I have been attempting to write some routines to read RSS and ATOM feeds using the new routines available in System.ServiceModel.Syndication, but unfortunately the Rss20Feed
A similar problem still persists in .NET 4.0 and I decided to work with XDocument instead of directly invoking SyndicationFeed. I described the applied method (specific to my project here). Can't say it is the best solution, but it certainly can be considered a "backup plan" in case SyndicationFeed fails.