Kos on "he said, she said" journalism

Back in 2004, Markos Zuniga of Daily Kos denounced "he said, she said" journalism:

If more of the mainstream media took a page out of the Daily Show playbook, and contrasted Bush's ridiculous statements and accusations with reality, we'd be a much better country. Fact check the shit out of both candidates, instead of this "he said, she said, we won't call bullshit when we hear it" crap.

The media owes it to the American people.

But according to The New Republic's Jason Zengerle, Kos asked elite liberal bloggers to ignore the story for a while and thereby prevent any "he said, she said" stories about it:

My request to you guys is that you ignore this for now. It would make my life easier if we can confine the story. Then, once Jerome can speak and defend himself, then I'll go on the offensive (which is when I would file any lawsuits) and anyone can pile on. If any of us blog on this right now, we fuel the story. Let's starve it of oxygen. And without the "he said, she said" element to the story, you know political journalists are paralyzed into inaction.

Hmm. His PR strategy capitalizes on the media's "he said, she said" reporting style. Sound like anyone you know?

Comments

[oliver]

Brendan,
I know nothing about the merits of the controversy, although I have tentative views. But procedurally, Kos's comments appear entirely consistent with one another. In the second passage, he is recognizing the prevalence of the technique, not endorsing it. When he and allies are in a position to present a comprehensive case, they plan to argue the point intensely enough to angle the media into a measure of objectivity on the issue. So where's the inconsistency? I hope I'm not missing something too obvious. Could you clarify?