Arianna Huffington is at it again. No, not the outright wholesale copying of other publications website copy, I’m talking about the use of the A-List to fill her site. It was the A-List that got Huffington going, getting her pals in Hollywood to write gratis for her publication. The idea that bloggers are free, that information wants to be free, that you can even insult bloggers in defense of your non-payment scheme, seems to have grown from the head of this beast, though I know it was around before Huffington turned it into a commercial idea.

No, she just hired the son of an A-List member to edit her newest local venture, the Denver site. Can we call it DHuffPo, as in “duff-po?” Although there is a huge number of unemployed journalists and editors out there with much greater experience, Huffington, who did the job interview herself according to reports, choose Ethan Axelrod. Axelrod, a 22 year-old graduate of Colorado College, apparently earned his position the traditional way the sons and daughters of Chicago politicians do: he was born to it.

His father is David Axelrod, the well connected Chicago politician and White House advisor to President Barack Obama. It’s all about equal opportunity isn’t it? Except some of the animals are better connected than others.

Ryan Tate, at Gawker, has a run down on the several children of the famous that Huffington has seen that elusive spark of genius. Who would have thunk that a 22 year-old with virtually no journalism or business experience should be put in charge of a new office?

Perhaps you’d like to share some free thoughts about how well you’re connected. You can use comments, or write an e-mail to LouGrant70 (at) yahoo. Please include at least 50 words on why you your connections earn our attention.