海角大神

In his cape-wearing turn as a pimp in his undercover ACORN sting, James O鈥橩eefe had cast himself as a new kind of conservative crusader, using the Internet bullhorn to tear down what he saw as liberal prejudices.

But Mr. O鈥橩eefe鈥檚 arrest for allegedly trying to tamper with the phones of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) of Louisiana Monday will have consequences, not only for O鈥橩eefe but also for the new brand of conservative muckraking he sought to pioneer.

That movement has taken a hit, and the incident may chill future investigative efforts against liberal targets, some conservative journalists say.

Indeed, many conservatives who had lauded O鈥橩eefe鈥檚 work on the ACORN story 鈥� in which he showed that some workers of the left-leaning community organizing group were willing to help prostitutes avoid taxes 鈥� distanced themselves from the video-producer.

Michelle Malkin said O鈥橩eefe got 鈥渃arried away.鈥� Fox News commentator Glenn Beck said O鈥橩eefe had entered 鈥�Watergate territory.鈥�

Others went further, suggesting that O鈥橩eefe was willing to go to extraordinary lengths to incite a revolutionary fervor.

"It turns out [O'Keefe] is a lot more like Che Guevara than Woodward and Bernstein," says Steven Schier, a political science professor at Carleton College in Northfield, Minn.

Controversial but effective

Until now, O鈥橩eefe鈥檚 tactics were borderline ethical, but undeniably effective, media experts say. In attacking ACORN 鈥� an organization created to help the needy, O鈥橩eefe turned on its head the classic journalistic maxim: comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

The result was lots of Internet traffic, TV coverage, and even action in Congress, which stripped ACORN of federal funding.

But O鈥橩eefe鈥檚 alleged phone-tampering attempt at Senator Landrieu鈥檚 office at the Hale Boggs Federal Building in New Orleans goes too far, says the Leadership Institute in Arlington, Va., which aims to counterbalance the perceived left-leaning bias in the media and where O鈥橩eefe had worked and trained.

鈥淭here is a responsible way to creatively generate a story or an incident which challenges the left in an ethical, yet aggressive way,鈥� Steven Sutton of the Leadership Institute, . 鈥淭hen there鈥檚 the other way, where you cross the line 鈥� and we teach people not to do that 鈥� and you expose yourself, whatever organization you鈥檙e affiliated with, and the people that you鈥檙e associated with to a deserved and justified backlash.鈥�

MediaMatters, the liberal media watchdog group, took a predictably harder line on O鈥橩eefe and the movement he came to symbolize. 鈥淰ilification is the driving force and facts are optional,鈥� .

Headed for trouble

O鈥橩eefe was certainly ambitious. The topic of a now-canceled speaking appearance in Utah was "[O'Keefe's] national expose of ACORN's unethical behavior, his changes in Congress, and how [he will] inspire our party's passion for a grassroots comeback."

鈥淒on't just respond to news, but actually create your own headlines,鈥� O鈥橩eefe said in a recent interview posted at a website affiliated with the Leadership Institute.

But he dropped clues that he knew that his passion for conservative muckraking could get him in trouble, too. He told Mr. Beck last year that he鈥檇 be willing to go to jail for a story.

In the FBI affidavit, O鈥橩eefe admits to planning the operation and the men admit they entered Landrieu鈥檚 offices under false pretenses. The unanswered question, so far, is whether this was part of a broader Watergate-style conspiracy.

An suggests that O鈥橩eefe was merely trying to verify allegations that Landrieu's office was being deliberately unresponsive to constituents on the issue of healthcare reform.

It has turned into a cautionary tale. 鈥淔or now, let it be a lesson to aspiring young conservatives interested in investigative journalism,鈥� wrote Ms. Malkin on her blog. 鈥淜now your limits. Know the law. Don鈥檛 get carried away. And don鈥檛 become what you are targeting.鈥�

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