Drudge Retort

Yesterday, I covered the Drudge Report. Today, I cover the Drudge Retort:

www.drudge.com/

The Drudge Retort is a misappropriation of Matthew Drudge's original report. While it could be along the lines of something like The Onion, it is not. Instead, it misappropriates the name, it look vagely similar to the format of the Drudge Report (although with a yellow background), and it links to other stories. But if you expect this to be a spoof of the Drudge Report, it is not - in my opinion, it is a misappropriation.

First, there is the name. The Drudge Report is named after Matthew Drudge. So what did they do? They used the name, the format, and the idea, of Matthew Drudge. But is anyone associated with the Drudge Retort have the last name Drudge? Not according to the contributors. Had they obtained this URL a few years later, there may have been a good argument that there was trademark infringement - which may have happened, I do not know.
However, this does not matter anyway, because everyone knows to go to drudgereport.com, rather than drudge.com, to get their news.

Secondly, there is absolutely no acknowledgement of The Drudge Report. But since Matthew Drudge is so well known, it is not needed.

In addition, while they provide links to several columnists, all those columnists appear to be leftwing columnists (and bloggers). No one in the middle, or to the right. And, at one time, there was a meter indicating the number of days Bush had left in office - meaning January 20, 2005. Since he won re-election, kinda a moot point.

It is my impression that this started out as a spoof, as I remember it five years back. We appreciate humor and spoofs on these blog reviews, like The Onion. However, when the spoofing stops, and the misappropration begins, that is where we draw the line.

One more thing: Notice the contributors on the Editorial Board (something the Drudge report does not have). You will see the name Jayson Blair. Does this name ring a bell? He is the guy who created the scandal with the New York Times a few years back where he essentially made up stories and got them on the front page. If this is the same Jayson Blair, I certainly would not want him anywhere near my editorial board - no matter how much he agrees with me.

This is nothing more than juvenile antics. In college, plagiarism and making stuff up got you to flunk the course. Since this is not a spoof, it does here also.

Grade: F