It's Our City is a project that uses TV, Radio and Web
to promote civic engagement in the Philadelphia region.Mp3 of Radio Times show on John Yoo controversy
Tuesday, May 26th, 2009 at 4:08 pm - by Alan Tu. Filed under: Community.
(editor’s note: 5/27@230pm I’m am transcribing the this Radio Times interview and will post it as soon as possible. It may take a while because this is a one-hour program)
(editor’s note: 5/28/09 2:48pm Here’s a link to our transcript)
The publisher of The Philadelphia Inquirer Brian Tierney appeared on WHYY’s Radio Times this morning to debate one of his employees over the John Yoo controversy.
The paper has hired the former assistant attorney general to write a monthly column on constitutional law matters. But Yoo is a controversial figure. He wrote the legal opinion that the Bush White House used to justify use of enhanced interrogation methods that included water boarding.
Also, on the show was Will Bunch the blogger who took on upper management when he used his blog Attytood to blast The Inquirer for hiring Yoo. Bunch is a staff writer for the Philadelphia Daily News that recently became “A Special Edition” of the Inquirer.
Tierney wasted no time in presenting himself as a defender of the First Amendment and vehemently argued that it was his newspaper’s role to present a wide array of opinions.
Bunch argued that a Newspaper should consider itself as part of the community and uphold some standards of what is acceptable.
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Related links:
John Yoo’s faculty website at the University of California/Berkeley
After you listen to this let us know what you think. Yoo’s one-year contract will soon be up for renewal. Should the Inquirer continue having John Yoo as a monthly columnist?
Related link:
Video clip of Stephen Colbert’s view on John Yoo debate in Philadelphia
May 27th, 2009 at 9:15 am
We were appalled at the inability of either guest to finish a sentence; they bounced all over the map. At first we thought it must be nerves, but it went on far too long. It could have been a great exchange, but it was not. Indeed, listening was a chore.
We listen regularly to Marty Moss-Cohane, and found this to be a far cry from her usual useful interviews.