Since it’s my local paper, I feel compelled to take note when the New London Day’s coverage is skewed.
Case in point. A week or so ago Scott Brown came to the state to stump for Linda McMahon. Brown is yesterday’s news, as anyone paying attention would know. They could have held the rally in the Groton Library’s meeting room, with room to spare. The crowd was estimated to possibly exceed 200, if you counted the press.
The Day covered the story on page one, with a huge picture of Linda on that page, and with the story extending over onto page three. Who knows how many words per attendee, but the point, in case you’re obtuse, is that these were tea party people, or allegedly so, and therefore worthy of prime time coverage, despite their paltry numbers and non-existent brains.
Yesterday Michelle Obama came to the state to stump for Dick Blumenthal. People were lined up to get in to see her. Despite the prevailing memes, she is not yesterday’s news. But these were not tea party people. They weren’t crazy, and therefore, apparently, they’re not interesting, despite their superior numbers and functioning brains. The Day deigned to put a tiny teaser picture on page 1, directing the reader to an article buried on page B5. Even the Boston Globe gave the story more prominence. It’s pretty reminiscent of the total lack of coverage for our side’s demonstration in Washington earlier this month.
I should hasten to add that I’m not pointing a finger at the reporters who wrote these stories. They don’t decide where their stories will run, or how much prominence to give a picture. The Day has, unfortunately, and for whatever reason, taken a rightward editorial tilt, and this is just one small example.
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