23 Dec One of these things is not like the others – updated

Posted at 11:53h in That's life by

Displaying a conspicuous lack of self-awareness, National Post columnist (and Walrus Magazine editor) Jonathan Kay tweeted a photo of the National Post’s Opinion Page Christmas party:

National Post

These are the men and woman who mould a major Canadian newspaper’s editorial opinions in 2015. There’s the great (truly!) Robert Fulford on the extreme right; Conrad Black, ironically, on the extreme left; Terrance Corcoran and Andrew Coyne holding down the centre (uncomfortably so, one presumes, in Corcoran’s case).

One of these things is not like the others,
One of these things just doesn’t belong,
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my song?

Oh, that would be columnist Robyn Urback.

Kay’s post stirred up a Twitter squal about the editorial crew’s old white maleness. [Disclosure: Contrarian’s editorial staff is 100% old, white, and male.] A few Posties lamely pointed out that two (or perhaps six) distaff-side columnists were no-shows at the party (two of whom appear to be, ahem, food columnists). Then again, David Frum, Rex Murphy, and dozen other penis-sporting-columnists were also missing from the photo, if not the party.

One commenter insisted the same could be said of the Toronto Star and Maclean’s, adding, “Canadian journalism is the whitest guild on earth.” Fact check: True on whiteness, not so much on maleness.

[UPDATE] Peter Kavanagh comments:

I would like you to elaborate on ” a conspicuous lack of self-awareness”…much of what you write in this piece is either verifiable or self-evident ( especially the suggestion that Corcoran might be uncomfortable holding down the middle) but the evidence for ‘a conspicuous lack of self-awareness’ eludes me…how do you know that? Is it not possible that the tweet was the exact opposite of what you suggest? Is it not possible that he simply tweeted the reality of the party?

Well, of course, speculating on anyone else’s state of mind is always unverifiable. My hunch is Kay was simply tweeting a nice photo of a bunch of amiable work pals gathered for a Christmas Party, and was blissfully unmindful of its Total Whiteness & Almost Total Maleness (TWATM). (1) Did he notice its TWATM? (2) Did he give a rat’s ass about its TWATM? (3) Did the probable public reaction to its TWATM give him pause? Or (4) was this Kay’s in-you-face way of saying, “Yeah, damn straight we’re TWATM. Suck it up, bitches!”? I don’t know.