No Wonder They Suck

It looks like I'm not alone in my whining about the methodology behind the selection process for the New Yorker "Cartoon Caption Contest."

From Slate (June 2, 2008)

How To Win the New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest

...you need to know the selection process. The first line of defense at The New Yorker is the cartoon editor's assistant, a twentysomething from Texas named Farley Katz. The cartoon assistant reads every single caption—at least 6,000 per week—and passes his favorite 50 or so to the editors, who narrow the list down to three. If you won't make it past Farley, you will never get your name in print. Knowing how he thinks is crucial. The astute captioner will note that he used to be a rollercoaster operator at Six Flags and a telemarketer. He is an outsider who has never trod in the cemented garden he protects. He had to look up "urban ennui" when he arrived in New York—he didn't learn it riding the subway for 25 years. Exploit the fact that Farley is working off the same stereotypes of The New Yorker readership as you are.

Hmmm....Farley Katz doesn't sound like a REAL name.

More significantly, the May 22nd New York Post points out that the New Yorker isn't above plagarism.

Original:


Copy in New Yorker: