Huffington Post political reporter Sam Stein claims a background in investigative journalism. But one wouldn’t know it, given that Stein took to the front page of Arianna Huffington’s website to sneer at former Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin for claims she made on Fox News, doing so several hours after the evidence to support her claims began broadly circulating on the Internet courtesy of this post at Big Government. As the timestamps indicate, that Big Government post was made hours before Stein’s seemingly clueless screed.
In all, Palin uttered the word corrupt or corruption in relation to the media three separate times on Sunday. In addition to the videotape she says she will reveal, she charged the Murkowksi campaign with orchestrating the firing of an Alaska conservative talk show host who didn’t support her candidacy. In actuality, the host was fired for trying to gin up dozens of write-in bids for the Senate seat, a ploy for chaos that would hurt Murkowksi but also was un-welcomed by the host station.
“[S]tuff like that,” said Palin, “it is corrupt. It’s frustrating. It’s why Americans are saying no more, enough is enough. We’re going to turn this around. We are going to fight corruption in the media; we’re going to fight corruption in politics.”
Also, as regards Palin’s claim of Murkowski intimidation of an Alaskan radio station to silence a host in opposition to her write-in candidacy, the host himself, Dan Fagan, cited interference from the Murkowski camp when he was unceremoniously pulled off the air just days before a critical election. Additionally, other prominent conservative radio talkers have since condemned both Murkowski and the station’s actions in response.
If Arianna’s Stein is, indeed, an investigative journalist, it’s unclear precisely what he may have been investigating prior to writing his misguided shot at Palin. Perhaps he plans on covering a Republican campaign event this afternoon and was off rifling through lists of potential sex offenders who just might happen to show up.