Mel Gibson and the Jews: Maybe This Time He Won't Offend All of Them

This story online at the New York Times today has a lot to recommend it. First, it sports a headline that would easily qualify as a Headline of the Day if it came from the AP:

Mel Gibson Plans TV Miniseries on Holocaust

I know -- yikes.

The meat of the piece is pretty good, too, mostly thanks to Quinn Taylor, an ABC executive, whose five-word summary of public discourse should be put in a time capsule for its brevity and accuracy: "Controversy's publicity, and vice versa."

Someone call Bartlett's, I'm serious.

But the capper is this quote from Taylor, who might want to hire a Word-Choice Sherpa with all that money he's presumably getting from ABC:

Mr. Taylor . . . cautioned that Mr. Gibson's level of involvement would not be determined until the miniseries is completed -- which at this stage of any project is still a long shot -- and he has seen it. "If it happens to be produced by Mel's company, it doesn't mean he's going to be out there flogging it like he did 'Passion of the Christ,' " Mr. Taylor said.

Flogging. Jesus. Nice job, Quinn.