David Poland, whose Hot Button column I used to read religiously before 9/11 sent me in search of an education in geopolitics, is blogging these days. Poland “got” the Internet long before the blogosphere exploded its reach and potential. If you’re into smart Hollywood (and related) commentary, he’s your man.

So I was a little disappointed to see Poland take a whack at the New York Times for “aiming so low” by giving lavish coverage to the Jared Paul Stern/New York Post gossip-columnist-extortionist scandal. Poland says:

I know that some readers think I am all too willing to criticize The NY Times, but can anyone defend six stories in the last two days about Page Six in The Paper of Record???

Forget about whether there is any real news here, aside from a billionaire being able to get the FBI to run a sting operation on a hack full-time freelancer. There has been no indictment. There is zero indication that News Corp was in any way aware of these events, much less allowed them to pass under their noses.

Is there any excuse for all this coverage other than the thrill of some scandalous stench coming from another major media player?

Me? I’m just disgusted that all this energy is being thrown at a gossip page… not to mention that the NYT, in its story on gossip pages, fails to point out that their paper has chased the same audience Page Six commands with its Boldfaced Names. (Comedically, the first writer of Boldfaced Names is given credit for “additional reporting” on the story.)

How does one remain a believer in all the New York Times has represented when they are aiming so low?

He’s right, of course–of all the “important” stories the Times could be covering, why waste the space?

Why? Because gossip makes the world go round. Because this story affects–potentially–every wealthy, influential (or wannabe) person on both coasts and in every corridor of power in between. There isn’t one of them who hasn’t tried to plant a story, suppress a story, influence an opinion, sway a potential client, burnish his own image, etc.

Jeff Jarvis also raises an interesting point: it’s a story about “how the sausage is made.” Only, this is the inner sanctum of the most super-secret sausage factory there is: the influence industry. The stone-cold heart of our republic.

That’s why.

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Here’s a related post.