The New York Times > Week in Review > The Public Editor: It's Good to Be Objective. It's Even Better to Be Right.

I saw Okrent on C-SPAN recently at a Harvard seminar. I find him to be smart, but a bit scatter-brained. Here's his attempt to handle objectivity in reporting. He seems so ingrained in journalism's nuances that he is not straightforward enough in his own writing.

He almost implies that reporting and commentary are inseparable. A key point he does make, though, is the power of the editing and story selection and placement process in the newspaper, an arena where bias and objectivity can have a field day.

He certainly has a tough job! I wouldn't want it.