The Pink Lady: Eileen Smith

Would you get fired if you said defamatory things about your superiors and colleagues on the Internet?

Probably, unless you are funny girl Eileen Smith, the web editor for Texas Monthly.

The magazine, known in Texas for awarding the good and reprimanding the bad in Texas politics, covers a wide variety of issues -- from the environment and sports to the arts and education. Smith is responsible for the magazine's popular website, which includes features from the new issue as well as editorial blogs on current affairs.

But Smith, known by her fans as the Pink Lady, wasn't always a card-carrying member of the mainstream media. Smith, in the reverse of her peers, first rose to fame as a blogger. In fact, she still blogs at her groundbreaking website In the Pink Texas, an Austin-based blog focused on politics from a liberal slant. She and her contributors don't hold anything back in their hilarious interpretations of what's happening in Texas, the nation, and the world. In fact, the blog has been called a mix of The Daily Show and The Onion... why the latter? Because Smith has a humorous penchant for adding a little extra flair to direct quotes, which would make any seasoned journalist's skin crawl. But, irreverent as ever, she powers on, making us laugh at ourselves.

Here's a review of her blog from The Dallas Morning News:

In cyberspace, the Pink Lady is a wide-eyed, pinot-swilling, bimbo-ish blogger with a penchant for Starbucks, an addiction to presidential politics and a foul mouth. Alternately self-deprecating and self-aggrandizing, she shamelessly chases after famous politicians, mistrusts all desperate single women, and regularly shaves about eight years off her age.

Before taking the gig with Texas Monthly, Smith regularly took the time to poke fun at Paul Burka, the senior executive editor at the magazine who injected himself into the blogosphere with BurkaBlog. It's interesting to note, though, that she isn't planning on brown-nosing anytime soon. In fact, she now has more ammunition for her jokes now that they share an office space. She continues to trash just about everyone on her highly-visible blog, but nobody seems to mind. Probably because she's just so funny.

Here's the Pink Lady's take on some recent events (excerpts taken from her blog):

Luckily, Congress has stepped in to save us all. They’ve created an economic stimulus plan! Because, when you turn your economy on, does it return the favor?!

Individual (unmarried) taxpayers will receive checks for $600. Couples will receive checks for $1200. If you have kids, you could receive up to $300 per child and a permanent “customer with children” parking space at Central Market.

I am totally going to adopt a South Korean child for this reason. I hear you can give them back if it doesn’t work out.

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Columnist David Broder, who has been in journalism for fifty years, which is to say half his life, contends that South Carolina is a must-win for Barack Obama. He hasn’t won any states since Iowa, and has only picked up one delegate. Oprah Winfrey.

Although Obama was favored by MSNBC in New Hampshire and CNN in Nevada, it was only a fairy tale. But in South Carolina, the black vote is roughly half of the Democratic electorate, and he has built up steady support within the black community after Hillary told a reporter that MLK, Jr. should have been a white president.

John Edwards won SC in 2004, when he was endorsed by The Sons of Millworkers Union. He is expecting to receive this endorsement again.

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Although Omar, one of Osama’s 192 children, once trained at an al Qaeda camp, he decided he didn’t want to go into the family business. Omar said that he hasn’t been in contact with his father since leaving Afghanistan for Egypt. “He doesn’t have e-mail,” Omar said, which explains why Osama hasn’t replied to any of the State Department’s emails to osama.bin.laden@gmail.com.

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I’ll be out until this afternoon at a Texas Monthly editorial retreat. Due to obvious security reasons, I cannot disclose the specific location but FOUR SEASONS BABY. I hope I’m not the only one who brings my bathing suit.

Today’s the day I will be indoctrinated into the TM culture, thereby ending my difficult hazing and pledge period. I just have to be able to name the magazine covers for the past 15 years. MAGAZINE?! Since when do they have a magazine?!