Matt Drudge

If you wanted to wipe out the American media establishment in one blow, you might have targeted the Grand Ballroom on the third floor of the Plaza hotel at around 9 a.m. on Nov. 12.

The Foursquare Conference was organized by media mogul Steve Rattner’s Quadrangle Partners, and had the kind of exclusive list Mr. Rattner is known for. Barry Diller attended the conference, as did Lachlan Murdoch, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., and Tribune chief Sam Zell.

It was just the place for Jeff Jarvis, the tall 54-year-old professorial-looking guy who was looking intently through unfashionable glasses at the participants of a panel discussion on the state of American media, from his perch up front.  read more »

It's no blue dress, but Matt Drudge has himself a little scoop today. The title—and the strikingly familiar—cover of Ann Coulter's latest book. Sites like Pandagon and Gawker were intrigued by Random House's title-less touting of Ms. Coulter's next book ("Controversial. Confidential. Coulter," was all the publisher would say), but leave it to Mr. Drudge to get the scoop:

Bestselling author and controversialist Ann Coulter plans to crash Obama's inauguration party with her new work, GUILTY.

Set for release first week of January, the book exposes and mocks, in graphic detail, the media's love affair with all things Democrat and Obama.

 read more »

News sites everywhere--the Times, Politico, CNN et al--are posting instant poll results. But right now on the Drudge Report, ABC News' web site is the only one linked for instant results in Florida, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio and Virginia, right above Drudge's headline, "LETS COUNT 'EM."

This morning, Matt Drudge reported that Barack Obama's campaign had barred critical reporters from the senator's plane. According to Mr. Drudge, reporters from the New York Post, The Washington Times, and The Dallas Morning News (all papers whose editorial pages endorsed Senator Obama's rivals, John McCain and Sarah Palin) were told that:

Despite pleas from top editors of the three newspapers that have covered the campaign for months at extraordinary cost, the Obama campaign says their reporters—and possibly others —will have to vacate their coveted seats so more power players can document the final days of Sen. Barack Obama's historic campaign to become the first black American president.  read more »

As you probably know by now, Ashley Todd, the Texas woman who claimed she was attacked in Pittsburgh and had a 'B' scratched in her face because of her support of Senator John McCain was lying.

There had been doubts expressed about her story from the moment it broke on the Drudge Report yesterday, including from conservative commentator Michelle Malkin, but the strongest statement came last night from Fox News' executive vice president, John Moody, who wrote on his FOX Forum blog:

If the incident turns out to be a hoax, Senator McCain’s quest for the presidency is over, forever linked to race-baiting.  read more »

Last week presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama contributed an op-ed to The New York Times headlined "My Plan for Iraq."

In it, Senator Obama wrote:

Unlike Senator John McCain, I opposed the war in Iraq before it began, and would end it as president. I believed it was a grave mistake to allow ourselves to be distracted from the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taliban by invading a country that posed no imminent threat and had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks.

According to The Drudge Report, Mr. Obama's Republican rival, Senator John McCain, attempted to file a rebuttal but didn't make it past The Times editorial board.  read more »

At the PDF conference about technology and politics, NYU journalism professor and Off the Bus co-founder Jay Rosen once again defended Mayhill Fowler, the citizen journalist whose access to Barack Obama and Bill Clinton led to two major stories that the national media couldn’t get enough of.

Rosen said that the media was inconsistent for criticizing citizen journalists like Fowler but then picking up on her scoops.

Rosen said quotes from Mayhill‘s story about Obama got “stripped” and then “turned it into hot news.”

“So, check out the ethics of ‘closed fund-raiser' -- eew, so unethical, hot news, great story, here you go Drudge.”

Outside, in line, BOILING. 11:22 a.m.

"Lanny, what now?" reporters ask Lanny Davis one by one. "We're going to take the White House" is his talking point today.

And here's a reporter who's been covering Hillary for the whole shebang. What's next for him? "Gonna take a week off."

Inside. There are 10 American flags in the room, six of them on the stage around the podium where she will speak. It's Mark Penn's strategy come at last to full flower, too late.

One-quarter of the floor space is unused, cordoned off.  read more »

Arianna Huffington beats Matt Drudge—by at least one metric.

In February, the Huffington Post had 3.7 million unique visitors to the Drudge Report's 3.4 million, according to stats from Nielsen Online. In January, Drudge had 3.2 million visitors and the Huffington Post 2.9 million. (Last month in Off the Record we documented the narrowing gap between the two sites).  read more »

So did a Clinton staffer send out that picture of Obama in traditional Somali garb? Maybe.

But it should be noted in all of this that Obama campaign manager David Plouffe's single source for accusing the Clinton campaign of being behind it is Drudge. (The Obama campaign doesn't claim to have seen any e-mail linking the Clinton campaign to the photo.)  read more »

Another new New Hampshire poll is out this morning, but be careful with it: Most of it was conducted before the Iowa results were in, so it does not reflect the "bounce" Iowa's winners traditionally receive.  read more »

Something to keep in mind as Matt Drudge continues his effort to take down Mike Huckabee: Huckabee poses the most immediate and serious threat to Mitt Romney.

As John Harris of the Washington Post first reported in October 2006, Drudge has an unusually close relationship with a senior Romney strategist, Matt Rhodes:  read more »

The notoriously press-shy Matt Drudge granted an interview to SkyNews in England. He said the media is sometimes untrustworthy.

"You really have to get to know where you’re getting your information," he said.  read more »

Until about ten minutes ago, Matt Drudge was reporting that he had obtained a damning internal document from The New Republic proving that “Baghdad diarist” Scott Beauchamp, who was accused of fabricating portions of war reports he published in the magazine over the summer, had refused to stand behind his stories when top editors questioned him over the phone on August 7th. The article, titled “SHOCK DOCS: THE NEW REPUBLIC 'SHOCK TROOPS' STORY COLLAPSES” was highlighted in red and placed prominently in the upper left hand corner of the site.

Now, the link is gone—no explanation is given for why—though you can still read the story if you click here.

Franklin Foer, the magazine's top editor, could not be reached for comment as he is in all-day meetings with executives from TNR's parent company, CanWest.

Sorry.

Drudge is taking Bill Clinton to task for giving a $100,000 speech via satellite to a group of investors in Hong Kong on the 5th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

But Clinton's press office now says that although it was Sept. 11 in Hong Kong, he gave the speech from his home in Chappaqua on Sept. 10th at 8:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time.

According to Jay Carson, Clinton's spokesman, the former president's entire public schedule on Sept. 11 was as follows:

In the morning, he flew from Chappaqua to Washington DC, where, from 9:15 AM to about 12:00 pm, he gave a free speech to a charity called the United Jewish Communities Conference.

He then flew back to Newark, and from 2:15 pm to 3:30 pm, he attended the Struggle Against Terrorism Monument unveiling in Bayonne, New Jersey, where he delivered the keynote speech. Also in attendance were his wife and Sen. Frank Lautenberg.
LeAnn Rimes sang the national anthem.

"Where's Nancy?" has been the headline on his site. He's concerned, you see, because she's been in hiding.

Well, don't tell Philly! Today, we caught up with Nancy twice. She was last seen wearing a tasteful red, white and blue scarf, in Norristown, PA. She was engaged in the act of introducing Barack Obama to a crowd of 350 or so at the George Washington Carver Center.

Later this afternoon, Obama would get to return the favor, introducing her at their next get-out-the-vote campaign stop a few exits down the Turnpike.

She's okay, Matt! Don't call in Nancy Grace just yet.