Load Up on Guns, and Bring Your Friends

I'm a bit busy today, doing a bunch of interviews for my next PW feature story, so posting will be sparse today. But I wanted to note Jack Shafer's response to the WaPo/Marianne Wiggins flap:

"Stamping out conflict of interest may result in a 'fairer' book review. But will it produce a better one? I think not."

Keep in mind that Shafer cops to a "prejudice against fairness," and argues in favor of greater accuracy in book reviewing: "If the Post is going to apologize for publishing the Wiggins review on ethical grounds, I'd like to see it ask for reader forgiveness when fully vetted and unconflicted reviewers give bad books a free pass."