Clinton to keynote jellyfish journalist gathering, but no questions allowed

The mainstream media’s ‘Grouse of the Day’ shouldn’t be why Hillary Clinton reportedly will not be taking any questions at the Toner Prize Celebration, an event honoring “excellence in journalism”, but why Clinton, of all people, would be keynote speaker at such an event.

“Organizers of the March 23 Toner Prize Celebration, which is named after the late New York Times reporter Robin Toner, told the Center for Public Integrity the event would be open to reporters. However, the keynote speaker, Clinton, does not plan to take their inquiries”. (Business Insider, March 5, 2015) Fire the speaker, and bring in someone else even remotely connected to excellence in journalism. Why allow a keynote speaker to set the agenda and manage the tone of the Toner Prize Celebration? And they’re paying Clinton with a big fat check over and above the publicity she’ll get from addressing the group. What kind of tribute to “excellence in journalism’”is that?

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“Business Insider reached out to Clinton's office to confirm the report. A Clinton spokesman referred the question back to the event's organizers.” And that’s exactly where the question will remain buried until the event comes and goes. Hillary Clinton is used to getting her way. “Clinton, the Democratic front-runner for president in 2016, is embroiled in a controversy surrounding her exclusive use of personal email addresses while she served as secretary of state. According to The New York Times, this may have violated federal guidelines and could have left state secrets vulnerable on an unsecure server. Both Clinton's email issue and her alleged avoidance of the press have fueled criticism she is insufficiently transparent.” (Business Insider) Politicians who are “Insufficiently transparent” seem to be spreading as far as the common cold these days. Covert, cunning, and hiding from the truth is how long-time Hillary observers would put it. Count on Clinton’s email controversy going the same way as her sneak sister Lois Lerner’s 30,000 lost-found-lost-found private emails did. By the time they’re finally turned over for inspection, emails that matter will have been removed or redacted. “After days of relentless media coverage since Monday, Clinton addressed the emails in a tweet late Wednesday night. (Business Insider) "I want the public to see my email. I asked State to release them. They said they will review them for release as soon as possible," she wrote. “However, many questions remain, including why she decided to use a private email server in the first place. For now it doesn't appear Clinton has any intention of answering them. TMZ ambushed her at Reagan National Airport on Wednesday and pressed her on the email controversy. She smiled but didn't respond.” All to easy for “insufficiently transparent” politicians like Clinton and President Barack Obama to smile and bamboozle their way through today’s spineless mainstream media. Meanwhile, finding Excellence in Journalism among the jellyfish journalists of the day is a lost cause.