We were listening to the 6 p.m. news last night while driving home. Hawaii News Now and KHON news compete for radio as well as television audiences at 6, and we usually flip back and forth between them while driving.

As usual, there was lots of weather news, and crime/court news.

Then came a serious story. The tentative contract between Hawaiian Electric Co. and the IBEW was turned down in a vote by the union membership.

HECO, of course, is the regulated monopoly utility that provides electricity in three counties. That’s most of the state, making this an extremely important contract. The tentative contract, which avoided a walkout, had been touted earlier by the company.

But reporting on the contract defeat was pro forma at best ( see KHON, Hawaii News Now, KITV). No details. No identifying the issues. No substantive comments. No insights into the negotiations. Apparently no sources in the labor community.

Nothing this morning in the Star-Advertiser, at least online. The mainstream media fails to cover labor. Period. It’s a huge void in reporting, a cone of silence.

No wonder the public is relatively ignorant about organized labor, which contributes to the willingness to scapegoat unions. The media just isn’t doing its job.