Reporters at the Honolulu Advertiser ended their video strike yesterday. In explaining the move, the Hawaii Newspaper Guild said the company had cooperated with the union by opening its books, implying that the end of the video strike was in essence a show of good faith by the union.
The Company opened its books to a CPA chosen by the unions of the Hawaii Newspaper and Printing Trades Council. The Company was cooperative with our CPA and it appears the Company’s condition is as it has said. Under these conditions, we believe we should no longer withhold voluntary participation in video productions.
Video and new internet technology is here in the industry and Guild members are encouraged to learn as much about the new technology as possible. It will be good for future resumes. And it will help the newspaper now.
The Guild also said it has been assured that there will not be retaliation against those who withheld their “voluntary” services.
And the Advertiser reported today that it is making yet another effort to sell off the bulk of it’s property at the corner of South Street and Kapiolani, including the old printing plant and parking lot. It would retain the existing news building that once housed both the Advertiser and Star-Bulletin.
Thanks to those who stepped up to let me know what’s going on with Night Time with Andy Bumatai. Ryan Ozawa sent me to an entry in his Hawaii Blog, and the Star-Bulletin’s Erika Engle pointed me to an item in her column, TheBuzz. Bottom line: Bumatai plans to bring the show back after the first of the year in a new format and location.
Let’s see. I should say something in response to Advertiser columnist and former Star-Bulletin managing editor Dave Shapiro, who started his “Volcanic Ash” column yesterday by pointing to “the lack of excitement” in legislative races, but quickly reverted to another replay of his stale critique blaming GOP losses on “incumbent Democratic legislators and the interest groups that support them”.
Let me suggest other reasons for the lack of excitement Dave is concerned about which translates in fewer candidates, fewer real choices, and further dampening of excitement.
At the top of my list would be the significantly reduced news coverage of the legislature and the county councils by the state’s largest newspapers and broadcast media. Although meetings of the legislature and councils are open to the public, and some are broadcast live by public access television, most people don’t have first hand experience following the business of state or county agencies and instead get all of their knowledge via the news media. So reduced coverage means less recognition of the players, less understanding of the issues, no appreciation of the process, and quickly translates into less interest. No wonder fewer people are inclined to personally jump into government.
And there’s another item high on my list–news editors aversion to “process”. The prevailing wisdom in newsrooms has been the assumption that the public doesn’t have any interest in the actual process of legislative or administration decision-making or any “need to know”, allowing limited reporting resources to be focused on letting people know how the resulting policies will impact them.
What happens between the time a piece of legislation is conceptualized, then introduced, then massaged through the rather complex legislative process, is treated by the media as a “black box”, a mystery set-up where you put something in on one side and something comes out of the other end that can hurt or help.
It’s much easier for the public to remain fashionably cynical when reporters don’t have an opportunity to explain fully how we get from here to there legislatively. Without opportunities to observe the process in action, it’s all to easy to spin conspiracy theories to explain the outcome. And if conspiracies reign, why should regular folks think they can make any difference?
And then what do we call those who do stoop to getting involved in the insider details? We dismiss them as “special interests” and lump them as part of the problem. If they don’t get involved, armchair critics like Dave attack them for standing aside. How do you win in this game?
Parts of the business community are often hit for not getting more involved in the legislative process. And when they do jump in, such as with the much criticized legislative intern program, they’re attacked for acting in defense of their interests. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.
Who can blame the public for being confused by the media whiplash and staying safely out of the action?
The aversion to process has another effect. Without an understanding of the political process, many believe that a good idea is enough to make a political difference, and fail to understand that electoral politics is, first and foremost, very hard work. Ask any candidate, winner or loser, and you’ll quickly learn just how demanding an election campaign can be. That’s a primary deterrent, overcome only by a special personal interest or political interest that tips the scale towards personal involvement.
I’m not saying that money and power aren’t issues in politics. But I don’t think they are the primary factors behind the general public’s declining interest and participation.
Anyway, just food for thought.
Finally, click to check out a wonderful collection of photos on the theme, “Simplicity”. It’s really outstanding.
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don’t forget kaaawa cats 2009…
Count me among the many who are not impressed by Dave Shapiro.
He seems perfectly content to oversimplify everything and willfully ignore any facts that would deflect one of his trademark potshots. He comes across as a classroom heckler who never grew up.
That may be great fun for someone with lots of time on his hands, but it doesn’t really advance the discussion or provide anything useful for those who are trying to stay informed about public affairs.
Great write-up on the failings of the media in following politics. But you missed one very important point. The media now think they have done their job when they just get a quote (he said, she said) from the different parties to a political dispute. More often than not, such quotes amount to nothing more than spin and don’t shed any real light on the merits of an issue. For years now, the media — both local and national — have abdicated their key role as the ones to dig into an issue and explain its meaning to the public. That’s where the real problem lies in my estimation.
Excellent point about the process being opaque–it’s unreported “because nobody cares” and then guess what, sure enough nobody cares.
Kmneditor is also spot on about the tired formula for journalism–3 quotes from “both sides” (as if there are only two partisan positions in every issue) and then a “man/woman on the street” quote or two to “make it real.”
The 800-pound gorilla in the room is: who can do journalism for free, or, will the public be willing to pay real money for real journalism? It’s an open question.
chuck
Well said about the failure of our papers to educate.
I would like to add that this compunds the ignorance of the electorate if it does not possess or employ the intellectual curiosity to find the “truth.”
Even worse, it permits people like Peter Carlisle to spout superficial blather justifying a Con Con.
Now, I voted for Con Con, not because I share the right-wing agenda of Duke Aiona and others of his ilk but because I am sick and tired of Carlisle pissing and moaning about the shortcomings, real and perceived, of the Legislature. I would rather have it out in an open forum, ideas and against ideas, “mano a mano” if you will, and shut him up once and for all, than have him whine endlessly that he can’t get what he wants at the Legislature so we need a Con Con.
Carlisle’s assertions about the cost savings of a once-every-other year unicameral Legislature are a perfect example. His argument begins with the notion that the Legislature does nothing. Now, you may not like what it does, but it doesn’t do nothing. Of course, if you are a one-trick pony like Carlisle, and only 15 or 20 of the Legislature’s 250 or so annual acts deal with crime, then it does nothing. The other 225+ acts mean nothing to him because HE has nothing to do with them.
He doesn’t mention that only one other state has a unicameral legislature. He does admit that only 6 meet once every other year but, even then, he doesn’t acknowledge that, although it may not be in session but 4 months a year, the work of the body and its agencies go on year round. Can you imagine how the public would react if it couldn’t call up or wlk into a leggislator’s office for help dealing with government in general or just to chew on someone’s ear. In Carlisle’s world, only he is needed year-round. His estimate of the cost savings to be realized from an every-other-year legislature is grossly overstated and hopelessly superficial. But when you live in a black-and-white world, where there are no shades of grey, much less any compromise, it’s easy to ignore facts. They’re just too inconvenient.
I sort of envy Carlisle’s ignorance. No, what am I saying? I don’t want to be “brain dead” like he once accused Hawaii jurors of being!
Nobody cares because there is no longer a 2 party system in Hawaii.
Maybe you are conflicted by that Ian? On one hand, your side has won and has a generational stranglehold on the legislature. On the other hand, in your heart, you believe in democracy and a healthy competitive environment for ideas.
I mean, what do you protest against when everyone is on your team? I guess you play defense and stifle the opposition so you never let your foot off their throat?
That is why people do not pay attention in Hawaii, the home team wins every game, the mercy rule is in effect, everyone has left the game from boredom.