The joke that is the mainstream media just became a little funnier today. The Washington Post circulated a flyer to health care lobbyists promising access to high level Obama administration officials for between $25,000 and $250,000.

For $25,000 to $250,000, The Washington Post has offered lobbyists and association executives off-the-record, nonconfrontational access to "those powerful few": Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and — at first — even the paper’s own reporters and editors.

The flyer itself reads in part:

"Underwriting Opportunity: An evening with the right people can alter the debate," says the one-page flier. "Underwrite and participate in this intimate and exclusive Washington Post Salon, an off-the-record dinner and discussion at the home of CEO and Publisher Katharine Weymouth. … Bring your organization’s CEO or executive director literally to the table. Interact with key Obama administration and congressional leaders."

…“Spirited? Yes. Confrontational? No. The relaxed setting in the home of Katharine Weymouth assures it. What is guaranteed is a collegial evening, with Obama administration officials, Congress members, business leaders, advocacy leaders and other select minds typically on the guest list of 20 or less. …

“Offered at $25,000 per sponsor, per Salon. Maximum of two sponsors per Salon. Underwriters’ CEO or Executive Director participates in the discussion. Underwriters appreciatively acknowledged in printed invitations and at the dinner. Annual series sponsorship of 11 Salons offered at $250,000 … Hosts and Discussion Leaders … Health-care reporting and editorial staff members of The Washington Post … An exclusive opportunity to participate in the health-care reform debate among the select few who will actually get it done. … A Washington Post Salon … July 21, 2009 6:30 p.m. …

"Washington Post Salons are extensions of The Washington Post brand of journalistic inquiry into the issues, a unique opportunity for stakeholders to hear and be heard," the flier says. "At the core is a critical topic of our day. Dinner and a volley of ideas unfold in an evening of intelligent, news-driven and off-the-record conversation. … By bringing together those powerful few in business and policy-making who are forwarding, legislating and reporting on the issues, Washington Post Salons give life to the debate. Be at this nexus of business and policy with your underwriting of Washington Post Salons."

After Politico reported on this stunning situation, the WaPo immediately began making excuses and blaming the business division.

"The flier circulated this morning came out of a business division for conferences and events, and the newsroom was unaware of such communication. It went out before it was properly vetted, and this draft does not represent what the company’s vision for these dinners are, which is meant to be an independent, policy-oriented event for newsmakers.

"As written, the newsroom could not participate in an event like this.  We do believe there is an opportunity to have a conferences and events business, and that The Post should be leading these conversations in Washington, big or small, while maintaining journalistic integrity. The newsroom will participate where appropriate."

First of all, the print media has no journalistic integrity. They work for Obama and will continue to work for Obama. The only difference is that now for the right price they’ll work for other people also.

Now that we know their price, conservatives need to start buying front page stories from time to time on issues the American people should know about.

I wonder if conservative bloggers pooled their money together and handed the WaPo a cash payment of $250,000 we could get a front-page story about the thousands of leading climate scientists who think global warming is phony?

Something tells me it would probably cost upwards of a $1 million for a story like that — provided the White House allowed it to be printed at all.

UPDATE:

WaPo has officially canceled the pay to play events:

Washington Post Publisher Katharine Weymouth today canceled plans for a series of policy dinners at her home after learning that marketing fliers offered lobbyists access to Obama administration officials, members of Congress and Post journalists in exchange for payments as high as $250,000.

“Absolutely, I’m disappointed,” Weymouth, the chief executive of Washington Post Media, said in an interview. “This should never have happened. The fliers got out and weren’t vetted. They didn’t represent at all what we were attempting to do. We’re not going to do any dinners that would impugn the integrity of the newsroom.”

It’s incredible the way Weymouth talks about this like an outsider looking in. She just can’t understand how something like this could happen — never mind that it was supposed to happen at HER house.

The only thing she’s sorry about is that it became public. I have no doubt the The New York Times has been doing this kind of thing for years, they’re just not dumb enough to draft up flyers advertising it.

The only thing this incident does is reinforce what we’ve known for a long time. The media in this country is corrupt beyond all repair. Nothing you read in the paper should be taken as fact.

Every story and every column has an agenda behind it. The idea of journalism as a public service meant to inform the public died years ago. Journalism is now the vehicle by which progressives attempt to shape public policy and remake America into a socialist utopia.