The Strib is not biased towards a party, they are biased towards subsidies.
Consider a topic, any topic. The Strib will come out in favor subsidies.
Stadiums, campaigns, school lunches, Methanol, LRT, and on, and on, forever
without end, Amen.
I gave up on the Strib as a valid source of information when DFL Minneapolis
Council Member Sandy Colvin-Roy campaigned in several of the polling places
on primary day, and the Strib reported it a couple days later deep inside
the Metro section. How many other times has something similar happened and
it was not reported? We may never know.
Rich Chandler - Ward 9
-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Minn
Oh, Come on Wizard!...And this goes for Steve Brandt's post, too!
Please don't tell me that the Strib news editors are not just as biased as
the editorial pages. I could cite dozens of examples over the years (can we
say John Derus' Senate race or Sharon Sayles Belton's '97 Mayoral race?),
but the last two weeks offers plenty of fodder, to wit:
Even though the success of Nader could arguably determine the Presidential
state outcome, news placement of Nader stories on days with news of Bush and
Gore have been buried on the back pages, or given small front page openings
with arcane jump pages --in essence --buried. Much the same as James Gibson
was ignored in the Strib coverage until his campaign bitched and a reporter
finally assigned (in late September). The paper then had the audacity to
biasedly write in a recent poll summary that "...Gibson, despite increased
news coverage...still lags in polls..." How self-serving! Gibson has had
three front page leads on either the Metro or Main section, compared to over
a dozen each for Dayton and Grams in October alone!
Poll methodology used by the News department always is scoped to represent "
likely voters." Not "of voting age" or "registered to vote" but "likely to
vote." This favors major party candidates. The result? Minnesota Poll
consistently has understated the Independence party turnout. Dean Barkley
never was projected to perform over 3%, yet got 5.5 and 7% respectively. Low
polls tend to discourage third party voting, making the "unwinnable" seem
more so.
LASTLY... The Strib news department has had information and evidence for
over six weeks of a Mark Dayton scandal from his gubernatorial race that
they elected not to investigate/report. Given the enthusiasm in which they
pursued Jon Grunseth in 1990, you would think that they would have the same
zeal to bring the "facts" out on Dayton. Don't hold your breath...why that
would hurt their candidate!
Just a few other observations... For ten days solid, Sack editorial cartoons
have plastered the Nader elects Bush theme, or similar "...hey stupid
voter...vote for Gore" themes. No cartoons for independents once this
season.
Photo selection of republican or independent candidates is always of dour or
cluttered scenes, with enthusiastic or "open" photos of DFL'ers. Example?
Check out today's picture of Dick Gephart w/ Luther placed prominently in
the center, compared to a bad McCain picture on the same page.
To Wizard's point, the Strib probably draws less than 25% of its readership
from Minneapolis, these days. Hate to say it, but city residents don't buy
newspapers like they use to. (maybe we need the paper published in several
languages?) The Strib's real reader base is in the more conservative and
affluent suburbs. You could have the same phone booth calculation in Edina
for Democrats, yet the only Strib endorsements for non-democrats occur in
one of the following:
a) Heavily republican districts where the DFL'er has no chance (like Ramstad
in the 3rd for example), or
b) Swing districts where the non-Democrat is running against a more
conservative DFL'er, or the DFL'er is truly a first class twit, which, by
the way, almost never happens.
The Strib manages to make the DFL endorsements glowing, while the remainder
endorsements are always backhanded compliments. Akin to: "...if you must
vote, this candidate does not have herpes..." Example? Read last weeks'
endorsements in legislative races. Every one of the DFL'ers is a bona-fide
gift to public service.
I always appreciate having a summary list of Strib endorsements, like the
one they published yesterday. That way, I know who NOT to vote for!
(BTW...Just for the record...they endorsed me twice...see what I mean?)
Steve Minn
of late of Lynnhurst...
-----Original Message-----
From: Wizard Marks
You might also note that the percentage of democrats and republicans in
Minneapolis probably mirrors the endorsement percentages. I know the
republicans in my ward could hold a meeting in a phone booth--if there were
phone booths anymore.
Wizard Marks, Central
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Steve Brandt
> A more apt lesson would be to not assume that the Strib has an unbiased,
> objective EDITORIAL PAGE. News and editorial are separate departments.
> Labeling the whole paper because of the stance of the editorial page is a
> misreading of how a newspaper functions. It's comparable to concluding
> that because the Supreme Court rules one way, the Justice Department and
> the rest of the federal government must feel that way.
>
> Is there liberal bias on the editorial page? Bob's numbers can speak for
> themselves. I do know that the Pioneer's editorial page made some
> conscious choices several years ago to seek conservative-liberal balance
> in its staff. The bulk of the Star Tribune legislative endorsements are
> researched by two retired reporters who have close to a half-century's
> experience between them in covering state government and rate as pretty
> fair observers of both the issues and what it takes to ably serve as a
> legislator. They are Gene Lahammer, formerly of the Associated Press, and
> Betty Wilson, formerly of the Star and the Star Tribune.
>
> Steve Brandt
>
-----Original Message-----
From: Bob Schoonover
Following is the distribution data by party designation of candidates in
tomorrows election as endorsed and published by the Minneapolis StarTribune
and by the St. Paul Pioneer Press:
Minneapolis StarTribune:
Dems = 77%, Republicans = 18%, Ind = 5%
St. Paul Pioneer Press:
Dems = 50%, Republicans = 50%, Ind = 0%
I've done this analysis for quiet a few elections and the Strib endorsements
are always 70-80% for Democrats. And todays' lesson is? Although this is
editorial page data, don't assume the Strib is an unbiased, objective
newspaper.
Bob Schoonover - Afton MN
