Newsweek Even Bungles Celebrity Chats

It’s hard to argue Newsweek hasn’t fully embraced the ideological left. Just how many times did the magazine put fawning images of Sen. Barack Obama on the cover last year? And its recent unflattering cover photo of Rush Limbaugh, not to mention the accompanying article, spoke volumes of its editorial choices.

Why a news weekly would decide, in a very difficult market, to parrot nearly every other magazine’s liberal bent is a head scratcher. But Newsweek can’t even get its celebrity interviews right.

The latest assault on basic journalism comes courtesy of Ramin Setoodeh who chatted up actress Emily Blunt for the issue on newsstands now. If you’re squeamish, please read no further. Here’s how it starts:

Hi, Emily.

Hi. And I now have my mouth full of a bar I’m eating.

A bar of what?

It’s like a protein bar. Omigod. I sound so wanky, so healthy.


Should I give you a few minutes to chew?

It’s gone. It’s an unattractive thing to listen to someone chewing and swallowing, amplified over the phone.

How long are you going to be in L.A.?

Until the end of April. I’m going to take up learning the cello again …

Bet you can’t wait to read more.

It gets worse. We learn nothing about the delightful Ms. Blunt, while the reporter strains so very hard to be casual and clever.

If a serious news magazine can’t be trusted to deliver smart, informative celebrity news, it certainly should give readers pause when they flip to more serious reportage.

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