NYT Edits 'Sharp Tongue' Sotomayor Headline

As you may have heard, there was this one time that Judge Sonia Sotomayor totally interrupted a government lawyer, for the first time ever in the history of jurisprudence, and ever since, the media has been dining out on allegations that the new Supreme Court nominee was a difficult person - nevermind the fact that these same qualities of brusqueness are downright celebrated in the persona of Antonin Scalia. Well, last week, the New York Times, opting to join the chorus late over attempting something original on their own, published their own version of the story. I thought it nonsensical. Since then, Slate/Double X's Dahlia Lithwick has caught the Times doing a little bit of pruning:

Anyone notice that the New York Times story by Jo Becker and Adam Liptak about Sotomayor raising "questions about her judicial temperament and willingness to listen" was subject to a headline makeover this morning? The headline this morning? "Sotomayor's Sharp Tongue Raises Issue of Temperament." The headline now? "Sotomayor's Blunt Style Raises Issue of Temperament."

Lithwick adds: "Any bets on what the headline writers there are teeing up for the confirmation itself? 'Harridan's Harrowing Ride?' 'Shrill Shrew Shatters Senate?' 'Vetting the Virago?'" If this is the direction we're going in, I'm hoping that her encounter with the GOP membership of the Senate Judiciary Committee inspires someone to borrow "The Woman Makes The Men All Pause" pun from Public Enemy's "She Watch Channel Zero."

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Comments

[LaurenJill]

The NY Times is also stressing that Sotomayor thinks like a woman!!!
http://tasteslikechicken2me.wordpress.com/2009/06/04/women-do-not-think-differently/

[MichelleDenise64]

As a paralegal I have seen judges interrupt government lawyers all the time. Where is the issue here. Why do these people keep reporting on nothing?

[quindy]

Thou shalt not interrupt government lawyer, Sonia.

[reasonshouldrule]

Both headlines make me like Sotormayor even more. It's about time we got someone on the court who can talk back to Scalia.

[Libfemdem]

i agree. The more I hear about her the more I like her.
Why are republicans so afraid of a strong Latina woman? Do they think she carries a knife?

They are p i ss ing themselves over this.
It makes them look very petty.

[HowietheScreamer]

Repubes are afraid of ANY strong woman. They are old, decrepit dinosaurs who long for the day when women were bar-foot, nekkid and in the kitchen. They feel threatened by any woman do doesn't say "yassir" to whatever they say.

[Calyndula]

Sigh....Wh­at has happened to the NYT? Yes, I can just see the headline now: "Sharp-Tongued Justice Scalia Renders Majority Opinion." Yeah RIGHT!!!!!!
Are we going to hear about PMS next?
I'm so disgusted and disappointed.

[HowietheScreamer]

HEllooooo. Corporate MSM... owned and operated for the Repubes. Remember Judy???? Iraq??? Yea... NYT is SOooooo old skool.

[liz]

One of them already discussed the menstruation problem. I guess the Senate will have to ask if she is postmenopausal -- knowing that has its own problems, maybe worse than PMS.

[alvin12]

It was convicted felon G gordn Liddy

[Conchobhar]

When the Times shows me a picture of Judge Sotomayer flipping someone off, they can question her "temperame­nt."

[Trittydi]

The idea that a Supreme Court Justice (or any others for that matter) -- would NOT be -entitled to interrupt a lawyer is ludicrous.
*

[Trittydi]

Okay - Perhaps Obama would be open to a deal here ---- if the re=Thugs are willing to pull Scalia off the bench, Sotomayor's nomination can be pulled.
*

[liz]

Great idea!

[tippydog11]

Now are republicans saying while they boast they do not have a sharp tongue of arrogance?

[Arrecho]

The meme (viral idea) of the subservient woman is still very powerful in the subconscious mind of our civilization, making articles like this possible. Happy are those who have gotten rid of it. It is just an idea that has been carried on for centuries; but that doesn't mean it is real. In order to attack Sonia Sotomayor it is necessary for the other party to dwell in these memes: racism, sexism. Homophobia does not apply in this case, apparently. The New York Times' hypocritical stance does not surprise me at all. Setting aside her race and her sex. Miss Sotomayor is the best candidate possible for a Supreme Court appointment.

[emlr]

No, don't set aside her sex and her ethnic background. She brings much more depth to the bench in decision making with those qualities included.

[llisa]

Agreed.

[Icantbelieveher]

I've been through my divorce and a custody battle, not to mention traffic tickets and miscellaneous other court appearances, and I've yet to find one judge that doesn't interrupt the attorneys. This is a non-story and completely sexist!

[liz]

Judges do not have the time to listen all the way to the end of every attorney's ego-gratifying performance.

[livesimply]

Sexism at it's finest.

[bertha112]

NYT engaging in lazy @ss journalism.

I hate it when journalists rehash bad press, just with different headlines and try to pass it off as good reporting. Like recently when Lisa Myers at NBC rehashed the WaPo story that made light of the stimulus package by reporting that it included money for "golf carts" and a "train from Disney to Las Vegas."

F for Effort!!!

[simplify]

What journalism?

[imademocrat]

On several of the weekend shows, I noticed that several opponents of Judge Sotomayor said decisions should not be based on "emotion". This is obviously a code word for "DO YOU REALIZE THIS NOMINEE IS A WOMAN?' . For all the flack about the part of the speech where the Judge said she would hope she could make better decisions than a white male because of her experiences, I say right on. As a woman, I do trust the decisions of women more than those of men. Sorry, that's just the way it is. And, as a lawyer, it is unbelievable to me that an attorney would complain about being interrupted by a judge, especially one on the Court of Appeals. These judges often have very specific issues they want addressed. Since the attorney has already written a brief, they don't want it rehashed. They want you to respond to their issues, that one piece of information or argument that will influence their decision. So grow up--judges have limited amounts of time to devote to arguments and to devote to specific cases. Let them interrupt and get the info they need.

[Grunty1]

While excessive emotion is often used to stereotype women, in this case, it may just be more projection. Remember that Rushpublicans use emotion to make every single decision and that the emotion used is almost always impotent rage.

[RobDoub]

Aren't 'sharp' and 'blunt' like...opp­osites?

[apolloguide]

no

[wisecrack]

No? Try this out for size.

From Merriam Webster-
Antonym of Blunt
scircuitous, mealymouthed 2 lacking sharpness of edge or point

[wisecrack]

Correction:

Antonym of sharp=
1 mealymouthed 2 lacking sharpness of edge or point

[mtrav]

Not at all.

[llisa]

There's a slim chance that Republicans will judge Sotomayor on her merits.

Yeah? Fat chance!

Kind of like that.