My sophomore post at Newsbusters highlights the NY Times’s contentious decision to expose the CIA interrogator responsible for getting information out of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.

Most interesting are the comments the post is generating (22 and counting), especially one by sean robins examining how the Times defends its double standard with an “incredible sleight of hand,” distinguishing between a story’s “subjects” (named, over the CIA’s objection) and its “sources” (some of the agent’s colleagues, who remain unnamed).

Similarly, Founding_Father wonders “exactly how many times in the last 8 years [the Times] has used ‘anonymous’ sources, or withheld names” from other articles:

[W]hat were the circumstances surrounding it. Were they all intelligence officers or sexual assault victims? How many times do they use “washington insider” instead of using the names?

The Times editors claim that publishing the agent’s name “was necessary for the credibility and completeness of the article,” but they failed to do what was necessary for the safety and security of this nation and its public servants. Furthermore, by doing so, over the objection of the CIA and the agent’s legal counsel, the Times has dealt yet another critical blow to its own credibility as an organization, especially in light of its Valerie Plame hysteria.

Elsewhere: Gateway Pundit, Hot Air…

We should all be fully aware that the latest political ad from BRCK BM was specifically intended to inspire the following free-attention-getting comparison:

It was a stupid idea the first time around.

UPDATE: Looks like that isn’t the only stupid thing in the ad; BRCK BM also takes credit for legislation he didn’t vote for.

At the risk of upsetting the delicate puppy-to-politics ratio, here are a couple good shots my in-laws took in Nashville this weekend.

Did I say Nashville? I meant Dagobah.

Here’s Eden practicing one of her Jedi mind tricks (you get more treats that way).

Since the puppies aren’t frequently peeing on the floor anymore, the little make-shift fence we built to keep them off the carpet has largely fallen out of use and was moved against the wall, out of the way. This morning, Eden jumped behind it and then decided she was trapped. She started whining and begging me to help her out, but I decided to leave her for a minute and see if she could figure it out. She didn’t; I eventually came to her rescue.

The sharp folks over at NewsBusters.org have welcomed me as a contributor, picking up my recent post on the Daily Show. I’m thrilled to be joining such a remarkable group of professionals and look forward to writing more media criticism in the near future.