Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin returned to the Alaska governor's office yesterday and had a few pointed words for the liberal reporters who made her life miserable the last two-plus months -- and who seem determined to keep their feeding frenzy going. Since Democrats Barack Obama and Joe Biden defeated John McCain and Palin on Tuesday, Palin has been the target of nasty rumors about her campaign wardrobe and her alleged ignorance of foreign policy, among other things. The backbiting seeped into the public thanks to reporters who decided to repeat the gripes of anonymous campaign sources. McCain staffers speaking on the record have refuted the rumors the past couple of days, but reporters questioned Palin about them upon her return home. She told journalists they are part of the problem. "You guys report based on anonymous sources, so it's hard to have a defense," she said. Although Palin said many reporters covered the campaign with fairness and objectivity, she voiced disappointment in the national media. "There have been some stinkers ... that have kind of made the whole basketful of apples there once in a while smell kind of bad," Palin said. As a former journalist, she said she wants to help the media regain their credibility and objectivity in the eyes of the public "so that Americans can trust what's being reported." But as long as publications like The Washington Post are willing to sacrifice their reputations during the campaign and only acknowledge their sins after the fact, Palin has her work cut out for her.
