With much fanfare, including a widely-circulated item in Page 6, John Clarke Jr. was poised only a few short weeks ago to become the next fabled editor of the snarky Wonkette blog. It was the same “dream” job that had led to a career at TIME for Ana Marie Cox, the first Wonkette (the one without a penis, we think) — and Clarke seemed quite ready to transform his past unsuccessful career in politics into a new political blogging career. 

But, as we confirmed via a subtle change on the Gawker Media blog’s masthead this morning, Clarke has parted ways with owner Nick Denton in record time. Even David Lat stayed at the blog longer in 2006 when he exited after a few months of reportedly very little pay and even less prestige.

The change is not exactly shocking, as Big Head DC recently noted (twice) that Clarke had started freelancing for Radar, a chief competitor to Denton’s blogs. Within days of those revelations, Clarke was out at Wonkette. That a second editor has left Denton to work for Radar (the first was Alex Balk) surely must be a stinging slap in Denton’s face, especially considering the mass quitting of three of his top editors at Gawker in December. Each of those editors took jabs on the Gawker blog about Denton’s poor management style in the weeks prior to their departures.

Interestingly, Ken Layne, who had run the Wonkette blog with Alex Pareene for a majority of 2006 and 2007 - and who was asked to leave the blog by Denton when Clarke signed up - has temporarily filled the open position. Pareene left to join Gawker’s NYC-focused blog soon after Big Head DC revealed his involvement in a Washington sex scandal.

As for Clarke, problems started soon into his tenure. A source close to the situation says Clarke didn’t realize the amount of posting he’d be expected to do, nor did he understand the extent of Denton’s desire for fresh and original scoops to be broken via the blog. Denton’s demands for scoops similar to mainstream media outlets have become much more intense as of late as some of his blogs, including Wonkette, have lost audience share and ad revenue to competing outlets such as Big Head DC.

Related: Our Xmas Present to Wonkette: Words of Wisdom

BHDC Continues to Dramatically Outpace Wonkette

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John Clarke Jr., editor of the snark-filled Wonkette Web site (according to its current masthead), has apparently developed some Deep Throat-like sources withing the Hillary Clinton campaign for president.

Writing for Wonkette competitor, Radar magazine, yesterday, Clarke reported that “a source close with” James Carville told him that the Democratic political guru plans to join Hillary Clinton’s campaign.

Interestingly, the piece is titled “Radar Exclusive,” yet Big Head DC revealed the same information over sixteen days earlier. More interestingly, why is someone close to Hillary Clinton leaking information to a Wonkette editor? Also interesting: why is an editor on the Wonkette masthead currently freelancing for Radar when the owner of Wonkette, Nick Denton, and the owner of Radar, Maer Roshan, reportedly hate each other? Why didn’t Clarke’s regurgitated BHDC scoop appear on Wonkette instead of Radar?

We digress. Our original report on Carville follows:

Various campaign insiders are leaking to press outlets that Bill Clinton is peeved big time that campaign leaders for Hillary Clinton have allowed Barack Obama to take so many potshots at his wife without receiving a similarly negative response.

Several staff members may be fired and replaced, Big Head DC hears, with the likes of James Carville — someone who definitely knows how to play dirty politics. And a close Bill pal still.

Although Carville’s wife, Mary Matalin, is actively advising Fred Thompson’s GOP presidential campaign, Carville has rarely been involved in political campaigns as a principal adviser to a candidate since Clinton’s 1992 presidential victory.

Earlier: Does Nick Denton Know His Top Wonkette Editor Is Freelancing For Radar?

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Gawker empire owner Nick Denton has never much been fond of Maer Roshan’s Radar publication, so you just gotta wonder how he’s going to feel when he finds out that John Clarke Jr., the recently installed editor of Denton’s Wonkette, has taken to writing Washington-focused stories for Radar’s online column “Fresh Intelligence.” Alex Balk, a top editor at Denton’s flagship Gawker publication, recently left Denton to join Radar as its chief online editor. Is this a sign of Balk’s plans to poach more of Denton’s staffers in the coming days?

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