After an X-cruciating Post, ABC's Terry Moran is Launching his Substack Journey

For what it's worth, my quick thoughts on Terry Moran's indefensible tweet and new gig.

Update, June 16 -

Terry Moran

just did a brisk and illuminating conversation with

Tim Miller

of

The Bulwark

that’s worth highlighting here:

Live interview with Tim Miller!

Update, June 11, 10:30 p.m. - Here’s good journalism news.

Terry Moran

, the longtime ABC politics correspondent who was fired after posting the message I wrote about below, is indeed activating his Substack. I think it’ll be a great fit, as it has been for

Paul Krugman

and others who’ve left conventional media for the freedom of this place. His post is titled “Independence Day.”

Independence Day

Insert June 12, 11 a.m. ET -

Mark Jacob

and

Steven Beschloss

, who do able press criticism and more, posted a piece on Terry’s tweet and ABC’s response that I strongly disagree with:

Here’s my original post:

This may be unpopular but so be it.

I strongly disagree with the widespread lionization of ABC’s longtime senior political correspondent Terry Moran following the termination of his contract by ABC. (Read and watch Brian Stelter at CNN for details.) I feel awful for Moran both as a person and fellow journalist. We all misstep. But I can’t defend what he wrote, even though I personally find Stephen Miller to be one of the most loathsome figures in modern politics. I write this after 40-plus years plying this trade called journalism, mostly for The New York Times.

One can debate whether firing was the only recourse, but the tweet on Trump’s anti-migrant maestro Miller was indefensible for a journalist, whether Moran worked for ABC or PBS or the BBC - or MSNBC for that matter.

Particularly this line: “You can see this just by looking at him because you can see that his hatreds are his spiritual nourishment.”

WTF.

A little thought experiment: imagine Rachel Maddow speaking that line.

I can’t.

For what it's worth, I could see Stephen Miller saying this about someone. It’s right out of his playbook. But he's not a journalist...

Does Moran have some special knowledge that Miller isn’t acting strategically and is instead some lizard-brained psycho? Maybe he is, but…

No matter who is president, and who he picks as operatives, no journalist can retain credibility after defining someone based on appearance.

This is not about the First Amendment or corporate knee bending (although that is in play as well).

It’s about the job.

Let me know your thoughts.

Postscript - I just noticed

Terry Moran

has a Substack set up. I just subscribed and hope he comes on over here when the time is right.

Coming soon

Here’s Moran at his best: