The discussion about William Arkin’s offensive blog/columns continues, with the WaPo ombudsman now applying a little last minute (too late?) damage control.

Hat tip to Hot Air.

A Blog’s Blast Damage

The fact that The Post and washingtonpost.com are interlocking yet separate is lost on most readers, who do not care that the two are miles apart physically and under different management.

Sounds like an initial move to minimize the relationship.  While she is technically correct, the name recognition and association is certainly a factor.  The Washington Post is a trademark, so there cannot be that much seperation.

A great example is the recent firestorm over a column that never appeared in The Post — but for which The Post was blamed. William M. Arkin, who writes an online national security column and blog called "Early Warning," was critical of soldiers who, in an NBC-TV report, voiced their frustration with opposition to the war. The report, he wrote, "is just an ugly reminder of the price we pay for a mercenary — oops sorry, volunteer — force."

Complaints were swift and angry and came by the thousands. D.J. Aland of Springfield wrote: "Mr. Arkin’s hateful and hate-filled tantrum on the Washington Post Web site, in which he calls American soldiers ‘mercenary’ and ridicules their opinions, is beyond definition. His column stains your publication — not as much for his opinion as for the vile way he has expressed it. The credibility of the Washington Post national security reporting is irreparably damaged by his ranting."

Indeed.

Did one online column irreparably damage Post national security journalism?

Yes. 

No. But it does show that an online column rubs off on the newspaper. Opinions on Arkin vary among Post reporters who write about the military and national security. Some respect him; others think he harms The Post’s reputation.

And they are right.  As I said the issue is that they share the common name, and that name is so heaviliy invested in a joint reputation that attempts to say "it was them not us" are really futile.