CapitolHillBlue.com

[WilliamPitt]

I do not like, nor do I trust, this publication. A few reasons why:

1. The publication basically got its start chasing the Bill Clinton sex stories. Much like Newsmax, they came into being by pounding the Evil Clenis/Rule of Law/Impeach! crap as loudly and as often as they could.

2. A couple of years ago, CHB coughed up an article that absolutely drove DU into a frothing tizzy. Notably, the CHB article itself can no longer be found, buit billmon has a record of it here (scroll down a bit):

http://www.billmon.org/archives/000335.html

In this article, a 'source' for CHB said the following:

An intelligence consultant who was present at two White House briefings where the uranium report was discussed confirmed that the President was told the intelligence was questionable and that his national security advisors urged him not to include the claim in his State of the Union address.

"The report had already been discredited," said Terrance J. Wilkinson, a CIA advisor present at two White House briefings. "This point was clearly made when the President was in the room during at least two of the briefings."

Bush's response was anger, Wilkinson said.

"He said that if the current operatives working for the CIA couldn't prove the story was true, then the agency had better find some who could," Wilkinson said. "He said he knew the story was true and so would the world after American troops secured the country."

To date, American troops have found no proof of the existence of nuclear weapons in Iraq.

It was later revealed that "Terrance J. Wilkinson" did not, in fact, exist. The whole story was bullshit.

So whenever CHB comes up with a 'source' that says Bush is drinking gin, raving at portraits of Lincoln and compiling enemies lists, bear all of this in mind.

As far as I am concerned, CHB's bread and butter is telling people things they wished were true, instead of telling people what is actually true. Publications like this give the entire alt-media a big black eye.

[flowomo]

1. CHB retracted that article:

I'm not defending them, but your statement is incomplete:

http://www.capitolhillblue.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=19&num=2529


Conned big time
By DOUG THOMPSON
Jul 9, 2003, 18:05

Damn, I hate it when I've been had and I've been had big time.

In 1982, while I was working for Congressman Manuel Lujan of New Mexico, a man came up to a me during a gathering in Albuquerque and introduced himself as Terrance J. Wilkinson. He said he was a security consultant and gave me a business card with his name and just a Los Angeles phone number.

A few weeks later, he called my Washington office and asked to meet for lunch. He seemed to know a lot about the nuclear labs in New Mexico and said he had conducted "security profiles" for both Los Alamos and Sandia National Labs. Lujan served on the committee with oversight on both labs and he offered his services if we ever needed briefings.

[WilliamPitt]

2. Indeed

but for my money, things like this lead to all sorts of serious questions. They have never, not once, quoted a source by name. These guys and Wayne Madsen should go bowling together.

[flowomo]

I don't doubt your misgivings are well founded...

but that "enemies list" thing is .... um .... not so unlikely. I may well be on it (looong paper trail) ... and you would be a likely candidate too.

[WiseButAngrySara]

24. Will, isn't bowling YOUR sport? Don't you mean golfing, or shark

snorkeling, or tiger hunting, or...

[KoKo]

3. Unless Terrance J. Wilkinson was "Code" for Lawrence Wilkersen?

:eyes: Then there might be some sense to it.

[WiseButAngrySara]

22. Funny. I wondered the same thing. ....n/t

[Rose Siding]

4. I remember. That was awful, but...

the name is interesting. 'Terrance Wilkinson', 'Lawrence Wilkerson'

*Just* interesting, is all I'm sayin'.

[WilliamPitt]

6. See post one

It isn't Lawrence Wilkerson. The dude flat didn't exist.

[King Coal]

8. You got that right. Rags like that could very well be tricks.

Rove would pull a trick like that. I hate that kind of shit.

[Protagoras]

39. As long as you throw out enough chaff

the missles get distracted and never hit their target.

We need to always remember this whenever we hear half constructed and oddly sourced pieces. We need to remember this when the tv goes from 1 investigation to 57 investigations. We need to remember this when we lose pretty girls on tropical islands or when drunken, violent, lesbian NFL cheerleaders attack.

All excellent chaff so that the real missles never get thru.

[KoKo]

13. Disguising a name is often a clever way of getting around being "offed"

though, when one lives in a climate of secrecy about the inner workings of the WH.

Not saying CHB is reliable, but the Terrence who didn't exist may have been the Lawrence who does and has just come out against he Bush policies on Iraq. It could have been disinformation as a "pre-emptive strike" or honest gossip that turned out to be true.

[kstewart33]

5. Wonkette said it best on her site today...

"Capitol Hill Blue -- the political rag that also functions as a tin foil hat."

[Tamyrlin79]

7. I give their articles the same skepticism I do any.

And that includes articles in the New York Times, these days.

Their exposes on the inner workings and goings one of the White House may or may not be true. I take them with a grain of salt. But, that doesn't mean I don't enjoy reading them and *hoping* that they are true. I mean, who can't enjoy lines like "GOP Leadership tell Bush that his presidency is effectively over"??

Sure its gossipy, but some gossip also has the virtue of ringing true.

[notadmblnd]

9. My grandfather had a saying

"believe nothing you hear, and only half of what you see".

I guess what I'm trying to say I guess is that not only CHB, but all sources should be taken with a grain of salt. We've all listened to MSM and seen how they only tell half truths or lie by omission. Are they considered to be any more reliable just because they're on our cable airwaves?

We here at DU I think take pride in ourselves for being independent thinkers. That we can take a news item, do the necessary research and determine if what is printed is indeed the truth.

[Cassandra]

10. I can't even go over there anymore...

because my computer literally freezes up.

[NYCGirl]

11. Is there anyone working for CHB other than the one man who publishes it

on the web? No bylines?

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

I have to say that they seem to have been ahead in the bush temper

tantrums story. These are now being published in the corporate media. Then again any one of us who has followed this sociopath since day one. Could have probably guessed what was going on behind closed doors. So in other words, I don't know what the hell to believe anymore.

[Jane Austin]

15. You don't need CHB to speculate about bush's temper problems.

Years ago, Tucker Carlson wrote an article in Talk Magazine that included how bush verbally assaulted Al Hunt as he dined with his wife and small child in a restaurant.

bush dropped the F-bomb on them and threatened Hunt for something he had written about his daddy - - loudly and in public.

From that, anyone could extrapolate that bush has control and impulse problems as well as a mean temper.

You don't need CHB to learn this about bush.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

18. Umh yeah, I think that’s similar to what I stated. n/t

[Walt Starr]

16. Theuy've been "ahead" because nobody else has reported it!

It's a fabrication because that's what people want to hear, so he just makes shit up!

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. So time and Newsweek have made that up too?

WOW? I guess so did Ha Aretz... they have reported what nobody else wanted to touch.

Unlike Watergate we no longer have a free press and CHB is in some ways part of the rumor netowork that existed in Paris in the 1770s... was it effective? Well you know what happened in 1789 don't you?

[KoKo]

34. Agree....cutting off outlets that "some folks" deem "Tinfoilhat" sort of

can be seen as a "Sanction" for "Fox News of the Left" where only "approved sources" get past the Editors and Programmers.

Don't we become "THEM" when we censor? How much to sensor? What I love about DU is that the Freeper/Trools get the "Stone."

But, shouldn't sites not Feeperish...but gossip of some note be allowed here?

I'm sure it's a fine line that DU Admin's walk and have walked. Still there's much that goes OTT posted on DU by Posters that's worse than what is on CHB. :shrug:

[nadinbrzezinski]

36. Correct

I see CHB as part of the rumor network of the Ancien Regime, and given that one of their major story lines has finally hit the big time wiht Issikof and his stories on Katrina... that is pretty good batting average for .... a rumor paper...

Or a rather bad one for Newsweek that had to wait for the popularity to drop

[jane_pippin]

19. But any one of us could have written the Georgie breakdown

article if we wanted to. Knowing what we know about Georgie's style, putting it together with a few of those quotes that are floating around in the more mainstream press (or older ones, for that matter), and our creative thinking caps we could have written the same thing. It would be plausible, possibly true, but not exactly credible hard news.

I think most news media should be taken with at least a grain of salt these days. I don't follow the CHB too closely, but I did read the outburst article when it was posted here and the threads about it and my own conclusion is that they seem more like a tabloid than hard news.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

12. .

[Freddie Stubbs]

14. The problem is that

Capitol Hill Blue and others (such as Wayne Madsen) give people what they want. They 'publish' articles which reinforce a particular word-view, and unfortunately many DUers accept this information as fact without question.

A similar phenomenon has been observed with polls. Last year many DUers would question the accuracy of polls which showed Bush and Kerry in a close election. Now that those same polls show Bush with low approval numbers, they are readily accepted.

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. I question the NYT as much as I question CHB

I think I question the BBC a little less, which speaks volumes actually... that said it is their record... some of their stories, popied by many are now moving mainstream (alcohol anybody and a deluded and angry president? Check Newsweek and Time, or are they also fishwrap? ) Well all of the US Press is fishwrap, but in the levels of fishwrap.

[donheld]

21. Thank you Will

I don't have a lot of experience with this publication other than seeing it quoted here on DU. I'm grateful for your imput.

[Cleita]

23. Well, it certainly doesn't make one believe in their

credibility, even if now and then what they say is true.

[WiseButAngrySara]

25. Thanks for the eye-opener Will. I'ld trust your opinions any day over

CHB.

:kick: and Recommended!

[K8-EEE]

26. I Love All The Bush Is Drinking/Cracking Up Stories!

This thing is like The Enquirer...it's fun! I don't think anybody considers it a quotable news source. Don't be a killjoy Will! I love reading about the temper tantrums and heck he looks crazy to me, LOL!

[Swamp Rat]

27. Me too!

:D

[H2O Man]

28. "Terrance J. Wilkinson"

is code for John Kerry. I can't believe that bastard Kerry lied about this, too.

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

29. It's crap

and frankly I find Doug Thompson's made up bollocks insulting to people who battle with mental illness.

[medeak]

30. jeesh

didn't know my post would get you so riled up?

It's only Tuesday....you've got a long week ahead still!

edited to say...JAMA reported years ago that men have pms once a year...in the fall... testosterone levels get very high. think about it..football, hunting...etc. Me thinks you are way over reacting to a humorous post?

[WilliamPitt]

33. It wasn't just your post

and I apologize if I gave you the impression that this was aimed at you.

CHB gets posted here all the time, and folks get all hepped up about what they 'report.' I'm just annoyed by it.

[MADem]

38. I've met Doug Thompson, he really isn't a bad guy

Definitely opinionated, a bit larger than life, but then, he has a big life.

He knows EVERYONE, I mean EVERYONE, in DC. He can't walk around the Hill for five minutes without someone coming up or waving to him...

[NVMojo]

37. man, that's gotta be true. My ex took off deer hunting the same time

period every year. The last time, it was a two legged deer!!! LOL!!!!

[Perky]

31. I agree

The enemies list story had no quotes for atributution ans it would seem they did not even ask the WH for comment.

I put that type of Journalism is the same league with the Midnight Globe.

[redacted]

32. Thanks Will. I never understood.

[WilliamPitt]

35. .