They have news on the Internet now
That moon looks fake.
Welcome, officially, to fall. Did you see that great Harvest Moon last night. Lots of people are talking about it.
Following up on yesterday’s opinion on news objectivity and transparency…
My thoughts about Scott McKeen just up and running for office, putting his more recent columns under the microscope, kicked off quite a bit of debate on Twitter. (I got plenty of DMs from other journalists too.) It even sparked something of a response from newly-returned (to Edmonton) columnist Todd Babiak.
Though, Babiak’s not really addressing the same thing I was and I think that confused some people I was chatting with on Twitter. The Journal, and the Sun (and all newsrooms), will cover the election as good as they ever have. I don’t question that. They’ll treat Scott McKeen and Kerry Diotte (former Sun columnist) the same they would any other candidate. Or they’ll hear about it.
I’m musing about how a newsroom, like the Edmonton Journal, can purport to be “objective” when it’s got a columnist running for office with no cooling off period between writing about City Hall and the the city. He should have quit months ago, written openly about what was happening (instead of quietly being shuffled off the page), been cut from the Journal, or not run at all.
You might remember that Metro had Brendan Van Alstine writing about transit (he ran the Transit Riders Union of Edmonton, TRUE), but the free-daily put an end to his column after he announced he’d be running for council in Ward 7, last summer.
That’s what I expected from the Journal. Since McKeen was being re-assigned when he decided to run it would have been the perfect opportunity for a column explaining how he came upon the decision in an epiphany. Or, if that wasn’t the case, how he’d actually been thinking about it even as he was writing his columns. It would have been a proactive way of reminding people to consume news with a critical eye. Instead, it leaves some reading it with a cynical eye.
The Journal should have also asked him to leave their staff. He may be on a leave of absence but that means he’ll still have to tell them if he’s coming back, which means he’s still with them. The paper could have taken a stand, to try and uphold its reality of objectivity. It actually would have been a nice bit of transparency too.
It’s a slightly different scenario (the timing between last summer and one month to the election is different), but kudos to Metro (I won’t be throwing those around a whole lot). While I don’t think there is true objectivity in news, you’ve got to give it to those who will try to stick by it.
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My soapbox put away until next time, let’s see what else is going on in the 2010 election… (more…)
A Big Gay Birthday Bash
We need more city councillors who are willing to walk around topless. (Photo: Liam Gould, via BVA.com)
I know, you’re sitting around thinking “How can we better combine my love of civic politics and Pride Week?”
What? Am I the only one who tries to connect two seemingly unconnected items? Like my love of peanut butter and pizza? (A story for another day…)
Tonight at 7pm, my friends, is Brendan Van Alstine’s Big Gay Birthday Bash & Fundraiser, at The ARTery.
Not only is the party an official part of the 2010 Edmonton Pride Festival, it’s a fundraiser for Van Alstine’s campaign for council. He’s running in ward 7, against the TonCat.
So there you have it. Edmonton’s municipal politics and Pride Week together. In one big gay party. Tickets are $20 at the door.
Objectively Transparent Headlines
Some fall colours for you. Say, do you think I can eat THOSE berries?
Enjoy that sunshine, Edmonton.
It’s nice to see all that blue sky. Maybe we’ll get a taste of some lovely fall weather after all. Maybe…
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Last night was the Ward 7 candidates forum. That’s TonCat’s ward (Tony Caterina), and he’s facing four other people. The two main competitors are Brendan Van Alstine, who’s been campaigning since last year and is a recognized community volunteer, and Scott McKeen, the Edmonton Journal columnist.
Now, today’s Sun story says this: Ex-columnist taken to task for NIMBY column but I don’t think he’s an EX-columnist if he still works for the Journal. They may re-assign him if he loses the election but that’s not known at this point.
I think he should have quit before running. Or the Journal should have cut him loose.
Here’s why:
The Journal, like most newsrooms, stands firmly in the journalism camp of “Objectivity.” We, here at the edmontonian, don’t really think there’s much of that in news, and stand in the camp of “Transparency.”
But, because the Journal thinks its news coverage is objective it shouldn’t have a council candidate on staff. It’s for the same reason they don’t have regular columns from politicians and government staff.
(In a bit of cut-throat business, Postmedia is laying people off and offering buyouts, it’s the perfect opportunity to save some cash for the Journal.)
If they could just admit that choosing what gets covered, how much coverage it gets, who they talk to for quotes, how they lay out the paper, what stories they ignore, and a bunch more stuff actually makes their news coverage subjective they could keep McKeen on staff.
Instead, we have to look back at (at least) his last few columns and wonder if he was already thinking of running, or had been approached. It just makes the Journal look bad.
Now, I should note, I like McKeen as a candidate. He’s smart, funny, and seems to have a lot of the same urban values I want to see in my Edmonton. He and Van Alstine are fine choices for Ward 7. This is just about the journalism stuff. I have the same opinion for news folk jumping into PR or media relations without missing a beat, especially to work for government or politicians.
As for former Edmonton Sun columnist Kerry Diotte running in Ward 11, he hasn’t work at the paper for a year so I think he’s just fine and dandy.
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Let’s see what else is happening in the election today… (more…)
Sep 22, 2010 | Categories: NEWS | Tags: brendan van alstine, carson daly, comments, edmonton, election, forum, headlines, journal, kerry diotte, objectivity, scott mckeen, september 22, toncat, transparency, ward 7 | 6 Comments »