Politics: Afternoon Edition: The fall of the house of Gingrich

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Friday, June 10, 2011 HEADLINES 1) THE FIX: The fall of the house of Gingrich How the former House speaker's presidential campaign went so wrong, so quickly. » Read full article 2) Sarah Palin e-mails show concern about media Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin's e-mails show a constant concern with how she is portrayed in the media, on matters big and small. » Read full article 3) Gates knocks European allies in farewell speech Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates rebuked some of America's staunchest allies Friday, saying the United States has a "dwindling appetite" to serve as the heavyweight partner in the military order that has underpinned the U.S. relationship with Europe since the end of World War II. » Read full article 4) Pentagon Papers to be declassified on Monday The disclosure of the Pentagon Papers four decades ago stands as one of the most significant leaks of classified material in American history. Ever since, in the eyes of the government, the voluminous record of U.S. involvement in Vietnam has remained something else: classified. » Read full article 5) 2CHAMBERS: Purported Gaddafi letter presses Congress for cease-fire Some congressional leaders have received a letter purportedly written by Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi calling for a cease-fire and for the funding of humanitarian aid in the nearly three-month-long conflict » Read full article QUOTE OF THE DAY Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, in a statement on Alaska's release of thousands of her e-mails: "The emails detail a Governor hard at work. Everyone should read them." COMMENT OF THE DAY Utahreb, on Ylan Q. Mui's "GOP vows to block any consumer bureau nominee" article: It is not only McConnell that is holding back the choice for head of the group - where is the campaign by Obama and Geithner for Warren to had the group? Nothing said - no rhetoric - no push or shove - zero from the two who should be rallying the votes for Warren. Q&A Discussion Washington Post political reporter Chris Cillizza was online at 11 a.m. ET to discuss the week's news: Crowdsourcing and journalistic integrity: Unlike some, I am not a Palin supporter, but I have grave concerns about the ethics behind your call for reader participation in sifting through Palin's emails. What is the rush -- beyond trying to scoop your competitors -- that you cannot use WaPo staff to do this work? The crowd-sourcing looks like shoddy journalism. Thanks for your response -- the WaPo Omblog hasn't yet addressed the journalistic standards at work in this case. Chris Cillizza: Lots of people wondering about this. I am a firm believer in crowdsourcing -- essentially using the hive mind of the web to surface the best information on a given topic. We at the Fix have done it repeatedly over the last few years. We asked our community to help us choose the best state blogs, the best state-based reporters, the best political Tweeters etc. I have been amazed each time at how much good information comes out -- stuff I had never heard of or thought about. I think that was the same thinking behind the Palin emails crowdsourcing. The challenge is gargantuan -- sorting through more than 20,000 emails from the former Alaska governor. As for those who say that it's not newsworthy what's in the emails, I would say only this: Palin has made clear she is thinking about running for president in 2012 and most polling I have seen puts her in first or second place in national polls on the 2012 contest. Given that and the fact that Palin's time as governor is the best way to find out how she would govern and the approach she takes to office, it's hard to see how we (or any news organization) should not look through the emails to see what they tell us about her. » View full Q&A session MULTIMEDIA Video: Excerpts from the Palin documentary, "The Undefeated" Video: Excerpts from the Palin documentary, "The Undefeated" Clips from a documentary on Sarah Palin, "The Undefeated," which is scheduled for release in select theaters July 15. SEND US A TIP | ADVERTISE | UNSUBSCRIBE | PRIVACY POLICY | NEWSLETTER CENTER Washington Post Digital c/o E-mail Customer Care 1150 15th Street NW Washington, D.C. 20071