Arizona's Own Espresso Pundit

Straight from the Source

Want news Straight from the Source?  Espresso Straight News is rocking.  We have 25 volunteer posters so far and over the next few weeks, you will see what news looks like when it comes straight from the source. 

(At the moment, the only one who has figured out how the software works is Bill Tierney.  But Bill's doing a great job, so what the heck.)

I think it would be fun for people to write about what they love, not what they happen to be famous for.  Len Munsil on sports, Jon Kyl on NASCAR and Governor Napolitano on Opera would be great. 

At What Price?

I've been hesitant to opine on the helicopter tragedy.  I'm not a fan of TV news and I was frankly a bit concerned that my comments would be perceived as insensitive.  Here's a veteran news editor whose views are similar to mine and who says better than I probably would anyway. 

The senseless death of four helicopter newsmen in Phoenix underscores the stupidity and wastefulness of broadcasters who squander their precious resources on cheap chopper chases instead of more worthy pursuits.

This journalistically indefensible insanity must be stopped. If broadcasters won’t do it voluntarily, then the Federal Aviation Administration, acting on behalf of us innocents on the ground, ought to step in and do it for them.

It's one thing for a journalist to be killed while embedded with troops in Iraq.  But jeopardizing lives in order to get live footage of a car chase strikes me as unconscionable. 

But it's working so well in France...

Congress is attempting a major expansion of the Government's role in health insurance and the hapless Daily Star is stepping right in line. 

Wrangling over political philosophy could leave 6.6 million low-income children who depend on the State Children's Health Insurance Program without health coverage if lawmakers cannot agree and reauthorize the bill before it expires Sept. 30.

Here's a great piece of media spin.

The health and well-being of America's children should not be used as a football in an ideological drive to privatize medical insurance.

The only "ideological drive" is to give government more control over health insurance.  Only in the Star's Alice-in-Wonderland view could an attempt to slow the pace of this program's expansion be characterized as "an ideological drive to privatize medical insurance."  This is the same perspective that causes editorial boards to whine about "cuts" in Government Programs.

This sentence makes it obvious that we are really talking about a massive expansion.

A bipartisan bill approved 17-4 earlier this month by the Senate Finance Committee— with Arizona Republican Sen. Jon Kyl voting against it — would continue the baseline payments of $25 billion over five years and add $35 billion to maintain health care for the 6.6 million kids now on SCHIP and expand coverage to another 3.2 million low-income kids who don't have medical coverage for another five years.

And what's the story behind that jab at Kyl?  The Wall Street Journal clears that up. 

GOP Senators Mitch McConnell and Jon Kyl are backing an alternative to account for population growth and reach the remaining 689,000 uninsured children that Schip was intended to help. Republicans would be wise to support this version,

Here's the entire WSJ editorial.

The State Children's Health Insurance Program sounds like the epitome of good government: Who could be against health care for children? The answer is anyone who worries about one more middle-class taxpayer entitlement and a further slide to a government takeover of health care. Yet Schip is sailing toward a major expansion with almost no media scrutiny, and with Republicans in Congress running for cover.

Schip was enacted in 1997 to help insure children from working-poor families who make too much to qualify for Medicaid. In the intervening years, the program reduced the rate of uninsured kids by about 25% but has also grown to cover the middle class and even many adults -- and it gets bigger every year. Schip expires in September without reauthorization, and Congressional Democrats want to enlarge its $35 billion budget by at least $60 billion over five years.

State Governors from both parties are also leading the charge -- and for their own self-interested reasons. Schip money is delivered as a block grant, which the states match while designing their own insurance programs. All cost overruns, however, are billed to the federal government, which is on the hook for about 70% of Schip's "matching rate." This offers incentives for state politicians to make generous promises and shift the costs to the feds, or to toy around with costly universal health-care experiments. And since the states only get 57 cents on the dollar for Medicaid, they are working hard to transfer those recipients to Schip.

This self-interest explains a recent letter from the National Governors Association demanding "urgent action" on Schip, which got lots of favorable play in the press. Yet these are the same Governors who have been moaning for years about rising entitlement burdens, which is what Schip will be soon enough. Particularly egregious was the signature on the letter of Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, a Republican who regards himself a conservative health-care maven and should know better.

This "bipartisan" cover is serving Democrats in Congress, who want to liberalize Schip eligibility as part of their march to national health care. The Senate Finance Committee has voted 17-4 to increase Schip spending to at least $112 billion over 10 years. Not only does it use a budget trick to hide a payment hole of at least $30 billion, it proposes to offset the increase by bumping up the cigarette tax by 61 cents to $1 pack.

House Democrats are putting the finishing touches on their own plan, making the cigarette tax somewhat lower to win over tobacco-state Members. Instead, the House is proposing to steal nearly $50 billion from Medicare Advantage, the innovative attempt to bring private competition to senior health care.

Michigan's John Dingell explains that "these are not cuts" but "reductions in completely unjustified overpayments" -- which will come as news to insurers that offered coverage plans based on certain funding expectations. The "overpayments" he's referring to were passed expressly as an incentive for companies to offer Medicare Advantage in rural areas with traditionally fewer insurance options -- and are intended to be phased out over time. Democrats apparently want to starve any private option for Medicare.

In any case, the actual costs of Schip will overwhelm these financing gimmicks. Like all government insurance, Schip is "covering" more children by displacing private insurance. According to the Congressional Budget Office, for every 100 children who are enrolled in the proposed Schip expansion, there will be a corresponding reduction in private insurance for between 25 and 50 children. Although there is a net increase in coverage, it comes by eroding the private system.

This crowd-out effect is magnified moving up the income scale. In 2005, 77% of children between 200% and 300% of the poverty level already had private insurance, which is where the Senate compromise wants to move Schip participation. New York State is moving to 400% of poverty, or some $82,000 in annual income. All of this betrays the fact that the real political objective of Schip is more government control -- HillaryCare on the installment plan.

We'd have thought Capitol Hill Republicans would understand all this, especially with the White House vowing to veto any big Schip expansion. But we hear the GOP lacks the Senate votes for a filibuster and perhaps even to sustain a veto. GOP Senators Mitch McConnell and Jon Kyl are backing an alternative to account for population growth and reach the remaining 689,000 uninsured children that Schip was intended to help. Republicans would be wise to support this version, or they'll take one more step to returning to their historic minority party status as tax collectors for the welfare state.

Court Strikes Down PA Sanctions Law

Here's an interesting development in the Sanction issue. 

HAZLETON, Pa (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Thursday struck down as unconstitutional a local law designed to crack down on illegal immigration, dealing a blow to similar laws passed by dozens of towns and cities across the country.

U.S. District Judge James Munley said the city of Hazleton, 100 miles north of Philadelphia, was not allowed to implement a law that would fine businesses that hire illegal immigrants and penalize landlords who rent rooms to them.

"Federal law prohibits Hazleton from enforcing any of the provisions of its ordinances," Munley wrote in a 206-page opinion following a federal trial in which Hazleton's law was challenged by civil rights groups.

Big Shake Up at the Tribune as Well

Sources confirm  that the Tribune is switching to a tabloid format, probably sometime in September. There were big layoffs at the paper last week. The newsroom was spared because seven people handed in their resignations just before the axe was to drop. Two were sports reporters, one of whom was the Cardinals beat reporter who left to work for - you guessed it - the Cardinals.  One of the departures was Tom Gibbons, the business editor. He's leaving to freelance.

Pulliam Spins in His Grave

The Republic has finally made it official and abandoned all attempts at being a traditional newspaper.  It has two full pages of Simpsons coverage today on top of three pages on Sunday.  News sports and entertainment are covered through the eyes of Homer Simpson. 

I like the Simpsons, but the end of the Legislative Session doesn't get this much coverage.  If you spent four years and $40K  to attend Journalism school where you were taught about the "responsibilities of the Fourth Estate," this must be a defining moment.

If you have spent months writing and pitching a story about, say, the last Cowboy Legislators or Native American issues, only to be told there isn't enough room, or if you have seen your beat shrink down to one "quadrant" in the B section, you must be looking for a way out. 

The History of the Straight Talk Express.

You have probably been following the slow unraveling of the McCain campaign.  I thought it would be appropriate to provide some context, so here's the history of the Straight Talk Express in song.  If you don't know the tune the "The Wheels on the Bus" you need to click here (and then spend more time with your kids.)

2000

The Maverick on the Bus says “We Need Change”
We Need Change” We Need Change”
The Maverick on the Bus says “We Need Change”
All through the town.

The Candidate on the Bus says "Bush is Bad"
Bush is Bad, Bush is Bad
The Candidate on the Bus says Bush is Bad
All through the town.

2004

The  Front Runner on the bus says “Four More Years”
“Four More Years, “Four More Years”
The  Front Runner on the bus says “Four More Years”
All through the town.

2006

The Consultants on the Bus love NPR
NPR, NPR
The Consultants on the Bus love NPR
All through the town.

The Maverick on the Bus says “back the Surge”
back the Surge, back the Surge
The Maverick on the Bus says “back the Surge”
All through the town.

The Base on the Bus says “Build the Fence”
Build the Fence, Build the Fence
The Base on the Bus says “Build the Fence”
All through the town.

The voters on the bus chant “Give Us Newt”
Give Us Newt, Give Us Newt
The voters on the bus chant “Give Us Newt”
All through the town.

The Rose on the Bus writes “What about Mitt?”
What about Mitt, What about Mitt
The Rose on the Bus writes “What about Mitt?”
All through the town.

The Radicals on the bus scream “send Ron Paul.”
send Ron Paul,send Ron Paul
The Radicals on the bus scream “send Ron Paul.”
All through the town.

The money on the bus is all but gone.
all but gone,all but gone
The money on the bus is all but gone.
All through the town.

The Press on the bus says "Let Us Off"
Let Us Off, Let Us Off
The Press on the bus says "Let Us Off"
All through the town.

The Driver on the bus goes "sit back down."
sit back down,sit back down
The Driver on the bus goes "sit back down."
All through the town.

The wheels on the bus…just fell off,
just fell off, just fell off
The wheels on the bus…just fell off,
McCain's Going Down.

More Riders Exit the Straight Talk Express.

Full coverage in in the WSJ.

Sen. John McCain's media team has resigned, an indication that a campaign shake-up two weeks ago is continuing to backfire and further imperil the Arizona Republican's presidential candidacy.

Political ad-makers Russ Schriefer and Stuart Stevens, veterans of President Bush's 2000 and 2004 campaigns, on Monday emailed the new campaign manager -- lobbyist and longtime McCain adviser Rick Davis -- to say that they were quitting. The two men told friends they had considered leaving for days, as they hadn't been paid and the campaign's financial straits raised questions of when and how much they would be.

First Things First

You learn a lot about yourself when you raise kids.  You want to teach them what's important, but you don't want to be a jerk.  We've all seen examples of a bad Little League dad.  I was a good Little League dad because I don't know anything about baseball.  I was a bad Chess dad.  I occasionally found myself pacing the sidelines and mumbling "knights before bishops, how many times do you have to tell them, knights before bishops."

Chess doesn't matter much in the long run, but it provides kids with a great lesson about priorities.  If you don't develop your pieces in the right order, you can lose the entire game before you really get started. 

I thought about that today when I was driving through Phoenix and saw signs for Jarrett Maupin.  The sign coverage was good...too bad he didn't get enough signatures to get on the ballot.  That's a surprisingly common mistake.

Signatures before signs.  I make sure my kids know that rule too...and it's even more important than Knights before Bishops.   

Big Mac

This Op Ed piece by Mac Magruder first appeared in the Republic, but it's an important enough issue that I thought I would link to it as well. 

Those trying to defend the recently signed so-called employer-sanctions law have been trying to paint anyone who thinks it's a bad law as supportive of illegal immigration. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The members of the Wake Up Arizona! coalition are against illegal immigration. We believe in workable employer sanctions.

We also believe in standing up against a bad law, even when it's not popular to do so. Let me explain:

We support the rule of law and efforts to get control of our southern border, which includes federal efforts to build a 700-mile fence along our border with Mexico.

Read the whole thing. 

Let's Build a Newspaper

The old newspaper model is dead.  The body is still warm and it will be a long time before rigor mortis sets in, but the model is dead.   I don’t know what’s going to replace it, but the days of a newspaper owning a downtown high-rise filled with 2500 full time employees who use a $100 million press to deliver a four-pound bundle of paper to 400,000 people is coming to an end. 

The new model will obviously have a major Internet component, but that doesn’t mean that a brick and mortar company with lots of employees and a huge printing press can survive merely by shifting its product to the net. 

People ask me what the newspaper of the future (NOF) is going to look like.  My response is two words.  "Open Source".  The NOF will be written by scores of volunteers.  Elected officials, state agencies, political candidates will file stories directly to a common website.  They will be followed by waves of commenters, bloggers, cartoonists and reporters. 

Folks ask me how the NOF will eliminate bias.  I ask “you mean eliminate the bias like the Mainstream Media has eliminated the bias?”  You won’t eliminate bias; the NOF will embrace the bias. If you  get a story from Congressman Shadegg’s office or Giffords’ Office, you can consider the source.  The comments section will be a vehicle to respond and other reporters/bloggers can respond as well

I think people are tired of having their news filtered and diluted through the media.  They want their news straight.

So let’s build a newspaper.  I’m opening up my other website “Espresso Straight News” to scores of people who want to build an open source online newspaper. 

If you work for a state agency, elected official, candidate, utility, or municipality and you want to post news or agendas directly, just email me for a password.  If you have always wanted to blog, write, comment, draw or whatever—email me for a password. 

Pick a topic.  Want to write about sports, lifestyle, local politics?  Welcome aboard. 

And if you don’t want to write the news, but you are looking for news straight from the source, check out espresso straight news.  It's going to take us a while to build it, but I think you will see the Newspaper of the Future. 

Chuck Shipley Has Passed Away.

This just in from ATRA.

To: ATRA Members

From: Kevin McCarthy

It is with deep regret that I inform you that Chuck Shipley passed away sometime this morning.  I do not have any information on the cause of death at this time.  I will pass along further information regarding services when they are available.

Chuck was a long time ATRA member and a dear friend.  Our thoughts and prayers are with his family.

Good Guy Bias

The most common example of media bias is what I call "Good Guy Bias."  That's when someone does something completely outrageous but the media overlooks it because he's such a good guy.  In other words, he has the right political persuasion. 

Here's a great example of Good Guy Bias.

First the background.  Child Protective Services is a disaster.  Children are dieing while under CPS supervision and occasionally while in CPS foster care. 

Rep. Jonathan Paton has done the most to expose the problems with CPS and is calling for hearings that are open to the public. 

Paton, a Republican and vice chairman of the Government Committee, says CPS must be more open with its work in order for lawmakers and the public to know if the agency is doing its job. He wants to make the findings of the committee hearings public and argues that CPS' confidentiality should end with the death of a child.

In fact, Paton has even filed an affidavit on behalf of the Star in a lawsuit to get access to the information. 

Standing in the way of that access are two other State Representatives. 

Hershberger, a Republican, and Bradley, a Democrat, warn that lawmakers who don't fully understand the extremely sensitive, potentially dangerous and grinding work of Child Protective Services can do more harm than good with their push for openness.

Then we get this bombshell.

Bradley, who runs La Paloma Family Services Inc., a nonprofit that operates residential care facilities and foster care that handles children in CPS' care, said more than 90 percent of kids in La Paloma's care are affected by substance abuse in the family.

"The fact we have to go up and explain why substance abuse treatment is so important to child welfare is ludicrous," he said.

It turns out that Bradly receives direct financial benefits from CPS contracts.  He openly advocates for more CPS funding, claims jurisdiction in oversight hearings and insist that those hearings should be held in secret.

This conflict is well known at the Capitol.  It's simply not reported.  Even in this article, Bradley is not criticized for his conflict, the information is provided as background. 

Can you imagine if a Conservative had direct financial ties to a troubled agency and openly advocated for additional funding and insisted he be allowed to conduct investigations and that the results should remain secret? 

Bradley is good guy.  His contract is with state agencies, not private industry.  It's not like he is a conservative who owns a daycare, or advocates for tax decreases.  HE advocate for more funding.  Sure it's a conflict, but their heart's in the right place.

Update:  The comments are mentioning Yarbrough and I should have been more clear that I was thinking of Yarbrough when I wrote this piece. 

Yarbrough is an example of the opposite treatment.  The alleged conflict is much less direct than Bradley's.  Indeed, the Tribune reporter conceeded in the piece that there was no conflict.  But the story was A1 above the fold. 

Bradley on the other hand has a real conflict.  He has a direct contract with CPS and he's fighting on CPS's behalf--over the Star's objections--to keep the CPS investigation secret.

Yet, no paper has questioned Bradley's conflict and the Star only uses it as background.  The only reason that the media has been silent about Bradley is that he's a Good Guy.

(The classic example of Good Guy Bias is when Eddie Basha compared Wal Mart to Nazis and the ADL didn't object.  I wrote about it here in October of 2004.  Espresso Pundit had, like, 20 readers then, so you probably missed it.  At the time I called it the "Basha Defense" instead of "Good Guy Bias".  But that would be confusing now.  That's because, despite the fact that Basha is a former Democratic Gubernatorial nominee and has spent a lifetime advocating for "Good"' causes, he refuses to kiss the Union ring so he's no longer tolerated by the Democratic Elite.  Basha is no longer allowed to use the word "Nazi" with impunity because he is no longer a Good Guy.)

   

Space Junk

One of the advantages of incumbency is the ability of elected officials with higher political aspirations to use taxpayer money to increase their name recognition and build a grass roots network.  Some of this activity is a legitimate part of the job and some crosses the line into campaigning.  It's the elected official's responsibility--with the help of a vigilant media--to ensure that the line isn't crossed. 

At the ASU Law School for example, Attorney General Terry Goddard has a satellite office.  I've walked by it hundreds of times and never gave it a second thought.  After all, the law school is a resource for the entire legal community.  There are pro bono clinics, mediation clinics and it's not surprising that the AG has an office there. 

But then I saw this.   

SCOTTSDALE - The Arizona Attorney General's Office has chosen the Granite Reef Senior Center in Scottsdale for the site of its 35th satellite office.

Thirty five satellite offices?  Give me a break.  That's an example of using state resources to build a grass roots network.  Each office comes with its own opportunity to groom volunteers, issues press releases and conduct stunts. 

Here's a good example.

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard will be in Oro Valley Wednesday to dedicate the attorney general's new Oro Valley Satellite Office, according to a press release.

Or you can stage cool events.

(Phoenix, Ariz. – July 12, 2007) Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard is inviting Pima County residents to join him for the dedication of the Attorney General’s Oro Valley Satellite Office at 2 p.m. Wednesday, July 18. The public is invited to meet Goddard and staff and volunteers from the Attorney General’s Community Services Program.

Also that day, Attorney General Goddard and AARP will host a Shred-a-Thon from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in an effort to prevent identity theft.

What: Satellite Office Dedication and Shred-a-Thon
When: Wednesday, July 18
Time: Dedication: 2 p.m. Shred-a-thon: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: AARP Tucson Information Center, 6700 N. Oracle Rd., Suite #331

A few satellites are a good thing.  But NASA has learned that too many satellites are merely dangerous space junk.  Goddard needs to learn the same lesson. 

The Path to Power

The Republic's Richard Ruelas has written an article about the Men's Grill at the Phoenix Country Club and it includes this interesting tidbit. 

The president of the Nucleus Club, former Democratic state senator Slade Mead, said the club did not consider the separate grills a problem. "It's never been an issue," he said.

In case you are not familiar with the Nucleus Club, here's how the club describes itself.

The Nucleus Club raises a steady stream of funds for the Maricopa County Democratic Party and its grass-roots operations, while providing a regular meeting place for people interested in current events and politics.

I'm not going to make a big deal about an arm of the Democratic Party meeting in the last remaining venue that is segregated by gender.  The Republican Party has always been in the forefront of integration.

But notice how Ruelas describes Mead "former Democratic state senator Slade Mead."   That's an understandable mistake.  After all, Mead is the president of a Democratic fund raising organization and he's a former Senator who consistently voted with the Democrats and was an invaluable asset to Governor Napolitano.

But Mead was elected as Republican.  He switched parties and unseated Republican Senator Lori Daniels by blasting her from the right.  Considering Mead's history and current leadership role in the Democratic Party, it's time for the media to realize that Mead's brief term in the Senate was no accident.  It was a well orchestrated dirty trick. 

Segregation and Dirty Tricks.  It sounds like Mead's a fan of Lyndon Johnson's early work. 

Here's the Letter

I mentioned earlier that the Republic has decided not to distribute the paper in Tuba City and Page.  You won't be able to read it on the left, so click here for a copy of the letter that the paper is sending out.

 

Will the Last One to Leave Please Turn Out the Lights

Here's an internal Republic email. 

On the eve of Jodie's last day, here's one more dose of bittersweet news.

Hal Mattern is leaving the paper after 28 years to take a job as director of communications and magazine editor at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.  His last day will be on (or about) Aug. 1.

For the past three-plus years, the smooth-writing Hal has recorded the lighter side of business in the daily Buzz, and before that covered nearly every beat imaginable in business and at the state Capitol.

As with Jodie's move, it's a great opportunity for him, but a loss for us.

Details to come on how we will regroup ... but be assured that we will!
Your suggestions, expressions of interest in the Buzz job and other biz openings, etc., are always welcome.

The Governor is Right

I've been waiting a couple years to write that headline.  (Now I can point out how fair and balanced I am.)

Here's the Guv's point.

Some business criticism of the state's new employer sanctions law against hiring of illegal immigrants is exaggerated, Gov. Janet Napolitano said Wednesday.

She probably read it in Espresso Pundit first...Ok, maybe not.   

Let's Open This Up a Bit...

The great thing about blogs is that they bypass the filters imposed by the mainstream media.  Of course, blogs themselves are a filter.   I don't claim to be a comprehensive source of news and I don't have the time or the space to post the dozens of press releases that I receive each day.

I have another website called "Espresso Straight News" that I built as an attempt to provide a source for unfiltered news.  I printed the stories straight from the news makers, and all I wrote was the headline.  Unfortunately, even though posting each article only took a few minutes, I was spending an hour or so a day updating the site and policing the comments.  Eventually, I decided I should probably finish law school instead.

But I haven't given up, so here's the new plan.  I'm going to open Espresso Straight News up to the news makers.  If you represent a political organization, elected official or candidate and you want to post news entries directly to the website, just send me an email and I'll send you a password as a guest blogger. 

Posting is easy and if you have questions about the process, I'll be glad to help.  I'm hoping to get 10 or 15 regular contributors.  Those articles combined with the comments should provide quite a bit of unfiltered content for political junkies.   I want to emphasize that I'm not going to facilitate anonymous posting.  I'll verify the guest bloggers before I give them a password and all the posts will identify the source by name. 

Send me an email greg@azcpa.org if you want to sign up. 

And if no one signs up and I have to abandon this in a week...you can all have your money back. 

Republic Abandons Northern Third of the State

The Republic has announced it will no longer distribute to Page and Tuba City. It's a cost-cutting move, according to a letter received by sources today.

This is especially sad because the Republic used to be known for its Native American coverage.  In fact, in the late 80s the Republic published a series of stories on Native American issues that was a finalist for a Pulitzer. 

Although the Republic still runs lifestyle features about Northern Arizona, it long ago abandoned covering any actual news that occurs north of Bell road. 

This is a great example of a downward spiral:  The paper stops covering the outlying areas.  Circulation in those areas drops off because there is no local coverage.  Someone in the paper's Accounting Department points out that it's really expensive to deliver a handful of papers to a hamlet at the edge of the state and Management eliminates the distribution. 

I predict that within the next five years, we will see this pattern in much of rural Arizona.  How much money is the Republic willing to lose in order to distribute to, say, Williams, Bisbee, or Greer?  Eventually Yuma, Kingman and Flagstaff will become too unprofitable as well.

A newspaper is something of a public trust.  State statute forces businesses to spend millions of dollars on public notices that appear in the paper.  The assumption is that the paper will be widely distributed and people in outlying areas will have access to this public information. 

When the newspaper abandons the unprofitable areas, the justification for forcing business to publish notices decreases dramatically.   Additionally, since the Internet is a much more efficient distribution method for public notices it's time to modernize the public notice statutes in order to give business the option of posting the notices on line. 

Headed for a WUP'in

"Wake up Arizona" (which calls itself WUP) is an organization formed to oppose the new employers sanctions law.  It's becoming clear that one of their techniques will be to simply mischaracterize the law.   The law is clear that the business has to knowingly hire illegal aliens.  But WUP consistently claims that it's unfair for its members to be punished for mistakes.

Here's the latest example.   

Wake Up Arizona -- new business group opposed to the state sanctions bill -- said the new law discriminates against Hispanic and Mexican workers, and legitimate businesses could be closed or put of operation if they mistakenly hire illegals.

This is not a mistake, it's a strategy.  Reporters need to get wise to this trick and point out that the quotes from WUP representatives are wrong. 

UPDATE:  A lot of readers are unhappy with Mac Magruder.  At the risk of going all establishment on you, let me say that Mac is a really good guy; he's a solid conservative and one of a handful of people responsible for my switch to pro-life.  He was a PC in district 26 when I ran for the House in 1990, so I have known him for nearly 20 years.  He's really passionate about the sanctions issue and I think he's on the wrong side, but his conservative credentials are above reproach. 

Republic Backpeddles, Star Collapses, Citizen Caned: All the Rumors that are Fit to Print

It looks like the Republic may split the difference on the Monday format.  Valley and State would be combined with Business for its own section.  The Republic Brass have a big meeting Wednesday at the R&G Ranch.  I'll let you know what they decide afterwards. 

Meanwhile the Tucson Weekly reported on June 28th that the Star and Citizen are in free fall.  My prediction for this year was that the Citizen would be eliminated.  We'll see how it shakes out. 

Here's the Tucson Weekly article.  It's quite well done.

In Lee's 50 percent partnership in Tucson, Ariz., advertising revenue for the May statistical period decreased 10.8 percent. Madison and Tucson are reported using the equity method of accounting and are not included in same property revenue."

Regardless of the accounting methods, an 11 percent decrease is something that gets noticed. It doesn't help that Lee stock has dropped about 40 percent (from a year high of 35 to its current level around 21) since February.

Meanwhile, in a recent staff meeting, Tucson Citizen management gave employees the option of taking as much unpaid time off as they wanted during the summer months, on top of the paid vacation or sick days they had accrued.

Pearce v. Flake

That headline sounds like a method for testing to see if fish is cooked through, but it's actually a recipe for serious politics. 

My biggest surprise in the 2006 election was that voter outrage about illegal immigration didn't transfer to candidates.   Pima county voters approved all four "tough on immigration" measures by 2-1 margins while electing Gabby Giffords who opposed efforts to even put some of the immigration measures on the ballot.  Meanwhile in District 5, voters turned out immigration hawk JD Hayworth in favor of Harry Mitchell.

So it seems to me that this will turn out badly for Pearce. 

MESA, Ariz. (AP) - State Representative Russell Pearce says he is considering running for Arizona's 6th Congressional District.

Pearce is known for his vocal stance to crack down on illegal immigrants.

If he runs, the Mesa Republican would be facing Republican Congressman Jeff Flake, who has about $581,000 already in his campaign coffers.

Pearce criticizes the four-term Congressman of being soft on illegal immigration, and says voters want tighter border security and stricter laws against illegal immigrants.

Some Republican party consultants believe Pearce has a good shot at unseating Flake, even if he's behind in cash. That's because of his position on illegal immigration.

Pearce successfully pushed through a measure this year cracking down on Arizona companies that knowingly and intentionally hire illegal workers.

Members of the local business community announced Friday they are planning to fight the measure, which has not yet become law.

Here's a Rather Poignant Letter

I just received this email from a friend. 

is there any newspaper, publication, person in this world that actually cares about us single dads? Apparently, my story is not good enough to make the "Arizona Moms" section of The republic. I am a parent too, you know? Maybe, as a male, I should just read the business section. I've written into them about this. No answer. Either way, it's sad to see that this "father-to-blame" stereotype is propigated in the newspaper of record for the state.

Sorry, I'm just having a rough night.

Common Ground

Kyrsten Sinema is having a birthday party this Sunday and the proceeds benefit  a good cause.  Here's the info.

Arizona State Representative Kyrsten Sinema is turning 31. Please join her in celebrating her birthday by helping her raise 31,000 to help stop the Darfur genocide. All contributions are tax deductible and will fund organizations working locally and globally to help Sudan and assist survivors who are now refugess in Arizona. Please RSVP to ksinema@cox.net

I'm keeping the comments section open on the assumption that folks are going to be polite. 

Never Mind

The Republic is set to abandon its Monday Lite version.  I guess less news for the same money wasn't the best business plan.  I'll have more on the move later. 

What Happened To John McCain?

What happened to John McCain?  It may be next week, or it may be next month, but that's the question that the media will be asking after McCain drops out of the race.  A thousand pundits will have opinions.  Here's mine. 

When I was in high school we used to go to Spencer's Gifts at Park Mall to buy black lights, Farrah posters and T shirts.  The fad was T shirts that said things like "Dentists do it with a Smile," or "Engineers do it with Less Resistance."  I thought that was so cool.  Then I saw one that said "Preachers do it with Amazing Grace."  Clever.  There were piles of them in all sizes and colors.  Why?  Because the constituency it was designed for couldn't buy it.  A preacher couldn't wear a shirt like that, but it could only be worn by a preacher.  So no one bought one. 

That's what happened to John McCain.  He was designed for a constituency that doesn't exist.  He's a pro-life, hawk war hero who opposed Bush's tax cuts, supports embryonic stem cell research and amnesty.  He supports legislation defining marriage as one man and one women at the state level...but opposes it at the federal level.  He's with Bush on Iraq, Kennedy on immigration, Lieberman on guns, Feingold on campaign finance and the gang of 14 on Judicial Nominations. 

So how did he get so far last time and why was he the heir apparent this time? 

Sure, McCain has a great personal story, speaks his mind and rails against "corruption in Washington."  But that will only take you so far.  McCain was media creation.  His willingness to criticize his fellow Republicans made him the darling of the NPR/New York Times crowd.  McCain became the political equivalent of a Warren Beatty movie with favorable reviews from Pauline Kael.  The critics rave, but no one buys a ticket.  Ishtar.  McCain is Ishtar.

Don't worry about it.  It's not the first time that folks fell for something or someone in a big way and then woke up and said "my gosh, what were we thinking?"  There was the Rachel Haircut, the Starland Vocal Band, Pets.com, the Bay of Pigs, paisley ties, Plessy v. Ferguson, Total Quality Management, Gary Hart, Evelyn Wood, forced busing, the Population Bomb, Wink Martindale, France and Tae Bo.

And now there's McCain.  It was fun while it lasted. 

Lost Highways

Arizona Highways Magazine is in trouble and folks are looking for the Legislature to prop it up. 

Arizona is in a constant race for tourist dollars and new businesses. Arizona Highways is a vehicle that has taken us a long way and has plenty of promise for the future. The state has a strong interest in making sure it has enough gas to keep running.

The Republic points out that there are changes afoot. 

Robert Stieve, the new editor, said he wants to tweak the magazine's content, covering topics that lure in a younger audience without alienating the baby boomers who already subscribe.

"There's a perception issue that has to change," Stieve said. "A lot of people think of it as 'my grandmother's magazine.' "

Robert Stieve is in charge now?  Hmm.  Stieve was most recently in charge of Phoenix Magazine.  While that would seem to be a good training ground for Arizona Highways, it might be an indication of trouble.  One would think that Phoenix Magazine--with its emphasis on best doctors, best dentists and the luxury home market--would be non-partisan.  However under Stieve's leadership, Jana Bommersbach used Phoenix Magazine as a perch to blast Republican Legislators with shrill partisan attacks. 

Who can forget Bommersbach's viscous attack on Senator Huppenthal when he dared question the long-term efficacy of All Day Kindergarten?   That hit piece would barely make it through the editorial process at Phoenix New Times.  How could Robert Stieve have allowed it to run in Phoenix Magazine? 

Or how about her complaint that 7 of the top 16 legislators were Mormon?  Is that the type of analysis we are going to read in Arizona Highways?

If Robert Stieve wants to make changes at Arizona Highways, that's fine.  But let's hope that he doesn't try to convert the venerable magazine into a platform for partisan attacks.  And if he wants some help from the Legislators that he's slapped around for the last few years, it's probably time to pick up the phone.  The Legislative Switchboard is 602-926-5999. 

Basic Math meets Basic Economics.

The Republic is facing rising costs and has decided to raise rates in response.  But they need to find a guy who passed junior high math and move him to the Marketing Department.    Here's a copy of a letter  that the Republic is sending to its subscribers.   

...in order to keep up with rising production and distribution costs, effective your next billing cycle, your rate will increase from $10.95 to $11.92.  This is only a .03 cent increase a month!

What?  .03 cents?  What the heck does that mean?  It's obviously not literally true--that would be 3/100 of a penny.  Do they mean "percent"?  Clearly not.  The 97 cent increase on a base of $10.95 is an increase of about 9%.

I guess that there are three types of people in this world:  Those who can do math and those who can't.

What's really interesting about the letter is not the math error, it's the economic reality.  Raising rates 9% is going to put further downward pressure on circulation.  Newspapers are in a cycle that they can't control.  It's getting more expensive to deliver a 4 pound piece of paper to 400,000 people over a 400 square mile area.  The number of subscribers is decreasing while the distribution area gets broader, so the cost per unit is on the rise.  The Republic can either eat that cost or try to pass it on. 

The only possible response is a rear guard action, a fighting retreat.  Cut production costs by using cheaper paper, and reducing coverage.  Cut labor costs by using more wire stories and less experienced reporters.  Additional layoffs and retirement incentives are next.  The Republic currently employs about 2,600 people.  It will be half that number in 10 years.

One would hope that in the shake up to come, the Republic will move a guy to the Marketing Department who can, you know, do math.   

As Nearly Free as Possible?

I'm taking two courses at ASU Law School this summer.  These two courses cost more than the total tuition for my entire 1981-85 undergraduate degree from UA. 

Show Me a Sign

Political junkies will remember a few years back when Slade Mead ran for the State Senate as a Conservative and beat Lori Daniels in the Republican Primary by claiming that she was going to raise taxes.  Mead--a former Democrat--showed his true colors after the election and aligned himself with the Senate Democratic Caucus almost immediately.  John Huppenthal trounced Mead the following cycle. 

In retrospect, one wonders if the voters, the political community and the media missed an obvious sign.  Was there some indication that Mead was a liberal in disguise? 

If only we had been driving through rural Kansas...

Phoenix Union Superintendent Gone

Here's a story from the San Diego Union-Tribune that the local media completely missed. 

Southwestern College's next president is a career K-12 educator who, in his current role as superintendent of the Phoenix Union High School District, is reportedly at odds with his governing board.

The South County community college district's governing board hired Raj Chopra during a special meeting last night. Chopra was picked over another finalist, whom the college would not name.

Update:  I stand corrected.  The local media did not completely miss the story, it was posted in the Northeast Regional Roundup. 

PHOENIX: Phoenix Union High School District Superintendent Raj K. Chopra is a candidate for the top job at Southwestern College in California.

Bill Scheel commented that it was also in a blurb on B1, but that's apparently not in the archives. 

Here's some more background on Chopra.  Tom Patterson wrote a good summary earlier this year, here's an excerpt.

Dr. Raj Chopra has made a career of turning around failing schools. In 2001, the Phoenix Union High School District graduation rate was a dismal 55 percent. Seven of the 10 high schools were rated “underperforming”. By 2006, the graduation rate had climbed to 72 percent and all 10 high schools were ranked “performing plus”.

Here's some background on the tension between Chopra and the Union. 

The union had been at odds with Superintendent Raj Chopra and the previous board over the elimination of the 37-year-old agreement in April.

Adding to the Confusion

The Republic seems to be doing everything it can to muddy the water around the employee sanctions bill.  The latest tactic is to argue that the law is simply going to be too confusing to follow. 

Here's a classic trick.  Quote someone who is wrong about the basics of the bill, but don't correct them.  That technique allows the wrong information to be printed in the paper, but the Republic doesn't have to issue a correction. 

Here's an example.  To trigger penalties, employers have to KNOWINGLY or INTENTIONALLY violate the provisions of the employer sanctions bill.  You don't lose your license for MISTAKENLY violating the law.  But check out this quote from today's Republic.   

"We do everything required by law," Thebarge said.

But even with relatively few employees and just eight years in business, the couple hired a worker once without realizing he was using a fake Social Security number. The Social Security Administration notified them.

The thought of losing her business for such a mistake terrifies Thebarge.

"My whole retirement is in this business," Thebarge said. "My heart and soul. And the people that work for us are family."

Yes, the thought of losing her business for one clerical mistake would be terrifying.  That's why the law says that there has to be two violations and they both have to be knowing violations. 

It's ironic that the Republic uses an article about the confusion surrounded the Sanctions bill as an opportunity to add to the confusion surrounding the Sanctions bill.  Not that they are biased or anything. 

Transitions

Word is that Jodie Snyder has left the Republic to take a job an Banner Health.  I try not to write too often about the individual personnel matters within the Republic, but Snyder's departure strikes a chord.   She was a year ahead of me at Catalina High School in Tucson.  We took different paths from the very beginning; I was on the debate team and she was Associate Editor of the school newspaper. 

Journalism was a viable career path throughout the 1980s and most of the 1990s, but the newspaper industry's economic model has changed.  In response, the reporter's job has changed and ultimately, the type of person who becomes a reporter has changed as well.  Now the mid-level reporters are getting out while they still have a chance at a second career and the Old Guard are counting the days until retirement while moaning about the collapse of the paper that has employed them for 20 or 30 years. 

In addition to Snyder, Laura Houston, Geri Koppell, and Josh Kelly have recently left the Republic.  Stephanie Paterik left the Republic to become managing editor at Phoenix Magazine.  (Replacing Ashlea Deahl who was promoted to replce Robert Stieve who left to become editor of Arizona Highways.  Stieve is replacing Peter Aleshire, but I have no idea what happened to him.)

The newspaper industry is a great case study because events look so obvious in retrospect, but I still find myself unable to predict what's next.  The latest trend should have been evident, but I didn't predict it. Newspapers used to be written by skilled professionals who were given adequate resources and provided high quality, in depth reporting that was appreciated by a wide readership.

By the time a reporter secured a job at the Republic, he was experienced and well trained.  Writers didn't start their careers at the Republic.  They paid their dues at a mid market paper, say, the Siera Vista Herald or the Tucson Citizen.  They proved their worth in the trenches and then after six or seven years, they would interview at the Republic.  Some prospects famously camped in the Republic's lobby for days to get jobs sorting mail in hopes that they could eventually write some copy. 

As readership started to dwindle, newspapers responded by cutting costs and making the stories more "reader friendly".  Gannett, and especially its flagship USA Today, epitomized this lite style.  Stories were shorter, shallower and became vehicles for bar graphs and pie charts. 

Reporters complained that their job had been dumbed down to the point where nearly anyone could write the news.  Then a funny thing happened...the management had the same realization--anyone could write this stuff.  Reporters didn't need to be craftsmen, they just needed to be able to write basic copy.

That realization has led to a fundamental change that has manifested itself only recently--the reporter as cog:  necessary, but not important.  The days of reporters paying their dues in mid level papers are gone.  A few years ago, the Republic started hiring them right out of school.  The latest iteration is even more disconcerting to the rank and file reporters--much of the paper is now written by interns.

The newspaper industry is going the way of a thousand industries before it.  Cars, furniture, shoes and a thousand other items used to be built by craftsmen.  Perhaps the best example of a job becoming obsolete is provided by the newspaper industry itself.  Newspapers used to employ master printers and typesetters who were craftsmen.  They understood the intricacies and demands of high-quality printing.  They were artists and they are gone--replaced by a geek with a mouse.  Who would have thought that reporters would be next?

Congratulations to Jodie Snyder.  The transition from the newspaper industry to the health care industry is much like transitioning from the Titanic to the Carpathia.  May you have fine weather and pleasant sailing.   

(Correction:  Kelly Carr is still with the Republic.  My mistake.)

Gore Dodges a Bullet

So Al Gore's son got arrested for drug posession.  Yawn.  One more political rock star with a kid in rehab.  But this could have been bad. 

The 24-year-old son of former Vice President Al Gore was arrested for drug possession on Wednesday after he was stopped for speeding in his hybrid Toyota Prius, a sheriff's official said.

Whew.  Thank goodness he was driving a hybrid. 

The Stars are Lining Up

Word is that Reps. Robson, Stump and McClure are planning to run as a team for the Arizona Corporation Commission. Resign to run rules are in effect, so don't expect any current officeholders to confirm that they are interested in 2008 seats, but the word is getting out. 

It's going to be a crowded field.  Former Reps. John Allen and Barry Wong are expected to run as well.  Rep. Mason is also considering a run.

The ACC was a Democratic stronghold until the late 90s, but the agency is now represented by five Republicans and the Democrats haven't won a seat since Renz Jennings was re-elected in 1992.

Current office holders, Bill Mundell, Mike Gleason and Jeff Hatch-Miller are termed out so the majority of the seats on the Commission are in play.  An interesting quirk in the way the terms are structured means that the three Republican nominees will all run against the three Democratic nominees and the top three vote getters are seated. 

(ACC watchers are carefully watching the CD one race as well.  Renzi is presumed not to be running for re-election and Commissioner Mayes' base is the Prescott area.  If Ken Bennett doesn't run for Renzi's seat, or if Bennett and Konopnicki both run for it, then Mayes is likely to jump in.)

Old School

So much of the Republic is now written by interns, that I sometimes forget how powerful a great lead paragraph can be. 

Here's Dan Nowicki showing us how it's done. 

Bruised by the national immigration fight and weighed down by another quarter of sluggish fundraising, Sen. John McCain's struggling presidential campaign slashed jobs and cut salaries Monday in a dramatic organizational upheaval.

That's really well done. 

I wonder what Dan's going to do when McCain drops out?  Well, at least he won't be back until the Summer's over..well probably not. 

Blood in the Water

Once a newspaper turns on you it's over.  When I worked at the Senate, people would come to me after they had been savaged by the newspaper and ask what they could do to rebuild their reputation.  I always had same advice:  "stay out of the newspaper."  They would respond that if they did something positive, the good articles would start to offset the bad articles.  I would remind them that no matter what they did that was "good" the subsequent stories would simply be vehicles to reprint the things that were bad. 

That's why it's common to read stories that have this structure.  "Senator Smith, who pled no contest to DUI in 1996, has been awarded a Lifetime Achievement award from the Girl Scouts of America for her work with underprivileged youth. 

These hit pieces are unfair and represent lazy reporting.  Nothing is easier than going through the archives and reprinting old stories.  They are unfair because they use current good news as an excuse to trot out ancient bad news.  Here's an example from today's Republic. 

The underlying story is quite positive.  Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox has resurrected the decaying El Portal Restaurant and turned it into a thriving business in a community that lacks thriving local businesses.  Her renovation has been so successful and the building is so important that the city wants it classified as an historic property. 

However, here's how the story was presented in the Republic. 

The Maricopa County supervisor who illegally demolished one historic site is now being asked to add another to the city's register.

A team of historians, Hispanic residents and archivists recently identified El Portal, a Mexican restaurant owned by Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox, as a building important to Phoenix's Hispanic history.

Here's a great sentence. 

The pair sidestepped criminal prosecution by agreeing to a settlement, including a $10,000 donation to the Phoenix Historic Preservation Office to promote the city's Hispanic heritage.

Sidestepped?  That's brilliant.  It takes years of J school to learn how to manipulate readers with words like "sidestepped."  That word lets the readers know that the situation has been taken care of, but implies that the Wilcox's got some sort of special treatment.  They used some sort of maneuver to get out of criminal prosecution. 

How about using a neutral word like "resolved?"  Why even mention criminal prosecution?  After all, the matter was resolved with a fine.  Or better yet, why not just write a positive story about someone who built a good restaurant in a run down historic building located in a struggling neighborhood? 

Would that be so hard?

The Most Influencial Man In Arizona

First we had this:

Napolitano, in 2003, voiced support for a proposal that would allow illegal immigrants to get state driver's licenses.

Last Monday we had this:  Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona signed a bill yesterday providing what are thought to be the toughest state sanctions in the country against employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.

Whether you love or hate Russell Pearce you have to admit that immigration wasn't even on the radar screen 5 years ago.  Now it's one of the most prominent national issues and it's moving entirely in Pearce's direction.

Update:  The Star just printed an editorial that confirms my point. 

And so, by adopting a bill that says the state can suspend your business license if you hire illegal workers once, and if you do it twice, the state can shut you down completely, everybody looks good — especially if we overlook the spectacle of Napolitano standing shoulder to shoulder with Pearce, a spokesman for the far right who has said of illegal immigrants, "I'd come, too, if you could give me a job and free everything."

Democrats who think the governor looks good standing next to Pearce have lost their compass. Maybe the governor is able to parse "job" and "free everything" better than we can.

We were happy to see that other members of the governor's party were not as seduced by a flawed that merely holds out the illusion of substance.

The Lower Decks are Starting to Flood Captain...

This is interesting...

Goldman Sachs analyst Peter Appert sharply reduced the growth forecast for the newspaper sector in a comprehensive, negative note issued this morning.

Given that publishers indicated there is no relief in the foreseeable future for anemic advertising growth based on presentations made during Mid-Year Media Review, Appert and his team came to the following conclusion: "The magnitude of the recent declines is extraordinary for a non-recession period and provides concrete evidence, in our view, that the share shift from print to online in the publishing industry is accelerating."

Some companies are more at risk than others. Goldman cut its rating on McClatchy from "neutral" to "sell" and reinstated a rating on The New York Times Co. to "sell." The two companies were singled out due to their make-up as pure play newspapers businesses.

As they say, read the whole thing...

The Decline Steepens

Years ago, the Wall St. Journal realized that it wasn't the first source of news for its readers.  Journal management understood that the paper couldn't compete if it simply ran the same old news in the same old format but ran it a day later than the local papers.  Most Journal subscribers received the local paper as well and the lag inherent in distributing a national product meant that Journal coverage was both late and redundant when compared to the local paper. 

The Journal's answer was the feature story.  The Journal presents comprehensive stories that provide a bigger, more in depth picture of a story in its context.  These stories aren't stale at the end of a 24-h