Bill Donohue comments on the response he received from David Yontz, managing editor at Creators Syndicate, about yesterday’s news release on Jamie Stiehm (to read the initial one, click here):
David Yontz takes absolutely no responsibility for the vile bigotry of Jamie Stiehm’s column, “The Catholic Supreme Court’s War on Women,” even though she is a weekly columnist for Creators Syndicate. The article appeared on the website of U.S. News & World Report, as I indicated in my statement, but because Creators did not disseminate it, Yontz says it is not an issue. It is, and that is because Stiehm’s primary position is with Creators.
Yontz says that Brent Bozell, Linda Chavez, and Lawrence Kudlow are also syndicated by Creators, noting, “I’m sure you will not accuse the company of being anti-Catholic.” This dodges the issue: I never accused the company of being bigoted, but I did say, correctly, that it disseminates the work of a bigot, and that it should cease.
Yontz also compares Bozell to Stiehm, saying that Creators Syndicate continues to carry him even though “his critics have demanded that we cancel his column.” So is Bozell a bigot? That is the issue. Bozell is controversial—most pundits and activists are—but that hardly makes him a bigot. To conflate controversy with bigotry is not simply wrong, it is despicable.
We are not letting U.S. News & World Report off the hook. But we are not allowing Creators Syndicate to dodge its responsibility either.
Contact Yontz: dyontz@creators.com
Contact Brian Kelly, U.S. News editor: bkelly@usnews.com
Click here to see Bill Donohue’s video on this issue.
