Ex-WaPo Ombudsman alleges Media Matters organized email campaign against Jennifer Rubin

Ex-WaPo Ombudsman alleges Media Matters organized email campaign against Jennifer Rubin

Former WaPo Ombudsman Patrick Pexton wrote an “Open Letter” to Jeff Bezos upon buying WaPo.

The letter is getting attention because Politico picked up on one piece of advice from Pexton to Bezos, Fire Jennifer Rubin:

“She doesn’t travel within a hundred miles of Post standards [LOL – my add],” Pexton argues. “She parrots and peddles every silly right-wing theory to come down the pike in transparent attempts to get Web hits. Her analysis of the conservative movement, which is a worthwhile and important beat that the Post should treat more seriously on its national pages, is shallow and predictable. Her columns, at best, are political pornography; they get a quick but sure rise out of the right, but you feel bad afterward.” …

“[S]he is often wrong, and rarely acknowledges it,” Pexton writes “She was oh-so-wrong about Mitt Romney, week after week writing embarrassing flattery about his 2012 campaign, calling almost every move he made brilliant, and guaranteeing that he would trounce Barack Obama. When he lost, the next day she savaged him and his campaign with treachery, saying he was the worst candidate with the worst staff, ever. She was wrong about the Norway shootings being acts of al-Qaida. She was wrong about Chuck Hagel being an anti-Semite. And does she apologize? Nope.”

Look, I’m no fan of Rubin as you know from the 2012 campaign.

I made many of the same points made by Pexton. (Remember the Trump endorsement and how Romneycare rendered Romney unelectable?)

But to call Rubin out of step with WaPo’s standards is laughable; this is the paper which uses Greg Sargent to (effectively) transmit Dem talking points and ran a big investigation of a rock on a hunting grounds once used by Rick Perry’s family.

WaPo does hatchet job after hatchet job on Republicans, so don’t cry for me Patrick Pexton that Jennifer Rubin has a hatchet and knows how to use it. If anyone should be complaining it’s conservatives, who more often than not are on the receiving end.

But the next portion of Pexton’s “advice” caught my eye and I think is more significant (emphasis mine):

“Rubin was the No. 1 source of complaint mail about any single Post staffer while I was ombudsman, and I’m leaving out the organized email campaigns against her by leftie groups like Media Matters,” the former ombudsman concludes. “Thinking conservatives didn’t like her, thinking moderates didn’t like her, government workers who knew her arguments to be unfair didn’t like her. Dump her like a dull tome on the Amazon Bargain Books page.”

That’s interesting.  Media Matters and other leftie groups have organized email campaigns against Rubin?

That doesn’t surprise me, but if true, it certainly puts the lie to the Media Matters claim that the boycott effort organized by Media Matters against Rush Limbaugh’s advertisers is because of Limbaugh’s supposedly unique hate speech.

My guess is that Media Matters doesn’t announce to readers “send emails to WaPo about Jennifer Rubin,” it directly or indirectly through its affiliates and sympathizers encourages such actions.  A blog post by Media Matters about the Pexton letter does not address this issue.

I emailed Media Matters press contact several hours ago asking for comment but have not heard back:

Former Washington Post Ombudsman Patrick Pexton has written of Jennifer Rubin (emphasis mine):

Rubin was the No. 1 source of complaint mail about any single Post staffer while I was ombudsman, I’m leaving out the organized email campaigns against her by leftie groups like Media Matters.

Can you confirm, deny or otherwise comment on whether Media Matters, directly, indirectly or through one of its affiliated groups, in any way organized email campaigns against Rubin?

I also emailed Pexton for more details, but still am waiting on that:

In your open letter about Jennifer Rubin, you wrote (emphasis added):

Rubin was the No. 1 source of complaint mail about any single Post staffer while I was ombudsman, I’m leaving out the organized email campaigns against her by leftie groups like Media Matters.

Can you elaborate on the organized email campaigns against her, particularly as to Media Matters? I have asked Media Matters for comment, and would like to get your side as well, since you mentioned them specifically.

I’ll post an update if either Media Matters or Pexton responds.

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