WASH POST LIMITS REPORTERS' SPEECH

Paid Content - Washington Post Senior Editor Milton Coleman sent a memo to the staff with a social media policy-effectively immediately-aimed at staffers' use of "individual accounts on online social networks, when used for reporting and for personal use." . . . While the instant reaction was mostly negative or caustic (active tweeter Howard Kurtz said he'd be sticking to weather or recipes), one staffer, Book World's Ron Charles, responded to my Twitter query with relief that at least a policy had been spelled out: "Provides clarification we've needed for a while. If 2 restrictive, we can adjust later." Unfortunately, now that I've seen the full policy, that response would seem not to meet the guidelines: the long list of things a WaPo staffer shouldn't do online includes talking about newsroom or the paper's business . . .

Empty Wheel - Only electronic social networks matter to the WaPo, not brick and mortar social networks. Walter Pincus can boast that his chumminess with George Tenet helps his reporting. . . Weymouth herself can try to replicate the salons of her grandmother . . . for a fee. And of all of these meatspace relationships have a tangible impact on the WaPo's reporting. . . Rather than admit and try to manage that bias, though, the WaPo would rather just curtail the free speech of its reporters.