Director of the World Editors Forum, Bertrand Pecquerie posts in the Editors Web Log here (note, emphasis is his, not mine):

Sad conclusion in the Eason Jordan affair … sad day for the freedom of expression in America and sad day again for the future of blogging: the defense of the US army honor seemed more important to some bloggers than the defense of reporters’ work (and sometimes life)! Nevertheless, there is one advantage in this story: masks are fallen! Within the honest community of bloggers, some of them claimed to be the “sons of the First Amendment”, they just were the sons of Senator McCarthy. And this is very worrying to see this new wedding between self-proclaimed citizen’s media and maintstream journalists scalps’ hunters. Fifty years ago, it was enough to be communist to be fired, today, it is enough to raise questions about the Bush administration policy in Iraq to be denounced as “anti-American”. Maybe the only difference is that you are not fired, but that you must dismiss! What’s my conclusion? Real promoters of citizen media would have to take some distance with those who have fueled and organised the Eason Jordan hatred. If not, the “new era of journalism” opened by the blogosphere will appear as the old clothes of American populism.

HT: LGF

Meanwhile, the Blog Herald notes:

James D. Miller, Assistant Professor of Economics at Smith College and contributor to online tech-site Tech Central Station (TCS) has joined the recently spate of blog bashing, with a post at TCS that warns that blogs may soon make many Americans afraid to speak their minds.

Except that the “blogs” that he speaks of are mostly written by Americans. And the “Americans” that he speaks of are mostly public figures who heretofore had little or no accountability.

By the way, want to adjust your preconceptions of “McCarthyism”? Read this book.

UPDATE: Welcome, Outside the Beltway readers!