Schultz Hears Strong Reaction to Editor's Column

By: Dave Astor Reaction has been swift to Editor Doug Clifton's column in The Plain Dealer explaining how the marriage between star columnist Connie Schultz and U.S. Senatorial candidate Sherrod Brown will impact the paper's coverage.

"I listened to about 200 calls," Schultz told E&P Thursday afternoon, just hours after Clifton's column hit Cleveland's newsstands and bounced around the Internet. "Most of them were from women supporting me. They were angry at the idea that I was supposedly parroting my husband's viewpoints."

Clifton's column looked to head off any possible conflict-of-interest perceptions relating to Schultz being married to Brown, who's currently a U.S. representative in Ohio.

Schultz, winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for commentary, emphasized that Clifton knows her column isn't influenced by her husband. But Schultz said some people think that, and she finds it "offensive." The Plain Dealer writer added that a male columnist with a politician wife would probably not be subject to the same insinuation.

While Schultz and Brown share the same liberal views on a number of issues, the columnist said she had those views long before she married Brown in 2004. Schultz added that she doesn't show a column to her husband until after it has been submitted to The Plain Dealer.

Schultz did note that she's going to be very careful about putting certain things in her column, which is syndicated by Newhouse News Service. "Obviously, I can't write about the Senate race," she said. "I'll also stay away from writing about voter-registration issues for the next year. That breaks my heart. I've been interested in that for a long time."

What about past columns? Schultz said she never used her twice-weekly feature to support Brown in any way. She has occasionally referred to him when doing a column with a personal theme, but only mentioned him by name once -- and that was by first name only.

When asked if she'll do a column reacting to Clifton's piece, Schultz said she doesn't know at this point.

Speaking of Clifton, Schultz mentioned that he informed her that his column was coming. "He wasn't trying to ambush me," she said.

Schultz, who began her column in 2002, said a number of the women leaving voice-mail messages also urged her not to drop her opinion feature because of Brown's political career. Schultz told E&P she might take a leave of absence after Labor Day 2006 if Brown gets the Democratic nomination for Senate, but it would be a temporary hiatus. "People say I should write books, but I love what I do," she said.

If Brown becomes a Senator, Schultz said it would probably make little difference in how much time she currently spends in Washington vs. Ohio.

"I like writing from the heartland," she said. "You don't have to work on the coast to make a difference."

E&P also called National Society of Newspaper Columnists President Suzette Martinez Standring to get her thoughts about Schultz's situation.

"The public loves to see a husband and wife supporting each other," Standring replied via e-mail. "Unless the husband, Sherrod Brown, is running for U.S. Senate and his wife, Connie Schultz, is a prominent columnist with The Plain Dealer. Then surely, the vultures will circle. Do I think there's a conflict of interest? No one should shrink from public service simply for fear of what 'they' may say."