Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Dallas Morning News: Creating Controversy Where None Exists
I've just about had it with our local paper.This week two articles on Farmers Branch were featured, one about the removal of images of violence and nudity at the library, and one about the City Council's request for CFBISD to provide a list of FB students attending schools. Both very straight-forward issues.
But the DMN used three photos to illustrate the story about the violent art, two of which were not included in the pieces that were removed from the Manske Library. Those two pieces were not violent or controversial, but their inclusion in the piece made it seem that the motivations of the city were unfounded and based more on censureship. Totally irresponsible on the DMN's part.
And the article today about our request for a student list...where do I begin? First, this city council has made it clear from the start that we were going to puruse all avenues to find creative solutions to the opportunities we face as a city, among them code enforcement, revitalization, and of course, education. We have FB students who feed into three different school districts, and who attend a plethora of private and pariochial schools. If we are going to offer ideas and solutions about education, we need information.
Simple, right?
But wait! In a section of the article titled "Speculation," The DMN goes and gets a sitting School Board Member to say that our request for information "could be" about the immigration issue, and that the City Council isn't "proud of its motivations." Even though that school board member has no idea why we're asking for the list, and the DMN reporter had a clear, concise understanding from me exactly what my motivations are. Speculation: it's what hard news is built on.
But my motivations don't fit the DMN's controversial story template, so they have to ignore them completely and instead find others who can assign more sinister motivations to me.
Like Hector Flores, ex-LULAC President, who says that any information "could be used for profiling and selective use of code enforcement," and then says that somehow we are going to "target" children. Here's the quote: "What wrong have these children done to deserve this – because they're Hispanic and their parents might be here without any documents? Shame on those that would retaliate against children."
Huh? What is he talking about?!? Did anyone say anything about retaliation against children? And more importantly, DID OUR REQUEST FOR INFORMATION SAY ANYTHING ABOUT LOOKING FOR ANYTHING RELATED TO HISPANICS? It didn't. It wasn't even implied. This has nothing to do with Hispanics, but that doesn't stop the DMN from including a ridiculous quote in their article saying it did.
This is why the politcal discourse in America has sunk to the level that it has. Irresponsible journalists don't bother to cover an issue with truth and objective reporting, they seek to exploit every possible situation as the next big controversy, and go and find self-serving "experts" to say whatever they want to drive their personal agenda, regardless of how innaccurate it is.
The good news is that I trust the vast majority of you who are reading this feel exactly the same way, and know to put your "truth filter" on when you read things in print.
Have a great week,
Tim Scott
by Tim Scott, City Council, Place 1 at 7:05 AM |
8 Comments:
Tim,
I agree with you and anyone with any intelligence knows that the DMN is trying to boost their subscriptions.
The media only prints what it wants.
Well, let's see. The paper is trying to boost their subscriptions by doing the same old hit jobs on the right they've been doing all along which is the reason people are dropping thier subscriptions in droves. I'm just glad the DMN doesn't have any intelligence. The dinosaur media is just that.
Tim,
We are still behind you!
The DMN is just like every other publisher and/or news source today - very bias. You can see it everyday - especially on the illegal immigration issues. Look at what they are reporting about Irving . . . very, very, slanted.
The good news is Americans are waking up and paying attention.
We shall overcome - no matter how they want to spin it.
Keep up the good work.
Tim,
Keep up the fight! We all know the media is on the illegal aliens side. The media is bent on destroying this great country ! We must stand our ground. Enough is enough ! Deny,Detain,and Deport all illegal aliens !
Tim,
The DMN is a filthy rag with an agenda.
Have you noticed how much of the News Media have deleted the word illegal from illegal immigration?
Trying to group illegal immigrant law breakers with people following the rules for migration.The News Media people are not stupid,they are crafty and dangerous. Never underestimate the ability of the NM to influence the public with it's flavor of spin.
Are Americans waking up and paying attention? That would be good news.
Tim,
Keep up the good work. We have your back.
I think what we are seeing is a dying newspaper (dying from a lack of relevance to it's current readership's lives) trying to stir up a reason for new people to buy a subscription. They have assumed (incorrectly) that whatever subscriptions they loose by insulting those fighting against illegal immigration will be made up by the new "migrants" moving into the area. I think they will find that their math is as suspect as their journalistic integrity.
Maybe if the DMN could look at it from my perspective it would lighten up a little. In the name of verification and of equal opportunity I would be interested in student list/address verification for enrollement for CFBISD. Following the purchase of our home in 1984, although we purchased based on being told we were in CFBISD & given a receipt by the realtor for tax payments for the district; we along with others on our street were denied reigistration by the school, who claimed our address was in fact not in the district but in DISD and they didn't know how we were given the tax receipts stamped as CFBISD. Because of the location of the alertnatives we "elected" to enroll our three children for the next 12 years in parocial/private schools rather then at Herbert Marcus & WT White. To my knowledge the lines have not been redrawn. I would be interested in learning if we were singled out and forced into 12 years of private education as I notice new residents somehow attending school where we were once denied. We were assured that their were no options available to us other then attend the alternate DISD schools or enroll in the private schools. Have the lines been redrawn or am I just unlucky?
Can you build a fence around your city? Oh wait with light rail coming you guys will have to stay in your locked houses peering through the curtains in fear of all of the people you hate.
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