The Praiseworthy New York Times

I know it's quite pleasing to root for the underdog, at times even heaping praise upon those short on talent and ability but tall on heart and effort. It almost seems the American way to do things, perhaps stemming from the fact that a couple and a quarter plus centuries ago we as a nation were one of the said "underdogs", and challenged the bigs to create a life-system all our own. That being said, I must concede that in the world of newspapers, my praise is going to a big and mighty...The New York Times. In my previous employ I spent a lot of time travelling, and therefore was able to sample a rather large variety of daily papers, both in large metropolitan areas and small, rural locales as well. I now read the NYT about 5 times a week (according to one study [pdf], I'm either a Heavy Reader or a Skimmer), and am always impressed with the amount of readable material and the skill of the writers. I know this is no surprise, seeing that the Times is "one of the most-read newspapers in the world", and as such they have both the means and the business responsibility to have the best writers. I also know that I'm not the first and won't be the last to state this most obvious fact, but I just want to throw in my two-cents worth and say that when it comes to daily papers, the underdog may not be the most worthy of your time.