Reporters Don't Like It When Other Reporters Are Called "A Disgrace"

Mayor Michael Bloomberg spent much of Friday wishing he hadn't called New York Observer reporter Azi Paybarah "a disgrace," simply because he asked the Mayor a question about term limits.

What's left of old media circled the wagons around Paybarah, as if to say, "Hey, who YOU calling a disgrace." Writing up the incident were the New York Times, Newsday, the AP, The Daily News.

Of course, old, testy, shoot-now-ask-questions-later Bloomberg was forced to deliver an insincere apology later. This one, however, was delivered by proxy. A spokesman for the mayor, Stu Loeser said: "The mayor asked me to pass along his apologies to Azi for the comment after the press conference, which I did." Oh yeah, Stu. He's as good as Mike, right?

So, a quick poll. After having called reporters "a disgrace," and their questions "ridiculous" and "a waste," when epithet will our Mayor use against a reporter next? "Son of a bitch," "Bastard," "So's your Old Man" or "I know you are, but what am I?"