I was surprised to see what the Los Angeles Times‘ Patrick Goldstein said in today’s New York Observer under the headline, “Make Nice, Nikki: L.A. Times Starts Hollywood Blog”:

“When asked what blogs he reads, the first one Mr. Goldstein cited by name was Deadline Hollywood Daily, by Nikki Finke. Ms. Finke’s site has become a go-to destination for Hollywood news and analysis, particularly during last year’s writers’ strike. Surely the L.A.Times wants a piece of her action. ‘I think we’re doing very different things,’ says Mr. Goldstein. ‘We’re not trying to get her traffic. There’s a giant other audience out there that hasn’t been reading her or other blogs that’s still available. I think there’s plenty of room.’ ‘Nikki is one of a kind,” Mr. Goldstein not quite compliments. ‘I think she does a great job. … She’s a very resourceful reporter. You will not get me to say anything bad about her. I have a lot of respect for her.’  “

Readers, I understand if you just threw up in your mouth a little.

Now I feel guilty for dissing Patrick during the writers strike (when he likened Patric Verrone to Yassir Arafat). Here’s what I told the NYO about Goldstein:

“Ms. Finke says that Mr. Goldstein is ‘one of the nicest people I’ve ever met,’ a quality that may not serve him well online. ‘That’s my problem with it: He’s way too nice.’ Ms. Finke wonders if Mr. Goldstein, whose Big Picture column has traditionally run once a week, is up to the task of blogging. ‘You have to work really hard. News come to you at night, in the early mornings, on the weekends. You have to work all the time. I work all the time,’ she says. ‘Many people just don’t want to work that hard.’ ”

Readers, again, I understand if you just threw up in your mouth a little.

I’m told that, despite heavy promotion by the paper and other media, Goldstein’s blog on Monday only received 1,102 page views, placing #35 out of 50 blogs at the LA Times. But I’m rooting for you, Patrick, I really am. (THURSDAY UPDATE: A source close to Goldstein emailed me today, “You cited the numbers for the day before the blog launched. The numbers after we’ve launched, they tell me, have been quite good.”

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