Howard Kurtz, the nation's most prominent media critic, rebukes a reader for being “a little outdated” in mentioning the Washington Times' tendency to use scare-quotes when writing about gay marriage:

re: “The Times says it will still do straight journalism”: Does the Washington Times still put quotes around the word “marriage” when referring to legally binding marriages between members of the same sex? Because, if so, it never practiced “straight journalism.”

Howard Kurtz: You're a little outdated. When John Solomon was editor, he banned some of those loaded phrases, such as homosexual marriage instead of gay marriage. Of course, he quit during the big management shakeup six weeks ago, and no replacement has been named. The managing editors, including Jeff Birnbaum, who like Solomon came from The Post, have also stepped down. So it remains to be seen who will be leading the paper.

But Howard Kurtz, the nation's most prominent media critic, is the one who is a little out-dated. Despite Solomon's edict, the Times has continued to use scare quotes, as Media Matters has documented.