Roll Call--The Washington Insider
The Small Congressional Paper Broke the Senator Larry Craig Story
Unlike a Senate colleague who was recently exposed by Larry Flynt’s Hustler Magazine, U.S. Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho at least had the satisfaction of being exposed by a prestigous publication, a small Washington, D.C. paper and website called Roll Call.
Until it broke the Craig story, most Americans had probably never heard of Roll Call since it is akin to an independent in-house publication for members of Congress. The keyword in that description is "independent."
Ask Senator Craig.
Broke the Larry Craig Story
On August 27, 2007, Roll Call broke the story about Craig’s arrest in a Minnesota airport men’s room and turned it loose in the mainstream media. Its moment in the national spotlight was brief, but Roll Call's scooping of the entire media enhanced its reputation on Capitol Hill. It also silently warned people in Congress not to mess with Roll Call.
Roll Call says its mission is to provide "superior coverage of the people, politics and process of Congress." It advertises that it "is widely regarded as the leading publication for Congressional news and information."
Its normal coverage includes detailed descriptions of complicated legislation, as well as how members of Congress vote. It also covers the election campaigns conducted by Senators and Representatives in their home states. These functions help Roll Call to know at least as much as any other publication about the comings and goings of Congress’ elected officials and their staffs.
Republican Senator John Warner
The publication is well respected by many in Congress and probably feared by some. Republican Senator John Warner of Virginia said he reads Roll Call regularly "to keep my head above water in this town."
Other media leaders have referred to it as the "Washington insiders’ newspaper." Rich Lowry of the National Review called it "the Bible of Capitol Hill Insiders."
Ironically, Craig said nothing about Roll Call in his two news conferences acknowledging his arrest and announcing his resignation from the Senate. Instead he blasted his home state paper, the Idaho Statesman, saying that paper pressured him so much that he mistakingly pleaded guilty in the Minnesota airport case.
Idaho Statesman Spared Craig
The second irony there is that the Statesman leaned over backwards to be fair to Craig. It had declined to publish earlier rumors about his sexual behavior. Instead, it conducted its own 300-interview investigation of the reports. It then withheld the findings of the investigation, taking Craig's word that he was not gay and that he had not done anything wrong.
Roll Call is published Monday through Thursdays when Congress is in session and on Mondays when Congress is in recess.
The Economist Owns Roll Call
It was founded in 1955 by Sid Yudain, a former Senate press secretary. The paper and website are now part of The Economist Group, a London-based firm that also owns "The Economist," a financial magazine with readers in both Europe and North America.
Roll Call reports a circulation of 18,000, including 11,500 delivered to Congressional offices and 400 to the White House.
It is a primary advertising medium for major corporations and trade groups trying to reach Congressmen and their staffs.
Annual subscription rates are $275 for access to the website and $435 for the printed paper and website access.
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