Earth Exploding?

My favorite quote so far this day.  Context: The National Enquirer of supermarket tabloid fame is submitting its John Edwards stories for a Pulitzer Prize.  Thus spoke the executive editor of that fine publication:

I think the members of the mainstream media would rather see the earth explode first than to reward us with a Pulitzer Prize. 

Yeah, that about sums it up.  Hell freezing over.  Earth exploding.  Glenn Beck awarded sainthood.  Any of these seem reasonable alternatives.

Hell Freezes Over

The National Enquirer as a Pulitzer Prize contender?  Yep, says Howard Kurtz of the Washington Post in today's column, for its groundbreaking coverage of the John Edwards mistress mess.  Ironic twist, this week Edwards admitted the woman's kid was his.  People were shocked!  shocked!

Is it a likely winner?  Hell might freeze over, but global warming will come to the rescue. 

The rag won't even earn a finalist spot, in part because of all the crud they run, in part for their reporting methods, in part because frankly this is not the kind of story that wins a Pulitzer.  Dick Cheney destroyed this guy ages ago in their VP debate.  The Enquirer was just piling on.

Pulitzers Announced Today

Today, yet again, I will not win a Pulitzer Prize.

The announcement is at 3 p.m. EST, this year's twist being that online news sites are also elgible "assuming primarily dedicated to original news reporting and coverage of ongoing stories," and they "adhere to the highest journalistic principles.”

Translation: aggregators and Drudge need not apply.

E&P often makes a good guess as to the finalists, if you want to look ahead or at 3:01 p.m. check its accuracy.

And, of course, I won't win.