So what do you mean by media?
Stefanik votes against 1/6 commission
The Front Page
Morning Update
Wednesday, July 7, 2021
By Ken Tingley
The Post-Star was honored recently by the New York News Publishers Association with nine awards. You may have noticed the story in the newspaper.
When I shared the good news on social media, two people almost immediately posted comments about not being able to trust the media. When I hear that I ask two questions:
- Who specifically do you mean by media?
- Which specific stories in the local newspaper show you cannot trust them?
As editor in Glens Falls, I asked those two questions dozens and dozens of time without a response. That is telling.
I don’t doubt there are many people who don’t trust “the media,” but you need to define who is the media. Is it the cable news entertainment shows that are the partisan battlegrounds from politics? Is it every story in your local newspaper?
Just recently, a letter to the editor was published that accused The Associated Press - the premier wire service in the country - of being biased without even one example of that bias. I’m not sure why the letter was even run. There are some 10,000 individuals who work for The Associated Press, churning out thousands of stories each day. It is the single greatest expense after payroll for newsrooms. This writer seems to believe all 10,000 are biased. Or maybe just the ones that cover politics.
Over my 40 years in the newspaper business, I marveled at our ability to put together a completely new product every day that included news, analysis, opinion and entertainment. We provided valuable news about who was born, died and what there was to do over the weekend.
The men and women who wrote and edited those stories often worked long hours and were dedicated to getting the story right.
And what made me most proud was the ability to tackle in-depth, complicated issues about our own community. I just finished a book about those stories.
We wrote about the opioid crisis, nursing home problems and domestic violence. I don’t remember anyone every telling me they didn’t believe those problems existed.
Sometimes we made mistakes - reporting is an inexact science - but we corrected them. We always tried to put the best interests of the community first. That sometimes meant writing in-depth stories about the problems that needed to be fixed.
That sometimes mobilized the community. Other times it didn’t.
Those efforts often win the newspapers awards. Yes, there are a lot of contests, but awards are often the currency for a young reporter or editor to get a better job and pay. For someone to ridicule that accomplishment is unconscionable.
Support your local news outlets.
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And if you say you don’t trust the media, you should ask yourself who you mean by that. The media is big, sprawling world that does a lot of good for a lot of people.
Sometimes they don’t get the story right the first time, but they are trying to do that.
What worries me most of all is when no one even tries to get the story anymore.
What then?
Who is this woman?
I can’t imagine why anyone would not want answers to what happened at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. How can this be a partisan issue, especially aver seeing police officers cars beaten by a mob.
Rep. Elise Stefanik has repeatedly tweeted about her support for police, but check out Chris Churchill’s column in the Times-Union where he found her voting record has not been so supportive of the police.
And then yesterday, she voted against a 1/6 commission.
I think her all her constituents should send her an email about why she decided not to vote against the 1/6 commission after seeing police officers being beaten by a mob. It is a simple question.
I love to write
If you’ve learned anything from me over the past five months it is that I love to write.
I actually produced more newsletters since February than I did columns over a full calendar year while working for The Post-Star. And I was writing two books during that time period, too.
I’m hoping to settle down into a three-column a week routine in the near future.
Book video
If you haven’t seen the trailer for my new book “The Last American Newspaper,” check out the link below.
One of the saddest things along with climate change is the decline of newspapers in this country. And….Stephanie should resign from office for not upholding our election.
Stefanik is a national disgrace! Imagine her unborn child reading one day about her mother supporting the insurrection of our country! She has to go!