Thursday, August 19, 2010

For Appearances Sake At Least . . .

For the record, I will say this. I like John Raese. I like his principles and I think he is a good man. This writing is meant in no way to disparage him or his campaign. I also like Metro News, seeing it as the premiere source for state political news. However, someone at Metro News, I believe, goofed in this instance.

Yesterday, Metro News ran a story called "Gas Pedal Down on Senate Campaigns." It featured only the schedule and quotations of John Raese without even mentioning his primary opposition. At the end, the story did include the disclaimer that Raese himself operates Metro News.

It would have been far more appropriate for the writer to have included at least some details from other campaigns, like say the names of the other people running. Even if you want to angle the piece in favor of Raese, a much more subtle approach would pay dividends, such as including some detail from other campaigns, but giving Raese the final quote in the piece. Simply writing about Raese and ignoring the others only leads the reader to wonder about the opposition and why they were not mentioned.

Like I said, I like John Raese, and if he is the eventual primary winner I will be more than happy to do what I can to help him win the Senate seat this November. All the candidates in the field have strong principles. I believe that Raese, like Mac Warner and a few others, can bring lengthy experience and determination to the job and not be overawed by Washington. However, stories like this can only undermine somewhat John Raese's campaign and the integrity of Metro News itself.

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