During an article posted Tuesday by Jim Romenesko on his website, the retired newsman relayed what happened when David Sze -- a member of Arianna Huffington's research staff -- got more than he bargained for last week when he contacted professional journalist Laurel Lipton, asking to use information she had reported in a book the co-founder of the liberal Huffington Post is in the process of writing, with the promise of citing that research.
Lipton responded angrily, stating: “The rapacious Ms. Huffington seems to believe that journalism skills are worth nothing, and that my beleaguered colleagues and I should be thrilled to help her make hundreds of millions of dollars in return for 'exposure.'”
Sze began his missive by stating he's a research editor “from Arianna Huffington's office,” and that the Greek-American author “is currently working on a book on the importance of sleep in our lives.”
He then noted:
In our research, we came across your piece on hotel beds.
In that article, you mentioned that: “According to a 2014 Gallup survey, more than half of guests who stay in the highest-priced properties said they would pay more for an improved bed.”
“Among all respondents, a comfortable bed was most often named as the most important feature of a hotel room,” he quoted.
“We were wondering if you have access to the Gallup research you mentioned in the article” since “we would like to cite it in Arianna’s book.”
Soon after, Lipton sent Sze a fiery response:
I know you’re just doing your job. So what I am about to say has nothing at all to do with you. It is solely for your boss, and I do hope you pass it along to her.
I have worked my entire career as a professional journalist. I have a master's degree in journalism from the USC Annenberg School.
She added that she had “developed my skills as a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times, the Wall Street Journal and other A-list newspapers and magazines.”
“These days, you can find my byline in the New York Times, the WSJ, Allure and Town & Country, as well as numerous additional print and online publications,” Lipton stated.
“I am very, very good at what I do,” she continued.
“Unfortunately,” Lipton added, “your boss’s predatory business practices have deeply undercut the ability of all reporters, writers and editors to make any kind of living wage.”
“The rapacious Ms. Huffington seems to believe that journalism skills are worth nothing, and that my beleaguered colleagues and I should be thrilled to help her make hundreds of millions of dollars in return for 'exposure,'" she continued.
“If Ms. Huffington would like to know how I uncovered that particular statistic, she is free to hire me and pay me for my time and expertise,” Lipton asserted.
“If she doesn’t wish to do so, she is welcome to track it down herself,” she concluded.
As NewsBusters previously reported, the Post was launched on May 10, 2005, and Huffington hasn't been shy about promoting her liberal views through that website.
In October of 2011, the Occupy Wall Street crowd squatting in lower Manhattan and elsewhere while the rest of us were working had a not-at-all surprising ally: Arianna Huffington, who depicted herself as a staunch defender of the so-called “99 percent.”
During the next February, Huffington was the target of a Weekend Update sketch on NBC's Saturday Night Live that mocked her regarding numerous complaints against the online publication concerning content theft.
Just one day later, Huffington referred to the death of popular singer Whitney Houston while stating that “the war on drugs has failed, and we're not acknowledging it.”
During the 2012 presidential contest, Huffington surprised many people by asserting that the Obama campaign used video of former president Bill Clinton praising the White House resident's decision to take out terrorist Osama bin Laden was “one of the most despicable things you can do.”
Another surprise from Huffington came in April of 2013, when she charged that Hillary Clinton "not taking time off to recharge herself is sending a bad message to women that the only way to succeed, the only way to run, is to drive yourself into the ground.”
However, one of the biggest shocks regarding the Huffington Post came in August of 2013, when president Barack Obama warned Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives “not to believe everything you read” on that site.
While Arianna Huffington and her website continue to peddle liberal philosophy, we can only wonder why she's looking for information on sleep, which is something her audience probably needs after listening to one of her liberal diatribes.
