Under fire, Time's John Cloud Makes ad hominem Attacks

Defending his 5,800-word cover story on right-wing pundit Ann Coulter in an online interview, Time writer John Cloud used all manner of ad hominem attacks -- including against Coulter, the original subject of his whitewash profile -- but few facts. Apparently stung by widespread criticism over Time's decision to feature Coulter on the cover, Cloud invoked the ultimate distancing technique, comparing Coulter to Josef Stalin and Adolf Hitler.
In the interview, posted on the Columbia Journalism Review's CJR Daily weblog, Cloud also went after journalist Eric Alterman over Alterman's scathing commentary on the Coulter profile: "I think maybe Eric and Ann are in the same bunch. They also, by the way, use the same language." That's a bizarre accusation; as far as we know, Alterman, who has written a number of critically acclaimed books, has never lamented that the New York Times building wasn't blown up or suggested that a sitting president should be assassinated. He has never slurred Muslims or women or disabled Vietnam veterans.