"Needless to say, I am very disappointed, not just for the decision to reject the application, but for the reason given. If this wasn't original news reporting and coverage of an ongoing story-- over a year's worth of exclusive after exclusive coverage-- I don't know what is."
Elli Wohlgelernter reacted today to news that Sig Gissler, administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes, decided on his own, without consultation, to reject Tabloid Baby's Pulitzer Prize nomination without even giving the Pulitzer board the chance to consider the entry materials, thereby denying Tabloid Baby and Wohlgelernter the award they so obviously deserved.
Former print journalist and newspaper defender Sig Gissler may have thought he was striking a blow for old school print journalism and slamming the door on upstart wiseass Internet journos when he made the controversial decision, but in doing so, he shut out a news team whose four main contributors have more than 150 years of journalism experience among them (all of which began-- and continues-- in newspapers), including veteran print and television journalist Wohlgelernter, who led the coverage of the US-backed scheme to bring professional baseball to Israel (see the complete Tabloid Baby coverage here).
Wohlgelernter, known in these parts as Our Man Elli in Israel, is a New York-born and bred journo now based in Jerusalem, said today:
"Needless to say, I am very disappointed, not just for the decision to reject the application, but for the reason given. Tabloid Baby was instrumental in exposing the ongoing sham that was perpetrated against the American Jewish and Israeli communities, while the rest of the mainstream media in Israel and the U.S. ignored-- even covered up-- the story.
"If this wasn't original news reporting and coverage of an ongoing story-- over a year's worth of exclusive after exclusive coverage -- I don't know what is. And it continues even this week, with Tabloid Baby's report on the Israel Baseball League declaring Chapter 11. How many millions of dollars were raised from American Jews, and where did the money go? Where is the rest of the media?"
In light of the insult lobbed by Sig Gissler, it's worth noting Elli's original expression of humility when he got word of the nomination in December:
Former print journalist and newspaper defender Sig Gissler may have thought he was striking a blow for old school print journalism and slamming the door on upstart wiseass Internet journos when he made the controversial decision, but in doing so, he shut out a news team whose four main contributors have more than 150 years of journalism experience among them (all of which began-- and continues-- in newspapers), including veteran print and television journalist Wohlgelernter, who led the coverage of the US-backed scheme to bring professional baseball to Israel (see the complete Tabloid Baby coverage here).Wohlgelernter, known in these parts as Our Man Elli in Israel, is a New York-born and bred journo now based in Jerusalem, said today:
"Needless to say, I am very disappointed, not just for the decision to reject the application, but for the reason given. Tabloid Baby was instrumental in exposing the ongoing sham that was perpetrated against the American Jewish and Israeli communities, while the rest of the mainstream media in Israel and the U.S. ignored-- even covered up-- the story.
"If this wasn't original news reporting and coverage of an ongoing story-- over a year's worth of exclusive after exclusive coverage -- I don't know what is. And it continues even this week, with Tabloid Baby's report on the Israel Baseball League declaring Chapter 11. How many millions of dollars were raised from American Jews, and where did the money go? Where is the rest of the media?"
In light of the insult lobbed by Sig Gissler, it's worth noting Elli's original expression of humility when he got word of the nomination in December:
"I could never have imagined in my 35-year career that I would be honored and blessed in such a way as to be nominated for a Pulitzer. When I was a kid just dreaming about the business, the Pulitzer meant more to me than the Nobel Prize... A Pulitzer? It only validates all the hard work that's gone into all the exposés that Tabloid Baby and I have uncovered and revealed..."
Sig Gissler's action has led to outrage among Internet and new journalism professionals.
I vote for Elli for having the courage to reveal the dishonesty of the Israel Baseball League and the future reports that will no doubt come to surface!
ReplyDeleteBut where is it written that the IBL
has declared bankruptcy?
I thought it was just David Solomont?
No Pulitzer for a non story for a non real journalist who looks for a pulitzer on tabloidbaby
ReplyDelete'revealing' story , everybody and their grandmother knew exactly what was going on,Elli did not give us anything we did not know.
the real story should be how Great' Businessmen like Goldklang and Rosen did not do their homework,before they got involved, although of course Goldkland would not put a dime in this , just his 2 cents (hahhahaha)