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Commentary by TrueDialog.org's Founder, Carl Lindemann September 5 - The Dutson Defense Reactions to my piece in the Bangor Daily News include comments from Lance Dutson himself, the Maine Web Report blogger/Collins campaign's Director of Internet Strategy (please see postings and disclaimers below for the details on this story). What Dutson says here should be of great concern to his patron, Senator Collins. The issue, in part, is how Dutson downplays his paid partisan role while trying to keep the spotlight on his now-tarnished identity as a "citizen journalist." This is obvious in the different treatment he gives promoting these conflicting roles on his site. When there's news coverage about his work as an independent blogger, he posts about it. For example, when the Portland Press Herald published a story about the rise of blogging in July and praised him saying "people like Lance Dutson...have made a name for citizen journalists," it was front-and-center on his site. However, when he was profiled in the Bangor Daily News last week as a paid partisan working in a campaign that is the focus of his "reporting", it did not merit notice. Somehow, a role that conflicts with the integrity and independence of the man who has "made a name for citizen journalists" apparently is not of interest to visitors to the Maine Web Report. That's his editorial judgment, anyway. Others may take a different view. After my piece detailing this conflict of interest hit the street in Monday's BDN, the subject popped up in an online discussion on the conservative web site "As Maine Goes" (see also below - July 14 posting on AMG's censorship) While trying to argue against my point, the discussion demonstrates it: Bob MacGregor: I read that this morning, Mike, and wondered why there isn't any mention of Lance's ties to Collins on Maine Web Report. Or maybe I missed it, but it seems that it should be out in the open. Lance Dutson: It's very clearly stated, in the first paragraph of my bio page, which is linked at the top of every page on the site: Bob MacGregor: Sorry, Lance, didn't see that link buried over on the right side. I'm glad it's there, I just think it should be more prominent. I'm not sure what Bob MacGregor's sorry about. He "didn't see that link buried on the right side." Is he at fault because the disclaimer is hidden behind a "link buried" off to the side? This is what Dutson's saying in his defense: a disclaimer is sufficient even if the only way you are likely to find it is if you ask where to look. In the bad old days, they used to say "don't forget to read the fine print!" As I've said before, I don't see a great deal of value in engaging in a taffy pull over this. That would distract from the core policy issue, about the separation of "personal" blogs of campaign employees from their employers. If campaign staff can speak out about opponents and not have it reflect on their patrons, it opens the floodgates for smear campaigns. What does Dutson think of this? "...anything I'm writing about the Maine Senate race should be taken with a grain of salt. But, it's a blog, not a newspaper, and it's my prerogative to write whatever the heck pops into my head." I wonder what the Senator thinks about having a loose cannon on board who believes it is his "prerogative to write whatever the heck pops into my head" about her campaign and post it publicly. As far as Dutson's First Amendment rights, I have NO ISSUE with him exercising them in any way he sees fit. In fact, I applaud him for speaking his mind - especially since it may put the $25k+ he has received from the Collins campaign at risk. He may come to understand the hard way how freedom comes with responsibility. Here, he has responsibilities to the Collins Campaign. If Senator Collins is willing to have a loose cannon in a public relations role for her campaign, she is far more liberal than I would have imagined - some might even say permissive. *** The Wages of Spin Project Spin Shop Ideas & Essays Spin Shops, State by State
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