podium job
n.— «Gibbs is about to start a job that, like the presidency, seems to age its occupants disproportionately to the years they spend in the job. And it happens live and on C-Span. Known in Washington shorthand as “the podium job,” it has achieved a certain iconic stature—or thanklessness—in the ritual kabuki of Washington. White House press secretaries get a daily blistering from the press, nightly ridicule from comedians and are subjected to the widespread belief that they are unhelpful, obfuscating puppets—which, of course, they sometimes are.» —“Between Obama and the Press” by Mark Leibovich New York Times Magazine Dec. 21, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem “Beowulf” in high school. But what if you could actually hear “Beowulf” in the English of today? There’s a new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley that uses contemporary...
There was a time when William Shakespeare was just another little seven-year-old in school. Classes in his day were demanding — and all in Latin. A new book argues that this rigorous curriculum actually nurtured the creativity that later flourished...