NB: HuffPo silent on Maher's status after vulgar attacks on Palin

Which is worse: calling a man a 'commie punk' or a woman a 'c---'?
*
Huffington Post has banned Andrew Breitbart's articles at its front page, but the leftist website remains curiously silent on the status of Bill Maher, who is one of its regular contributors. Maher has made several below-the-sewer references to Sarah Palin recently, while Bretbart's apparent offense was to call former Obama green czar Van Jones a "commie punk." Most of what Maher called Gov. Palin is too vulgar to be quoted on a family-friendly blog.

The obvious double standard here has motivated NewsBusters associate editor Noel Sheppard to send no less than three emails to HuffPo founder Arianna Huffington and editor Roy Sekoff Tuesday and Wednesday. Sheppard reports that he still has not received a reply:

Of course, I realize Arianna et al are in a very tough spot. They made what was clearly an absurd statement about "tenets of debate and civil discourse we have strived for since the day we launched" when everyone in the industry knows their website is filled with hateful rhetoric and ad hominem attacks against conservatives on almost a daily basis.

The laughter at Ruiz's statement throughout the blogosphere on both sides of the aisle was deafening.

Complicating matters further was one of their popular contributors the day after Breitbart was canned making a vulgar slur at Palin and another one nine days later.

As most people know, Huffington has been friends with Maher for years. She was a regular guest on his Comedy Central program "Politically Incorrect" appearing in an ongoing gag with Al Franken called "Politics Makes Strange Bedfellows."

Maybe more importantly, Maher is a darling of the Left. Would Huffington dare do anything to him like she did to Breitbart?

Unfortunately, not doing so totally invalidates the reason given by Ruiz for Breitbart's demotion.

No wonder I didn't get any replies to my email messages as I'm sure these folks hope this matter is going to just go away as quickly as possible - but they shouldn't count on it.

[More]

Sheppard concludes that the continued silence on this hypocrisy by those in charge at HuffPo will only serve to "reduce whatever journalistic integrity and credibility they claim to strive for, potentially leading AOL and its shareholders to seriously question their investment."

- JP