Not long ago, a media reporter asked your day editor if he seriously doesn't like Greg Gutfeld. Because surely it's an act, all this mocking him! We send attention his way, he responds with an amusing attack on our commenters, we trash him again, everyone goes home to cash their tax refund checks and buy some $10 cigarettes. But the truth is, no, I don't really like Greg Gutfeld. He's not funny. And his two-dimensional controversialist routine is tired. Regardless of how much either of them mean what they say, Colbert does a wittier Bill O'Reilly. Gutfeld is a mediocre Morning Zoo Shock Jock. He seemingly used to be funny—some of his HuffPo posts were truly inspired. But his show is terrible and his "noxious gay-baiting even though he's friends with plenty of homos" routine is, once again, done better by Ann Coulter. So when Greg says, as he did to MediaBistro recently, that Gawker only trashes him because he refused to write for us, well...



...maybe that's true. Nick's made dumb hires before. And maybe it's why Nick needled him the other week. (Nick says he just needed an excuse to post the embarrassing story).

But—if Gutfeld's tale is true, it's certainly not something I knew about. I just make fun of Greg because I think he's annoying.

(Full disclosure: I met Greg once, long ago, at a party at Nick's place. And he was kinda funny, in person, in a rude, fratty way. I think New Yorkers just find that schtick so amusing because it's a novelty in the media scene? There can't be many meathead state school grads at the Observer.)

Gutfeld: Nick Denton 'Doesn't Like People Saying No to Him Apparently' [FishbowlNY]