It’s somewhat known in D.C. journalism circles that TIME’s Ana Marie Cox simply adores Choire Sicha — because he, much more so than her former Gawker boss Nick Denton, worked tirelessly to help her find the Wonkette voice that ultimately launched her from obscurity (yes, it took a gay man to really make those ass fucking jokes work, kids — sorry to spoil the illusion), but that doesn’t explain why New York newspapers think Sicha has the authority to do election journalism. No, it wasn’t his recent lackluster coverage of the Barack Obama campaign that made us seriously question Sicha’s credentials, but, rather, his poorly-constructed, almost incomprehensible piece today on why single people should sleep with marrieds. His main point, that married people tend not to have time for their single friends is an old, tired one. It was boring when Carrie Bradshaw overplayed the topic years ago — now it’s just stale. Can’t single people have any fun by themselves? Why does Sicha fall so easily into the notion that marrieds are having such a great time changing diapers? His rambling diatribe ultimately comes off as jealously. Hell, if he wants to change diapers so badly, why doesn’t he just shack up with Denton and adopt a trendy foreign baby already? Yes, we’re calling Sicha a bore — and this exciting election season simply doesn’t need to be cumbered.

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“Pulled off the trail,” writes TIME’s Ana Marie Cox. “Twittering light until am confident I have something interesting to say. It will be light then, too.”

Could this action be in to response to her recent criticisms on her personal twitter blog of Tim Russert and Chris Matthews, stars of the NBC/MSNBC television networks to which she sometimes contributes? And did TIME really pull her off the campaign trail right before Super Tuesday!?

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Remember when the young Hardball political pundit Ezra Klein made lewd comments about Tim Russert’s sex life just a few short days ago? And then promptly (and embarrassingly) shut down his Twitter Web page that featured those sharp words? Well, tonight TIME’s Ana Marie Cox, a frequent contributor to NBC shows featuring Joe Scarborough, posted this statement on her Twitter page regarding Russert:

Knowing Cox, she won’t be deleting anything, but one does have to wonder: if these people hate NBC so much, why do they attempt to desperately sell themselves on the company’s stations all too often?

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Wonkette editor Ken Layne continues to take some amazing heat for firing Megan Carpentier, one of the most popular writers the site has seen since Ana Marie Cox left in 2006. Commenters have been outright rude to him on his own site (calling him “a sexist anti-gay pig” in one instance), and he’s received dozens of letters from readers expressing their outrage. In response to a query from one of Carpentier’s most ardent fans, Jason Cox, Layne wrote the following message:

Hello Jason,

There have been a half-dozen editors of Wonkette over its five years, plus scores of guest editors and contributors and fill-ins and try-outs and columnists and interns, etc. It’s just a website, part of a chain of websites employing a hundred-plus writers who come and go, myself included.

Megan was given the opportunity to say goodbye to Wonkette readers after her short stint as an associate editor, and exercised her own judgment in her farewell post. I certainly don’t speak for the company, but I can’t imagine a publisher using its own publications to provide continuous updates on a disgruntled ex-contractor.

Ken

Layne’s labeling Carpentier as “disgruntled” has not sat well with many who are still watching the admittedly insider-y media drama play out — especially with Carpentier herself, who says she is now “mad” and that she has tried to take the high road throughout.

“When I got tons of emails and comments asking why it happened, I contemplated what to say and how to say it, and went the high road, describing Ken as ‘not a dick’ and the decision as not motivated by sexism, Nick Denton or anything besides my ill-suitedness for the direction Ken wanted to take the site and even added that I agreed with his decision,” she shares on her personal blog. “When I was contacted for comment by HuffPo, the New York Times, Page 6 and BigHeadRob [Big Head DC was formerly published under that banner], I all but killed the story in every single instance when I could by saying that over and over again. I didn’t encourage my readers or supporters to engage in the boycott or drive up particular comment threads, suggested that people should simply do what they thought best and spent the vast majority of my time attempting to find a new job while continuing to do a little writing.”

Still, the Wonkette boycott has continued. The site’s numbers continue to slide. And many are questioning whether Layne made the appropriate decision. And why he made the decision he did. To date, he has not responded to requests for comment from Big Head DC.

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The first female Wonkette editor since Ana Marie Cox left Wonkette in 2006 has been unceremoniously let go from her position — and she’s hurt, claiming that her former bosses are “morons.” Meanwhile, some Big Head DC spies close to the situation claim that sexism may be involved.

Megan Carpentier, a D.C.-based lobbyist, recently left her lucrative lobbying position to write for Wonkette after anonymously freelancing for the site for several months. Along the way, she has burned several bridges (by her own admission) in the lobbying community, and she is not likely able to go back to that profession for work. In a plea on her personal Web site, she claims she needs to get drunk badly.

Many Wonkette commenters are outraged by her unexpected dismissal. They seem to agree with our earlier assessment that Carpentier had become the new soul of the site in her few months on the job. However, Gawker Media millionaire Nick Denton, in the midst of high-profile news stories alleging his blog empire has jumped the shark, apparently did not agree.

Behind the scenes, tongues are wagging that Gawker Media has become a hostile workplace for female employees. “If you’re not a gay man at Gawker, you’re screwed,” one former editor who asked to remain anonymous told us this morning. “And if you are a gay male at Gawker, you’re screwed, too. By Nick Denton’s penis. Literally.”

While Denton did not respond to our requests for comment on this matter, our tip box has been flooded with questions today asking whether we’d consider hiring Carpentier to write for Big Head DC. Honestly, she’s a good writer, but we definitely can’t afford to pay Denton dollars at this point. Still, we’d love to help her land on her feet — if our readers would like to see that happen. So, like the good people of South Carolina, it’s time for you to vote:

Earlier: Wonkette Editor Exits Gracelessly After Only Few Weeks; Gawker Empire Again In Shambles

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In yet another aesthetically unpleasing redesign (this year alone), Nick Denton, publisher of Wonkette, has decided to change the site. With its numbers dropping dramatically since Ana Marie Cox left to work for Time almost two years ago, Denton doesn’t seem to understand that it’s not the background fonts, colors and graphics that are the problem. It’s the writers he’s chosen to replace Cox. Starting with Alex Pareene and continuing through to the latest new batch of editors, they don’t really seem to know or care what they’re writing about. They’re just trying to get page views, since that’s the way they get bonuses, and the site is hurting because of it.

Case in point: We’ve had more sex scandals in Washington since Cox left than the whole length of her tenure. And yet, she made more out of so much less. She helped the desperate Jessica Cutler to become a household name in a way that her replacements never could. The biggest story reported on Wonkette this year was, of course, the dirty David Phillips relationship with Sen. Larry Craig — but even that was contributed by a freelancer — a freelancer who told Big Head DC he received only $12 for the post.

Why has Wonkette fallen so sharply, so fast? Some will say it’s because the majority of the Cox replacements have been men, and they seemed to think that readers would just be bowled over by their use of words like “Cocktober” as literary devices. But we think not. The right cock could have definitely built a platform on top of Cox’ shaft.

Megan Carpentier, one of the latest new Wonkette writers, may be able to do something there, as she’s shown the most promise. But too often her voice is lost because the other writers are trying to promote their work, and her items gets pushed down the page, hard to find. It’s a problem that Cox never had to deal with. Her work always stood at attention.

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Wonkette announced today its first female writer since Ana Marie Cox left the publication in 2005. Her name is Megan Carpentier, and she’s a former lobbyist with the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association.

Upon introducing herself to us, she was compelled to post a few pictures of herself, which have tended to displease some Wonkette commenters. For instance, RFKRFK just wrote: “I’m curious why you posted your pics. You’re not hot like [the] real Wonkette and frankly, the only thing you had going for you was the fact that we thought you might actually be good looking. God, along with Condi, I woudn’t fuck you with Bea Arthur’s dick.” Welcome, Megan!

P.S. Our favorite Carpentier candid is after the jump: Read more…

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UPDATE: Wonkette Editor Alex Pareene Run Out of Town After Ex-Pals Learn of His Affair With Married Woman… Threats to Reveal More of His Secrets Loom

This week Gawker Media announced that 22-year-old New York University dropout Alex Pareene would soon become the newest editor at the company’s NYC-based media blog. Gawker commenters, as usual, were abuzz with speculation about Nick Denton’s latest boy toy. Many wondered whether he likes men or women, and most wanted to know much more about his personal life, since Gawker usually does a thorough job of highlighting such details about its subjects.

Thankfully, Big Head DC is here to help!

Pareene, of course, has been an editor at one of Gawker’s other flagship publications, Wonkette, since January 2006, having taken that job over from the infamous Ana Marie Cox, a self-described lover of ass fucking and now Time.com’s top online editor. Blog rankings, according to Alexa data, have been sharply down during his tenure.

While it’s unknown whether Pareene shares Cox’ affinity for butt sex, he has been known literally suck on cell phones – maybe that’s his version of phone sex? – and he’s made friends with many of Washington’s media elite, despite trying his darnedest to maintain a hipster image. He’s also publicly shilled for his step-mom Wendy Wilde, a Minnesota politician, within several Wonkette posts. Read more…

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On “Morning Joe” today, Joe Scarborough and Ana Maria Cox were dishing about an apparent feud between CNBC anchors — and, more interestingly, an apparent conspiracy at News Corp to cross-promote the story among its brands, including the New York Post’s Page Six gossip column.

Scarborough called the story “garbage” and accused News Corp of “ginning up” the situation for their own purposes with the Fox Business Channel soon launching. The shocking video is now online.

Some insiders tell Big Head DC that viewers shouldn’t give too much credence to the bashing from the conservative talker, since it’s well know in the industry that he’s tried unsuccessfully to land a gig at FOX News.

Related: We Challenge Ana Marie Cox to Use Her Platform to Reveal Secrets Behind Death of Joe Scarborough’s Aide

Earlier: Top Big Head DC Search Today: Ana Marie Cox + Tits

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Have her shirts been especially tight this week, or something? Or! Has she has work done?

Related: Ann Coulter’s Boob Job

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