Ok, the guy apologized, and even responded gracefully to an email I’ve sent him. I’m willing to let bygones be bygones and rescind the “Douche of the Day” award.
UPDATE 2:58 AM EDT: The entire site is down. It appears he deleted the entire blog. Perhaps I was hasty in thinking he was truly rethinking his attitude: this appears to be CYA behavior because he’s afraid his bosses are going to ream him when they read their e-mails tomorrow. I’m sure people are going to link to blogs like mine and AOSHQ and point out the original post. This guy just learned the hard way that the internet is very, very public indeed.
His mistake was not in posting his true actions and attitude, it was in being that way to begin with. This is our MSM people, these are the people who are informing us and deciding what news is fit for us to see. Just re-reading his post pretty much sums up the opinions and world-view of most mainstream reporters, print and teevee, I’ve ever encountered.
Good that they sometimes slip up and reveal their true face. Being able to slip behind the mask and read their true thoughts reminds me of the glasses on They Live
docweasel to bcalvan 1:29 am (21 minutes ago)
Ok, you are new to blogging. As a long time blogger (since 1997) I can advise you of one rule: you don’t delete unpopular posts, not even if they are inaccurate or embarrassing, no more than you go around destroying every newspaper when you paper gets something wrong.You post a followup when something like that happens, or an update. You can retract, apologize, explain, justify or include more details to clarify. But you _never_ edit nor delete the post, other than to fix grammatical or spelling errors, or sometimes to write clearer sentences, although this is frowned upon as well.
Bloggers like Jane Hamsher (her Lieberman in blackface post) or Daily Kos (his “screw them” post about not caring whether contractors in Iraq were tortured and killed) were pilloried in the national press about their blogging faux pas, but they never deleted the posts, and they exist to this day. Its part of your credibility as a blogger that you don’t change stories after the fact for your own gain or to avoid criticism for an opinion you have uttered.
Its true that a blog is probably one of the few media where it SEEMS you can delete the past, but now dozens of bloggers are reprinting your entire post on their blogs, with their take on it. They are not going to link back to you, so people can read your side, because you have destoyed the post. The upside of leaving it up is that you can post an UPDATE at the top or bottom explaining, justifying, or even apologizing, as you did, but no one is going to come see it now because the original post is gone.
Just my 2 cents
-d
Bobby Calvan to docweasel 1:36 am (14 minutes ago)
Thanks for the advice. Yes, I am new to blogging and it was meant to be a diary of my experiences — and as a way to avoid writing individual e-mails to friends and family wanting to share in my experiences. Yes, I realize — and am embarrassed by naivete — that nothing is private on the Web.
Again, thanks for the advice. It will be heeded, as well as the many posts that, as I have said, pointed out my folly.
docweasel to bcalvan 1:45 am (5 minutes ago)
Well, if you were merely a private citizen, it would not have been such a big deal. But as you yourself make clear in your post, in fact the entire premise of your post, is that you are a representative of your newspaper chain.
I think that as much as people jumped on you, leave up your mistake, acknowledging your folly -and if you do feel you were wrong and learned from it, blog that. Also, you might consider doing a piece on the guys who you wrote about: not a puff piece to atone, but a straight, informative post about what the job of manning those check-points is like.
I think others have made the point that the guy is putting his life on the line, very literally, to man that post and check people’s credentials. The time spent on a story reporting on his job would probably give you some insight, and atone a bit for the post. That’s if you feel its warranted. I’m not suggesting you fake a candy-coated story to get the heat off your back.
Anyway, you’ll find the ‘net can turn around quickly if you apologize. Make a new post, open comments, and I’ll be damned if you don’t get some acknowledgment for being a stand-up guy, even if they still think you were a jerk in the original instance.