[Peace-discuss] My interactions with the N-G

Fri Nov 28 19:30:23 EST 2014

They strive after the motto, "All the news that fits, we print."

Of course, it has to fit not only the space they need to fill but also the limits of allowable debate they need to observe.

On Nov 28, 2014, at 5:48 PM, David Green <davegreen84 at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Writing for the N-G has been good as a form of therapy and training for me, and has perhaps done some good beyond that. But one can also hope for its inevitable demise, and whatever might follow in terms of a more genuinely participatory media. In the meantime, I certainly encourage timely 250 word letters in response to their ongoing outrages, and longer pieces from those with expertise in various topics, as we certainly do see from time to time from those in the activist community. They do claim to allow one letter per month, but at least I can claim that they've violated that rule in my favor many times.
> 
> DG
> 
> 
> 
> On Friday, November 28, 2014 2:44 PM, C. G. Estabrook <carl at newsfromneptune.com> wrote:
> 
> 
> David--
> 
> An unfortunate if not surprising development. 
> 
> One implication is that many of the rest of us should send letters and commentaries to the News-Gazette. (Maybe you could circulate instructions on how to do it.)
> 
> It is unfortunate as well that the local daily remains one of the very few loci for political discussion in the community. 
> 
> Meanwhile, your rejected commentary should be sent to other local publications - Smile Politely, The Public i, these e-mail lists et al. 
> 
> News is too important to be left to journalists.
> 
> Regards, CGE
> 
> On Nov 28, 2014, at 12:29 PM, David Green via Peace-discuss <peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
> 
> > As many of you undoubtedly know, I've published many letters over the years in the N-G, and over the last 5 years or so, quite a few Sunday guest commentaries from an overtly leftist and radical perspective. I've always felt that it is important to reach a broader audience in any way available. I took it as a sign of some minimal sense of fairness on the part of the N-G editors (mostly the retired John Beck, I think) to allow me that space (or, from another perspective, allow me to work for free).
> > 
> > Last summer I submitted a piece related to both Gaza and Jewish dissidence regarding Israel. Dan Corkery, the managing editor, rejected it with the excuse that he had already published one article from a critical perspective, and that there were no others from a pro-Israel perspective that had been submitted to provide "balance." I wrote to him that I was "disgusted by his behavior." That provided him with an excuse to no longer publish my submissions. I may have shot myself in the foot; so be it. Nevertheless it would appear, whatever Corkery's benign persona as managing editor, that he has really limited the space for alternative perspectives since he took over; his choices are heavily weighted toward the trivial and the banal, as well as the overtly right wing. I suspect that he was looking for an excuse, and I gave him one.
> > 
> > This may sound self serving, but it's just as well for me to move on from that particular approach (among many), although they will continue to accept my letters. I'm sure that there are many in the activist community who have always wanted nothing to do with the N-G, and that's understandable. But certainly this morning's editorial in full-blown justification of the murder of Michael Brown achieves a new low, if that is possible, and has prompted me to send this message to these lists.
> > 
> > In any event and for whatever it's worth, what is pasted below is a message I sent to Dan Corkery a few days ago, subsequent to an initial apologetic e-mail and his acceptance of my apology while affirming that my commentaries would no longer be welcome. I don't pretend that this is anything that most readers of these lists don't already know; nevertheless, thank you for indulging me:
> > 
> > Dan;
> > 
> > I appreciate your response and your acceptance of my apology. My 2 cents at this point, in the spirit of honesty and truth as I see it, whether regarding you personally or the editors collectively, is that a significant segment of our community is utterly and blatantly dis-respected and dismissed by the News-Gazette, and is well aware of that. Similarly, the News-Gazette has earned the routine and dismissive contempt of those of us who sincerely and actively wish to make the world a better place in ways that the N-G editors do not approve of. It is viewed by hundreds and perhaps thousands of community members, frankly, with utter contempt and worse. My efforts have always been to bridge that gap and to act in good faith and respect--but these efforts were ultimately doomed to fail in a context that is "fair and balanced" between truth and lies. The racist and prejudicial currents that predominate at the N-G simply run too deep and are too reflexive, whether regarding minorities, the poor, Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims, or demonized nations like Iran and North Korea--not to mention state government employees, union members, and school teachers. Hate is by no means too strong a word to describe your newspaper's modus operandi, especially regarding Palestinians, a sincere interest of mine. And the U of I boosterism regarding administration, sports, etc. only adds to the perception and reality of that lack of objectivity. Whatever the sincerity or professionalism of your own contribution, in my honest view you have no reason to believe that the News-Gazette contributes in any serious way toward making our community, state, and world a better and more informed place. Indeed, it is a source of an enormous amount of pernicious dis-information, on a regular and systematic basis. In an educated and progressive community with enormous potential, that is a real shame, and a real missed opportunity. Whatever dis-respect I may have shown to you merely reflects this ongoing context.
> > 
> > David Green
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> 
> 