Yeah, I tried to check Hewitt's Site Meter, but my computer died, and for whatever reason it didn't come up on my Treo. Thanks for the link to it.

You know, I have three times now tried to post links to the Independent Sources link in Hiltzik's comments. My comments appear to be stuck in moderation. Funny . . . he has approved two comments by lefty supporters since the first two times I tried.

My first two attempts were this afternoon. My third was at 8:45 this evening and included a link to your post as well. I saved that one. If it gets lost in perpetual moderation, I'll post it on my own site.

Good catch.

I have absolutely no dog in this fight, but I checked Hewitt's SiteMeter, and it does appear that his overall visits decreased by about 16.6% between January 1st and March 1st. Am I reading it wrong?

For the record, Hiltzik's thesis that conservative stupidity is detracting from Hewitt's traffic is pretty Baghdad Bob in its distance from reality. If that's the case, why is the "blogosphere" a galaxy tilting over the event horizon into the intellectual black hole of Charles Johnson, Powerline and their ilk, leaving behind the supernova of Bush shills, lunatics and imbeciles who endlessly spiral forth from their example?

But there is an increase since Nov. 1 and an even bigger one since Aug. 1. That's why you look at long-term trends. You don't pick out two random points like Hiltzik did, because it can be misleading -- as his data was.

The other thing to note if you're a blogger, is that traffic is partly external-event-driven. Something big happens, a controversy hits that's on point for you, and up goes the traffic. This, in my observation, is where the greatest opportunities for long-term growth tend to lie.

At levels lower than Hugh's, traffic will also be "monster post" driven, but the higher you go the less this is true. Hugh escaped the gravity well a long time ago.

I'm quite sure that Hiltzik's attack is driving more visitors to Hewitt's blog, too. Not exactly a decrease in traffic as Hiltzik claims.

Hmmm

LATimes: dominant paper in a metro-area of over 9 million people with over a 1000 employees and millions of dollars at its disposal to publish and print a daily Newspaper.

Versus

Hugh Hewitt: Law professor, radio host and blogger who provides his content free of charge.

Sounds like a valid comparison to me.

Since Hugh's core offering is his radio show, a comparison to his radio audience would actually have some relevance.

But there is nothing the LA Times is more allergic to than relevance.

let me know if you see a secular decline

You keep on using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means.

Unless of course we are judging Hugh's traffic over a lifetime or century.

Um, davebo, points for the Inigo Montoya quote, but no, you're wrong

In numerical descriptions, such as of a time series of numbers, a secular trend is the long-term upward or downward trend in the numbers, as opposed to a smaller cyclical variation with a periodic and short-term duration.

For example, in the business operating cycle, revenue might fluctuate during the fiscal year. Experienced management could ignore the cyclical fluctuation in revenue and concentrate instead on the larger trend from year to year, hoping to see a secular trend upward.

Thanks for the language lesson, AL. I learned something new today!

Are my eyes playing tricks on me or is that AL throwing rocks at someone for shoddy reporting?

Are you ever going to get around to a front-page clarification(correction) on that or are you still investigating? Inquiring minds and all that.

Oh, frontinus, I'm sorry - I never posted the followup from the prepaid calling industry newspaper...

While AT&T has invested money in a very risky environment in order to offer the service, there are questions about the propriety of restricting access to alternative carriers on the payphones AT&T provides in the exchanges. They reportedly have 10 technicians deployed in the region to maintain and operate the system.

“Although payphone service providers operating in the United States may designate a preferred long distance carrier, including their own, they must still permit callers the option of choosing an alternative carrier. AT&T is acting in the role of a payphone service provider. They're putting in the facility, but they are blocking access to alternative providers. That would not be permitted under common carrier regulations applicable in the United States,” says Jonathan Marashlian, a regulatory attorney with The Helein Law Group in McLean, Virginia.

Pattullo also urges that AT&T follow the same rules as they must obey in the US. “In this case, we think it is in the public's interest that restrictions be lifted to help ease the increasing burdens on our forces overseas and their families here at home."
In the US, payphone service providers, PSPs, are allowed to charge a Payphone Compensation Surcharge for these calls. Known as DAC – Dial Around Compensation – its purpose is to pay the operator for the use of their payphone instruments and network. Although DAC has been around since the 1996 Telecommunications Act, it was rarely collected, or paid. The FCC recently increased DAC to almost 50 cents per call, and enacted strenuous enforcement procedures to assure it is paid.
But, in the US, payphone operators are not allowed to block access to alternative carriers, as AT&T does in Iraq.
“They get paid for the use of their network, regardless of what long distance network is used to complete the call,” offers Marashlian.

Ray Horak, a well known telecommunications consultant, author and editor of Newton's Telecom Dictionary, has a son in the Marine Corps, who has already served one tour of duty in Iraq and is on the way back. “I can see both sides of it, being an ex-AT&T guy,” says Horak. “God bless AT&T for being there and building a network, but shame on them for taking advantage of our people in uniform.”

Now if you can work your back-down from war profiteer to your current position onto the front page....

Quit nibbling around the edges and eat the whole crap sandwich. You made it afterall.

I still neither work for AT&T or invest in them. In case there were any lingering questions.