The Observer hails the Queen of Red Hook - or was that Rockaway Park?

I wasn't going to say anything. Honestly. But we were chatting with Gino Vitale in front of his carriage houses the other day about the Observer's article about erstwhile Red Hook resident Rachel Shapiro, and he said, "but she doesn't even live here." Really? Well, at least she puts her residency in the past tense:

There are other brokers in Red Hook, of course—Elliman, Corcoran and a number of other big players based in Manhattan manage sales in the area, and a number of nearby independents, particularly in Carroll Gardens, work with landlords. But, as Ms. Shapiro puts it, “I’m the only one who’s lived here. … You don’t understand the community until you’ve lived here. And,” she adds, “I’m young. I’m the demographic.”

Writer Sadie Stein refers to Ms. Shapiro as "an oft-quoted expert on all things Red Hook real estate," offering as proof a link to the infamous NYMag takedown of the neighborhood (sample quote: "I’m not in a position to turn down a listing. It just means I have people standing in front of my window saying that prices are absurd"). Not sure that her unique willingness to be manipulated by the media qualifies her as an expert, really. 

Or not so unique. She's not the only heavy hitting blurbmeister in the Sadie Stein universe. The Red Hook article also quotes (but does not identify) one Bevin Strand. Not sure who Bevin Strand is? Why, she's the 23-year-old plaster cast maker for The Museum of Natural History who contributed the lede for this vintage Observer story. 

I know it's just a little throwaway article, and maybe it's too much to ask that a Jezebel blogger be expected to behave like a journalist. But I am a real estate agent, and I live in Red Hook. So is Betancourt's Maria Mackin, who is perhaps our most famous real estate agent/resident/chicken farmer. We're not hiding in the shadows. So rather than take Ms. Shapiro's word for it, why not spend five minutes on the internets to check her assertion. Maybe this is why the paper refers to itself as the Observer and not the Reporter.