Sometimes it seems like certain diaries on Daily Kos are sent to the recommended list for no other reason than the diarist is a familiar or well-known user. Thereisnospoon's current diary about abortion is a good example.
In the diary he dramatically reveals the shocking truth, boldcaps and all, that the right's view of abortion is riddled with errors of logic and seems more geared towards controlling women than anything else. Great. I'm sure the last four people on Earth who didn't know this already are eternally grateful. But this is hardly news; people have been writing about this for years. Every week a new diary appears on this subject and says the exact same thing. What makes thereisnospoon's diary different from the other 50,000 diaries on the subject other than the relative fame of its author?
I don't believe this site is served well by this. Thereisnospoon's diary is completely average; perhaps a bit over-dramatic. The standards should be higher than this however to pluck a diary out of standard rotation and send it to the recommended list. This site is not served well when favoritism triumphs over content. It's not productive and it can be slightly insulting to readers. It doesn't happen a lot but it DID happen here.