Bad Coverage

The media should do their jobs.

 

What kind of poor excuse for coverage was this weekend's attempt by the Springfield Republican to report on the candidates for Springfield City Council? It was worse than useless.

For example, how could they write about Mo Jones and not mention the sworn testimony linking him to bribes from the Asselins or the many years he served totally ineffectively on the SHA board supposedly overseeing the Asselins? It's all too typical of their political coverage - concealing more than it reveals. No voter should be deceived into thinking that they can make intelligent voting decisions by reading the Springfield Newspapers.

For the record, here is what was reported in the Springfield Newspapers on October 7, 2006 before they came down with amnesia:

In 1997, (Frank) Ware said he won $638,800 in subcontracting work from the authority, but ended up $25,000 in the hole. He testified he was forced to pay not only for labor and materials, but a $78,000 bribe to Sotirion and a $5,000 kickback to former city councilor Morris "Mo" Jones.

The alleged Jones payoff was marked "Mo" on a handwritten tally of expenses written by Sotirion, according to Ware.

In a surprising twist in testimony, Ware said: "The factor to Mr. Jones, that was put into the deal by Art Sotirion."


But what about the rest of the media? Does anybody have the balls to ask Jones point blank about his Asselin connections? Even if Jones gives a stupid or evasive answer (he will) does anybody passing for a reporter in this Valley have the integrity to publicly bring the subject up during this campaign?

On campus today the moral equivalent of the Nazis were trying, fortunately without much success, to entice UMass students into adopting their agenda of hate. Here is their display, but the people manning it wouldn't pose in the picture. Then again, maybe I shouldn't have joked that I was from the FBI. (click to enlarge)

This morning I saw a red-tailed hawk by the Grad Research Center at UMass. I just barely got my camera out in time to take this picture before it bolted for the sky with a mighty screech. Damn, those are big birds!