Blogging and the Argus Leader

The FRONTPAGEMAG web site has the WSJ column that mentioned the bloggers efforts regarding the Argus Leader:

Even in South Dakota, bloggers and the Web have challenged the dominance that Tom Daschle's pals at the Argus Leader have long had on that state's political dialogue.

The Weekly Standard has a Joseph Bottum column called “Prairie Politics” that also mentions the bloggers challenge to the Argus Leader:

The state's dominant newspaper, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader, for instance, ran a long profile of Tim Johnson in 2002 so puffy and sweet it should be handed out in journalism school as a model of disingenuous advocacy. A similar performance this year seems unlikely, as the South Dakota bloggers--particularly Jon Lauck at Daschle v. Thune, Steve Sibson at Sibby Online, and Jason Van Beek at South Dakota Politics--have kept relentlessly after the Argus Leader.

After reading yesterday's Vernon Brown column, we now understand the “puffy and sweet” Tim Johnson profile. I sent this email to Randell Beck this morning:

Looks like Vernon Brown spilled the beans yesterday. Perhaps this helps explain why Tim Johnson’s anti-gun voting record wasn’t reported on in 2002.

How much of the stuff I gave Jon Walker last week on Tom & Linda Daschle will get reported? You have been keeping the lobbying reports on the Boeing tanker deal secret for quite a long while.

Jon Walker is the Argus Leader reporter I spent over two hours with on Thursday last week pouring over a ton of research I had put together on Tom & Linda Daschle’s Washington DC activities. It was Walker who asked for the meeting.

I believe Jon Walker to be a fine journalist, and he left our meeting excited. At least that was my impression. Out of respect, I do not want to scoop him. But I will be blogging away on any stuff the Argus Leader does not print regarding the adventures of Tom & Linda. Randell Beck ought to know that I will relentlessly challenge him on this one.