"World round, scientists say; others disagree"

November 7, 2012 9:20 AM

Actual quote and source of (paraphrased): "World round, scientists say; others disagree"?

I remember reading some years ago, I believe on the blue, a quip about problems with journalistic balance, phrased along the lines of "always trying to accommodate the other side means you end up with headlines like 'world round, scientists say; others disagree'." (To be clear, I don't remember the line being from a MeFite, but probably referenced by or possibly linked to by one.) Can anybody point me to the original source and/or the exact quote? I feel guilty always mangling it. Thanks!

posted by kimota to MetaFilter-Related at 9:20 AM (6 comments total)

I suspect you'll get differing views about the source of that quote (and it's exact wording). But hey, it's all good.
posted by oneswellfoop at 9:48 AM on November 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

The first person I ever heard using that metaphor was Paul Krugman and his exact phrasing was "opinions on shape of earth differ."

I know it goes back to the early Bush administration since that's why he coined the phrase, but I am not finding an explicit use by Krugman at the moment. Here is a post by Brad DeLong from 2005 citing Krugman to this effect, though, so it's at least that old.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 11:24 AM on November 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

Oops! Sorry, I was wrong on the "exact phrasing," which is what caused me to miss the reference. See here from Nov. 2000:

If a presidential candidate were to declare that the earth is flat, you would be sure to see a news analysis under the headline ''Shape of the Planet: Both Sides Have a Point.'' After all, the earth isn't perfectly spherical.

posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 11:27 AM on November 7, 2012 [2 favorites]

Krugman on Metafilter in 2003
posted by Lorin at 11:35 AM on November 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

Thanks, everyone!
posted by kimota at 5:07 PM on November 7, 2012

The people who disagree are right. The world's not round; it's an oblate spheroid.
posted by UbuRoivas at 1:15 AM on November 9, 2012