The new Oregonian publisher N.Christian Anderson III has finally emerged to respond to criticism voiced by critics from the Yes on 66/67 campaign yesterday.

In a "publisher's note" this morning, Anderson protests at being called a "right-wing nut." "I'm not," he writes. But he does admit to having participated in a discussion with the editorial board about the ballot measures, and to changing the line of report for the editorial page editor, Bob Caldwell. Caldwell used to report to the former editor, Sandy Rowe. Now, Caldwell reports directly to the wizard. Anderson also insists, repeatedly, that he did not "determine" the paper's editorial position on the measures. But at the same time, he says, "in a nutshell, the editorial positions of The Oregonian stem from good conversation among those folks closest to formulating them."

So: New right wing publisher comes to Oregonian. Their editorial position on the measures flies in the face of all their prior reporting on the issue, and the new publisher admits to having not only participated in the meeting on the subject, but to taking more control of the editorial pages. When criticized outside the paper (because his name is conspicuously absent from its own stories on this very subject) he writes a lengthy editorial on the subject, essentially admitting to being a political activist. But he's not a "right-wing nut." Got it? Good.

Doth the wizard protest too much? I'm trying to remember when the old publisher, Fred Stickel, last wrote a "publisher's note" of this sort...

Talk to your friends about voting on Measures 66 and 67 today. You've got until Tuesday. But turnout is crucial in this election, and young voters will swing it.