound you via Media Matters?

Besides, if Hillary ever makes another run at the White House, she'll make nice, just like she did with Richard Mellon Scaife and a million other people over the past year.

[Times]

One would hope McClellan, given his former position, could make a more definitive statement about the administration's disclosure strategy, one way or the other. That he can't is one of many clues that the former flack is not the best person with whom to have a discussion of modern political ethics, as Stewart attempts to do in the following clip, by way of suggesting the administration may have committed war crimes.

Among the news organizations she telephoned, she said, were The Baltimore Sun and Newsweek (which is owned by The Washington Post Company), which both published articles. She also contacted this reporter and identified herself, in part, as “Howard Kurtz’s wife.”

'
It's tough to work as a press scold, as Kurtz must, when your wife is trampling press ethics so blatantly, trying to leverage her access to you to advance her own financial interests. This transgression alone, however, would not be enough to crucify Kurtz, given that it is the work of a family member and not the columnist himself. Throw in Kurtz's own bad judgement on CNN, however, and the media pontificator looks seriously wounded.

But, hey, if he loses the CNN and Post gigs, there's always blogging, right?

• The curbside neighborhood "b-box" has your target's line, you just have to figure out the right two wires, then use $50 worth of Radio Shack equipment to intercept their calls. Many of these boxes are unlocked, at least in Southern California, while the others tend to all have the same key, "and retired technicians apparently keep them."
• Sneak in to the central switching office, open at all hours for technicians and "often unsupervised."
• Seduce the phone company dispatchers, like this guy: "Prosecutors say a field technician from SBC Communications (now AT&T), Rayford Turner, who was a bit of a ladies’ man, prevailed upon a small group of middle-age female SBC dispatchers to give him whatever data he requested: toll records, cable pairs, names, phone numbers and so on. They continued to do so long after he retired."
• Rent an apartment: " When Mr. Pellicano wanted to hear the calls of someone who lived outside his area code, prosecutors say, he rented an apartment nearby and had Mr. Turner run the duplicated phone line into it. There it would be plugged into a Macintosh computer that would record a new digital audio file each time the subject’s receiver was lifted off the hook."
• Get a special "set of undocumented phone lines" from the central office to yours. Pellicano did this and was able "to monitor calls across Beverly Hill without even stepping outside."

[Times]

(Image via EveryStockPhoto)

Full letter:

"What she has to do is get rid of the kneecapers that work for her, these press people whose main job seems to be punishing Obama or going after the press, to building a positive case for her," Matthews said. And later: "The kneecapping hasn't worked. Her press relations are lousy," he said. "If all you do is intimidate and punish and claim you'll get even relentlessly, people of all kinds of politicians—and in all fairness, the press—human reaction to intimidation is screw you."

If anyone can point us towards a clip, we'd appreciate it.

Matthews Calls Clinton Press Shop "Lousy", "Kneecappers" [HuffPo]

Most reporters covering Ash's stories have included a quick disclaimer saying Ash had been arrested multiple times for prostitution before quoting him extensively. None of them, however, have gone into any detail about Ash's criminal history.

When I Googled "William Ash," the search led me to a 2001 cover story in the Broward-Palm Beach New Times, a free weekly. The story documented more than a dozen cons that an overweight man by that name perpetrated on the South Florida gay community. There was a picture: It was the same guy.

The swindles listed in the New Times included stealing the client list of a company that sold goods manufactured by the disabled and setting up a rival company; a stint working at Fort Lauderdale's CenterOne, an AIDS-counseling center, that ended when Ash was fingered for lying to a tabloid and telling them Tina Turner was a patient; and chartering a boat for his 31st birthday and spending thousands of dollars on flowers and balloons by telling vendors he was throwing a party for Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga and that the Miami businessman would be footing the bill. In 1997, Ash spent six months in jail on a combination of those charges and for running a prostitution ring.

On January 9, Billy Ash added yet another wild twist to the story. He told the New York Daily News's "Rush & Molloy" that Phyllis had paid $100,000 to Madam Simbi M'Arue, a voodoo artist who sometimes goes by the name Mama, to place a hex on her husband while he was still alive. Two days later, he told the same column that Tobias liked to have his genitals sheared by another gay porn star named Angel. Ash claimed Phyllis had even FedExed him a lock of Tobias's pubic hair. No Mama or Angel ever came forward. [New York mag]

Renowned Editor of Interview Magazine Ingrid Sischy Resigns After 18 Years



NEW YORK, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire/ — Ingrid Sischy today announced her resignation as Editor-in-Chief of Interview Magazine. "I have had the honor of editing one of the most unique titles in magazine publishing and working with tremendously talented people in our industry. With Sandra Brant's decision to sell her interest in Brant Publications, it is only appropriate that I resign at this time. Sandy and I have worked together as a team, and that has been a huge part of the fun of it. While it is difficult to contemplate being away from this extraordinary experience, the time is right and Interview is firmly positioned for even greater success," Sischy commented.

Over Ms. Sischy's tenure she has built Interview into an internationally recognized title that covers the world of art, fashion, entertainment and pop culture. During her more than 18 year tenure as Editor-in-Chief the circulation of the magazine has grown significantly and has become a mainstay vehicle for marketers around the world who are interested in reaching a discerning, culturally aware audience.

"When I was first drafted as editor after Andy Warhol's death I thought I'd stay a few years, devote myself to helping the magazine find its post-Warhol life, and then get back to my writing. Although leaving the magazine and wonderful staff behind is difficult, it is the right decision and one that will allow the new owners to establish their own editorial stamp on the magazine. I am now more than ever, eager to get back to my writing and have several big projects in front of me that need my attention"

"Managing such an important part of Andy Warhol's legacy has been a huge responsibility and I am proud of what Sandy and my editorial team have accomplished in terms of content and growth. I wish everyone the best of luck and hope this great American magazine will continue to flourish," Sischy concluded.

"Ingrid has done a masterful job of making Interview successful. When she first arrived here after Andy's death the future of the magazine was in question and there was an enormous amount of anxiety. She not only moved us through that period but has taken the magazine to a level of success and recognition that is beyond anything we thought possible. Her leadership, thoughtfulness, journalistic expertise and editorial vision have been critical," Sandra Brant commented.

Ms. Sischy started her career at Artforum Magazine in 1979 and is a widely published author on a range of cultural subjects. She has contributed to a broad range of magazines, including The New York Times, and has been the fashion and photography critic for The New Yorker. In 1996 she was the Artistic Director of the first Florence Fashion Biennale, conceiving and organizing the exhibition which occupied 26 museums throughout Florence, Italy and its outskirts. Part of this exhibition was subsequently presented at the Guggenheim Museum. Sischy has been a contributing editor for Vanity Fair since 1997. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College, she received an honorary PhD in the humanities from the Moore College of Art in 1987.

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