This Is It — the Majors

It can be difficult to know when you, as a journalist, have finally made it. Maybe it’s when your first A1 article appears; maybe it’s when you make a Pulitzer shortlist; maybe it’s when you are called into the ombudsman’s office and don’t get yelled at.

But today, I really know that I made it, baby. How? After seeing the new Newsweek cover in the mail this afternoon I knew I just had to share it with the world (read below to see why). My tip led to a post on Gawker — with recognition. It’s so juicy I just have to post the whole thing.

In an attempt to construct a witty cover, Newsweek seems to claim that Obama isn’t president. Jonathan Alter‘s article explores and debunks the network of conspiracy theories surrounding the president. But the cover lines’ kind of affirm one myth. D’oh.

Newsweek‘s cover reads,

The Making of a Terrorist-Coddling, Warmongering, Wall Street-Loving, Socialistic, Godless Muslim President *

In small print below:

* who isn’t actually any of these things

As various bloggers note, this would suggest that Obama is no more president of America than he is a Muslim. Hey, maybe Newsweek finally found its lucrative 21st century niche: Conspiracy theorists! They’re a great audience—between their high tolerance for paradox and preoccupation with insignificant details, you only need to throw your conspiracy theorizing readers one tiny footnoted bone per issue, anyway. [PajamasMedia via chevronnline]

That’s me, chevronnline! Wait, what? I’m chevronnine, not chevronnline. Damn it. Still, I’ll not let this little cloud ruin my bright sunshine.

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Morning Briefing: 20 August 2010

Stuff you just have to read, served up hot every weekday morning.

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Starbucks Language Rebel Vows to Never Set Foot in ‘Fascist’ Shop Again [via DNAInfo]

Lynne Rosenthal, a professor of English literature at Mercy College in the Bronx, was ejected from a Manhattan Starbucks after she refused to call coffee sizes “venti” and “grande” and — horror of horrors — was asked by a server, “Do you want butter or cheese [on your bagel]?”

If you thought this seemingly minor incident would blow over quickly, you clearly don’t know a thing about the media in the slow news environment of August. Rosenthal is calling Starbucks’ lingo “linguistic fascism.” “It’s all about control,” Rosenthal said. “They’re trying to control the language and in that way create a different reality. Unless you obey that language, they lose control.” The professor now refuses to patronize the coffee chain ever again. Fine by me; it’s a shorter line for my half-caff half-fat soy latte grande with a shot of almond syrup.

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Councils Pay for Disabled to Visit Prostitutes and Lap-dancing Clubs from £520m Taxpayer Fund [via The Daily Mail]

This probably falls into the “only in the U.K.” file. The government (which one, nobody seems to know) has approved funds for a 21-year-old man with learning disabilities to fly to Amsterdam and have sex with a prostitute. The £520 million fund was intended to “empower those with disabilities.”

“Wouldn’t you prefer that we can control this, guide him, educate him, support him to understand the process and ultimately end up satisfying his needs in a secure, licensed place where his happiness and growth as a person is the most important thing?” the man’s anonymous social worker told The Daily Mail. “Refusing to offer him this service would be a violation of his human rights.”

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“Cougar” trend of women chasing younger men a myth [via Reuters]

Psychologists at the University of Wales Institute in Cardiff report that the highly popular cougar trend — older women dating younger men — is a myth. The study, analyzing the age preferences of some 22,000 online dating profiles, found no considerable group of women seeking younger men.

“The transference of female desire from relatively older men to relatively younger men, it has been argued, is reflected by the growth of the toy boy phenomenon,” he said. “The results of our research challenges these assumptions. Although there was some cultural variation in extremes, the results showed clearly that women across all age groups and cultures, targeted males either their own age or older.”

The story is different for men, however. Until age 25 or so men target women their own age or only slightly younger; after that, the desired age gap grows. Shocking.

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10 Things to Do Before Summer is Over [via Gawker]

Gawker has a listicle of ten things to do before summer is over. Included: wear white; go swimming; eat corn on the cob; call in sick; read something stupid (not this blog!).

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