James Guckert is rapidly becoming the second most famous fake, behind the infamous members of Milli Vanilli, Rob Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan. Guckert was a fake journalist. He didn't write stories, but instead edited Republican spin points. He didn't research his articles, unless you call listening to Rush research. His publisher, Talon News, wasn't a real news organization and he wasn't even an employee of Talon News.
Guckert did enjoy faking his way through life, just as Rob and Fab did. And why not? Guckert got to enjoy all the perks of being a star White House reporter without any of the actual work associated with it. He got to ask questions almost every day of the President's Press Secretary. He got to go to two White House Christmas parties. He got to interview a candidate for Senate and was a major factor in that candidate's winning the race. He got to share his views on Fox News. He even got to ask the President at a Presidential press conference. I would guess he got more public exposure than 99.9% of all journalists.
I think there are some interesting parallels between Guckert and Rob and Fab. Before being plucked out of obscurity, Rob and Fab were male models. Before being plucked out of obscurity, Guckert was a male...you know what. Rob and Fab lip synced their way to fame. Guckert parroted his way to fame. Rob and Fab lived as if they would never be exposed as fakes. Guckert is still acting as if he wasn't exposed as a fake. It was the attention of Rob and Fab's crowning success - winning a Grammy - that lead to their exposure. It was the attention of Guckert's crowning success - asking the President a question at a press conference - that led to his exposure.
Sadly, Rob and Fab showed much more class after their hoax was found out than Guckert has. First, Rob and Fab never complained before their exposure about other bands lip syncing. Guckert, on the other hand, claimed, "[Bush] was also going to go around the press corps, which, of course, deserves to be gone around because they're not telling the truth about Social Security reform. They continue to work off of the talking points provided them from the opposition. And I know that because I have seen some of my colleagues -- let's say one or two that I've actually witnessed -- read from DNC [Democratic National Committee] talking points on Social Security." Second, Guckert has never admitted that he was a fake. That would be comparable to Rob and Fab refusing to give back their Grammies. Third, after Rob and Fab were exposed, they talked about how the hoax got started and how they kept it going. Guckert has refused to provide any meaningful answers as to how he got connected to GOPUSA.com, how he got into the press conferences or how he was invited to so many White House functions. Last, when the hoax was exposed, Rob and Fab accepted that they were part of the hoax and deserved the censure they received. Guckert has denied he did anything wrong, has been blaming people left and right, and is now threatening to sue liberal interest groups and bloggers for "political assassination".
Even worse, Milli Vanilli's record label, Arista Records, was a paragon of virtue compared to the White House. Arista dropped the group and deleted Girl You Know It's True from their catalog, making it the biggest-selling album ever taken out of print. There was also a class action allowing anyone who believed they'd been defrauded into purchasing the group's records to apply for a rebate. On the other hand, the White House has been in as much denial as Guckert has. From the way that White House press secretaries (Scott McClellan and Ari Fleischer) talk, all decisions concerning Guckert were made by staff members who they never met, who apparently don't work for them, who are unreachable and who left behind no paperwork. They claim that Guckert met the press office's standards, then refuse to disclose what those standards are.
What is more important, a Grammy award or a free and independent press? From the response of the MSM, it is clear that the Grammies are the clear winner.