The Return of Greg Packer — Yet Again!
Greg Packer of Huntington, N.Y. is the ubiquitous man on the street. He has achieved a certain level of fame for persistently worming his way into Big Media stories of all types, from sporting events to the Pope’s death. A 2004 article in Editor & Publisher revealed Packer’s amazing ability to fool almost every media organization in existence into thinking he’s just an average Joe on the street, as opposed to what he is: a blatant seeker of the limelight. That article also documented Packer’s cheerfully casual approach to the truth:
While Packer says “honesty is very important to me,” he does admit that about 5% of the time, “I’m making stuff up to get in the paper.”
With Packer having been revealed in the media’s top trade publication as a dishonest attention-seeker, you’d think he wouldn’t be making any more appearances in Big Media.
But not everyone got the memo.
Packer’s latest appearance is in this article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about the Cardinals beating the Mets:
Greg Packer of Huntington, N.Y., stepped forward to offer grudging congratulations after the Cardinals took the lead late in the game.
“It looks like you guys are going there,” Packer said. “I just can’t believe what I saw. Heartbreaking for us.”
But don’t cry for Greg Packer, Argentina. His heartbreak over his beloved Mets’ loss is mostly likely mitigated by his making it into the paper yet again. As he told Editor & Publisher in 2004:
“I do not think members of the press are pansies, but there are times when I go home and laugh because I can’t believe that I made the newspaper pages again,” Packer says.
Previous Packer sightings here.
Yet more publicity for Greg Packer!
Mace (71d799) — 10/20/2006 @ 8:13 amYou might like this post on our favorite doucheblogger.
Dan Collins (208fbe) — 10/20/2006 @ 8:40 amI like this guy. He’s funny.
AndrewGurn (c37ea2) — 10/20/2006 @ 8:45 amThis guy is my hero for the week. Awesome.
Spade (9fab62) — 10/20/2006 @ 9:03 amThe Pack Is Back!…
What would journalists do without Greg Packer, The Definitive Man In The StreetTM? Here’s his latest sighting. (Via Kaus Files.)……
Ed Driscoll.com (47121e) — 10/20/2006 @ 2:45 pmAmazing how the media just keeps getting sucked in and can’t see it! Amazing!
How stupid can they get?
benning (8f02e6) — 10/20/2006 @ 2:54 pmBababooey!
Dave (64ba72) — 10/20/2006 @ 2:54 pmWait, I’ve met this guy… his real first name is Fudge.
The Fastest Squirrel (4a1b31) — 10/20/2006 @ 5:06 pm^^^ FUNNIEST JOKE EVER HAR HAR HAR
AndrewGurn (8a0c5d) — 10/20/2006 @ 7:13 pmGreg Packer is a modern-day Kilroy.
DRJ (1be297) — 10/20/2006 @ 7:51 pmGood ol’ Phil Whatshisname could use some of Packer’s determination, or rather obsession with self-aggrandizement, in his contest with Arnold.
Pat Patterson (5b3946) — 10/20/2006 @ 8:29 pmmy my – arent we superior. its just astonishing that a guy can sidle up to some of the 100,000 reporters doing reax pieces all around the US and insinuate himself into a quote. we are all too smart to fall for this though, … not like that dumb “media.”
[Oh, come on. Similar things could happen to bloggers, of course . . . at first. But by now, you’d think Big Media reporters would know about him. — P]
heywood jablomy (f86e7d) — 10/20/2006 @ 10:55 pmpansies
Packer says this? I think he MENT—-PATSY .
OF COURSE reporters are whores and so they LOOK for Packer.
topsecretk9 (a1c634) — 10/22/2006 @ 12:17 amPeople like Packer and institutions like the MSM deserve one another.
Clioman (f20b79) — 10/22/2006 @ 6:53 amAww…sounds like sour grapes to me.
Greg Packer (f92ae1) — 10/22/2006 @ 9:43 amI’m pretty sure it was Ann Coulter who busted him, not E & P.
darryl (b6b605) — 10/24/2006 @ 8:12 amC’mon guys … what are we reporters supposed to do, google everyone we interview? For a story on fan reaction to a baseball game? I don’t run background checks on my sources for such fluffy stories and I don’t demand to see my interviewee’s ID either, to see if they’re lying about their age.
I love the term “Big Media,” as if we are all part of one big gang … would it similarly be correct to call Patterico part of the Big Blogosphere?
derek rose (ac326b) — 10/24/2006 @ 11:26 amI’ve been friends with Greg allmost 25 years. He is a nice person who speaks his mind.
Mike L (04bd19) — 4/21/2007 @ 11:20 am