If I understand this post of Brad DeLong’s, a magazine I used to like but recently have had doubts about just slit its own wrists. Apparently, The Economist just appointed the guy who has been writing the Lexington column for the past few years to be the Editor in Chief. (I say apparently, because the entry for John Micklethwait at the Economist web site says he previously edited the US section of the newspaper which may or may not have included writing as Lexington.)
I’ve explained my problems with the modern Economist before (too little about Albania, too much that sounds like the GOP), but now I have to add that the Lexington column has for years, without exception, been the most pathetic part of the magazine. For years it has been the predictable and unoriginal regurgitation of the most pedestrian GOP talking points. Ken Mehlman with a very slight British accent. Appointing Lexington to run the thing would be so stupid that although I reluctantly renewed recently, I’d be tempted to ask for my money back.
Fortunately, this Penguin blurb says “Adrian Wooldridge writes its Lexington column”, although it’s undated. So maybe there’s still hope. Although if he was editing Lexington and didn’t recognize for the warmed over spin points that it was…
My understanding is that Wooldridge usually but not always wrote Lexington and that Micklethwait occasionally penned it himself. As you suggest, Micklethwait would have signed off on Wooldridge’s pieces – he was directly above him in the line of command as US editor. Furthermore, The Right Nation which Micklethwait and Wooldridge co-authored repeats many of the more egregious Lexington talking points. So the picture is very slightly less grim than the author of Lexington becoming editor in chief of the Economist – but only very slightly less grim.
I was told Micklethwait by people who should know…
I picked up the post-Katrina international issue and I just couldn’t believe what I was reading. One article just went on and on about how Bush should not place cronies in important positions, should not do this, should not do that…it was one of those ‘what planet have these people been living on?’ kind of moments.
Too late, far too tepid, and frankly not the least bit relevant at this point; akin to talking about how a current problem could have been avoided rather than focusing on what to do about it.