Our own close encounters with Star Tribune deputy editorial page editor Jim Boyd began in August 2004 when John and I wrote a column on John Kerry’s bogus journey to Cambodia that was published on the editorial page of the Star Tribune. The Sunday after our column appeared, the Star Tribune published Boyd’s column referring to John and me as “smear artists” throwing “slime” and unfairly tarring John Kerry in our “fraudulent” column that the Star Tribune had itself somehow deemed fit for publication. Boyd trusted that the Star Tribune editorial policy against publishing columns responding to columns that are themselves a response to a column would leave his libel of us as the last word on the subject, but the Star Tribune made an exception to its policy and published our response the following Sunday, over Boyd’s objection.
These events gave rise to an extended series of posts providing a glimpse into the wacky world of the fellow we dubbed “Boydot” (as we waited in vain for his response to our invitation to debate him on our radio show) and “the cowardly lion of Portland Avenue” (above). Readers interested in whatever insight may be derived from our own encounters with Mr. Boyd may want to check out these posts:
“A further response to Jim Boyd”
“The Star Tribune’s putrid verbiage”
Today Editor & Publisher reports:
On Dec. 8 at a State Department ceremony, Jim Boyd, deputy editorial page editor at the Star-Tribune in Minneapolis, was awarded the 2005 Arthur Ross media award by the American Academy of Diplomacy, “for critical, perceptive and non-partisan commentary on the policies of governments and international organizations, reflecting exhaustive research, a willingness to tell truth to power and a consistent appreciation for the importance of cooperation among nations.” Previous winners include Jim Lehrer and Anne Garrels.
Jim Boyd is not only a rabid partisan, he is a prototypical bully. He writes in the most abusive personal terms for the newspaper that dominates news coverage of the state of Minnesota, and fancies himself a victim under siege. Here is the introductory paragraph of his speech accepting the award at the State Department (revised for publication):
I have a very difficult time believing I deserve this award, but I am grateful for it. The last three years have been difficult. The pushback for our aggressive views has been intense. Radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt organized a campaign to get people to drop subscriptions; we lost about 200, and it scared my superiors. Bloggers like Powerline harassed us continuously. A senator who shall go unnamed (hint: he’s no fan of Kofi Annan) had breakfast with our publisher and warned him that we were beginning to be associated with the loony left and that I had an angry agenda.
We’re mystified by Boyd’s reference to our alleged harassment of him. When we last wrote about him here, it was to publish his email messages taking issue with our posts on the Star Tribune’s contradictory editorials opposing and supporting the filibuster. Boyd’s last word to us was that he owed Star Tribune readers an explanation for the contradiction. To our knowledge, none was ever forthcoming. I wrote a column for the Standard about the Star Tribune’s editorials on the filibuster and Boyd’s messages to us in “They were against it, before they were for it.”
Tonight I’m writing Boyd to ask him how we have harassed him over the past three years. We’ll publish his response here when we receive it. In the meantime, Boyd’s abuse of us is mitigated only by his inclusion of us among a group that includes our friend Hugh Hewitt and Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman. At least we’re in good company.
UPDATE: The estimable Mr. Hewitt has more in “Jim ‘Pushback’ Boyd.”
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