Journalists don’t respect bloggers. That’s okay, we don’t respect journalists much either. Although we will always admire a clever writer, an excellent observationalist, a sound investigator or a great reporter, the entire concept of the “journalist” — untouchable, clergy-like purveyors of knowledge and opinion in a modern world that would be lost without them — makes us want to headbutt splayed scissors. Journalists are the guys too inept and self-righteous to be good reporters, commentators or essayists.

So we’re not terribly surprised to read this story over at The Huffington Post, in which an AP journalist was caught red handed plagiarizing a blogger who broke a story about revised guidelines for US security clearances. When the AP was confronted by the plagiarism, they said that they viewed the site as a blog and, as such, didn’t have to credit them.

Hey, AP! See that link at the end of this post? The one with a source in brackets next to it? By actually linking others and attributing our sources, we try to turn our readers on to other sites and writers; in doing so, we make candid recognition of the fact that every story we post did not spring up out of our head by sole dint of our lucid and resplendent genius. It’s a good example of how bloggers often have greater journalistic integrity than actual fucking journalists.

What’s weird about AP’s claim that they don’t have to credit blogs is that they credit blogs all the time. Maybe what they really mean is that they don’t have to credit them only when they are plagiarizing them?

MSM Plagiarism Strikes Again: AP Welcome to the Party [Huffington Post]

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