Roeper weighs in on the Maggie Galagher microbrouhaha:
Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post reports that syndicated columnist Maggie Gallagher pushed the Bush administration’s “marriage initiative” without disclosing that she had a $21,500 contract with the Department of Health and Human Services.
That’s the second time in recent weeks that we’ve heard about a columnist taking money to push a political agenda. When radio disc jockeys took money to play certain records, the name for it was “payola.” Isn’t this the same thing?
Kurtz also reported that Gallagher received $20,000 from the Bush administration to write a report titled “Can Government Strengthen Marriage?” I wonder what conclusions she drew.
Yet Gallagher told Kurtz: “Did I violate journalistic ethics by not disclosing it? You tell me.”
Well. YES.
You also violated journalistic ethics by taking the money in the first place, dear.
Message: When the government wants you to do work for it, you do that work for free, citizen.
Perhaps the government needs someone to comment on its training films….I nominate Roeper. For free!
