A Thomas Friedman quiz

Thomas Friedman: The Lexus and the Olive Tree. The World is Flat. A column in the New York Times. "Arguably the world's most influential and popular foreign-policy thinker," according to The Washingtonian.

Quick dear readers—which quote is parody and which is the real Thomas Friedman?

A.(in which Friedman admits that he knew next to nothing about a policy he promoted in the NYT)

or

B.(in which Friedman owns up to his own place in the globalization hierarchy)

Answer: A is an actual quote. B is parody.

Norman Solomon discusses both Friedman's wealth and his journalistic integrity in a Truthout editorial. (Thanks to dcart for the Truthout link.)

Solomon reports that The Washingtonian's July profile of Friedman had "scant ink to spare for criticisms of Friedman's outlook: ... strong support of ... international trade rules and government policies [that] allow corporations to function with legal prerogatives that routinely trump labor rights, environmental protection, and economic justice." Dollars & Sense has plenty of that ink, though. Here's a small selection of our coverage of the downsides to corporate globalization:

• Know-Nothings and Know-It-Alls: What's Wrong with the Hype about Globalization
  
• Nike to the Rescue? Africa Needs Better Jobs, Not Sweatshops
  
• Capital Stability and Local Democracy
  
• Fields of Free Trade: Mexico's Small Farmers in a Global Economy
  
• Plus our recent coverage of immigration in May and September.

Technorati Tags: Thomas Friedman, globalization, inequality, media analysis