No one would ever make this mistake unless it was true. The worst part is that most Americans think it's weird and unpatriotic to point this kind of stuff out.
Monday, March 23, 2009
I wrote this to the President of Stephens Media: Owners of the Herald Democrat after years of shoddy journalism and lazy content.
"Stephens Media™ started with this idea: Give readers what they can't get anywhere else - hometown news. That idea grew into a multi-media company that anticipates what customers need and provides it.
Stephens Media™ is an industry leader that remains true to its roots, while looking to the future."~this is straight from your website.
I have this question, Mr. Frederick. Exactly what caused you to stray from providing local news to anticipating what customer's need? If local news was so important to your success then why change? And exactly what needs can you assess from out of state? Do you consider the local newspaper office leaders to be able to give you insight as to the inner workings of our local government and economy? I think not.
I took the time to study today's Herald Democrat newspaper and this is what I found.
Front page A1 consists of: a local reporter writing about a statue of some pope found in N.C., a plane crash in Montana, Obama discussing Afghanistan strategy, and republican predictions of "doomsday!" regarding Obama budgets. Four stories with NO local news. None.
Page A2: 3 stories based in Texas. One discussing a bill to make postpartum depression a legal defense, a bill to do a study of just how much women really know about the "day after" birth control pill, and one story about some guy who stole a bunch of money and the "Receiver in Stanford case working as fast as he can". You might call this local, but it certainly isn't. You have 5 newspapers in 4 towns in Texas and this is all you can think to focus on? Surely something happened in one of these towns worth mentioning in their own newspaper.
Page A3: A FULL PAGE ad for dish network. That probably made you a nice buck or two. surely half a page would have sufficed. No local company got that much space, which leads me to think that this paper is more interested in dollars signs then trying to "give people what they can't get anywhere else".
page A4: Opinions...this is what we need more of. News is created by people and if people are denied a voice then what was once news becomes tabloid and propaganda. Local news should have more local opinion.
Page A5: Dear Abbey, Dr. Paul, and Horoscopes....tabloid crap! Nothing local. We have a local psychic, lots of doctors, and plenty of advice givers. Let's give them a column.
Page A6: Obituaries. Now while I understand the need/desire to have these published for sake of informing the community of the deaths of friends and loved ones, I do not understand why we need to report on the death of a British reality TV contestant known for shouting racial remarks! Tabloid, Sherman. Sensationalist Tabloid.
A7: The Brits received a video of some guy that got kidnapped 2 years ago by those pesky arabs. The pope was in Africa and he's angry about the wars there. Pakistan is trying to work out their political differences, and the Americans killed some folks in Afghanistan. and Israel is talking to Hamas...still.
A8: weather and two stories. One about the space shuttle avoiding debris and one about a Texas fatcat who's going back to space. 35 million dollars sure would help a lot of people, Charlie!
B1,B2,B3: This may sound weird to you but sports isn't news. Sports pictures, sports statistics, sports NEWS isn't news. The overwhelming majority of people that follow sports don't do it through the Herald Democrat.
B4: Comics and crossword puzzle. This is the only page of this paper I like. It makes me laugh and it makes me think. Besides food, water, and being loved, that's all anyone really needs.
B5,B6,B7,B8: classified ads
It's funny how a company that claims to strive to give me what I cannot get anywhere else is giving me the majority of my news from somewhere else about somewhere else. You use the Associated Press like an eighth grader would for an easy grade on their essay paper. I sit each night and read the world news and try to peg which stories that Stephens Media will pick to present to the local newspapers as valid to their position in the world or even their own communities. Approximately 90% of this newspaper is from the AP!!! And that includes the sports!! Given the proper resources this paper could supply what you espouse to be your initial goal. Good, honest, local news about local events, local people, local government action and the citizens opinions of it all.
You're running a RAG, Mr. Frederick. Plain and simple. You are exploiting local citizens in an attempt to keep people uninformed, entertained, and in a position of "no say". And all this for only $138/year...that's a dollar a month more than last year, by the way. And speaking of dollars. How is that you can provide an entire year's worth of this newspaper through the AASP to people in nursing homes for only 1 dollar, but I have to pay $138 dollars plus THEIR dollar???? I suggest you take the dollar raise you gave yourself each month per subscription and donate it to the nursing home folks in the form of 12 newspaper subscriptions per subscriber you already have. You'd do that if you really cared. But I have serious doubts to your concern about the people in those facilities or the people of this community. The only reason I even receive this paper is because my 84 year old grandmother reads it for something to do and doesn't understand the ramifications of having a newspaper that lives off sensationalist media and hidden agenda. Maybe you should give her the paper for 1 dollar a year! I have to admit, though, it makes good tinder for the fireplace in winter. But seeing as it is spring I am considering not renewing at all.
-Justin K. McBride
Denison, TX
"Stephens Media™ started with this idea: Give readers what they can't get anywhere else - hometown news. That idea grew into a multi-media company that anticipates what customers need and provides it.
Stephens Media™ is an industry leader that remains true to its roots, while looking to the future."~this is straight from your website.
I have this question, Mr. Frederick. Exactly what caused you to stray from providing local news to anticipating what customer's need? If local news was so important to your success then why change? And exactly what needs can you assess from out of state? Do you consider the local newspaper office leaders to be able to give you insight as to the inner workings of our local government and economy? I think not.
I took the time to study today's Herald Democrat newspaper and this is what I found.
Front page A1 consists of: a local reporter writing about a statue of some pope found in N.C., a plane crash in Montana, Obama discussing Afghanistan strategy, and republican predictions of "doomsday!" regarding Obama budgets. Four stories with NO local news. None.
Page A2: 3 stories based in Texas. One discussing a bill to make postpartum depression a legal defense, a bill to do a study of just how much women really know about the "day after" birth control pill, and one story about some guy who stole a bunch of money and the "Receiver in Stanford case working as fast as he can". You might call this local, but it certainly isn't. You have 5 newspapers in 4 towns in Texas and this is all you can think to focus on? Surely something happened in one of these towns worth mentioning in their own newspaper.
Page A3: A FULL PAGE ad for dish network. That probably made you a nice buck or two. surely half a page would have sufficed. No local company got that much space, which leads me to think that this paper is more interested in dollars signs then trying to "give people what they can't get anywhere else".
page A4: Opinions...this is what we need more of. News is created by people and if people are denied a voice then what was once news becomes tabloid and propaganda. Local news should have more local opinion.
Page A5: Dear Abbey, Dr. Paul, and Horoscopes....tabloid crap! Nothing local. We have a local psychic, lots of doctors, and plenty of advice givers. Let's give them a column.
Page A6: Obituaries. Now while I understand the need/desire to have these published for sake of informing the community of the deaths of friends and loved ones, I do not understand why we need to report on the death of a British reality TV contestant known for shouting racial remarks! Tabloid, Sherman. Sensationalist Tabloid.
A7: The Brits received a video of some guy that got kidnapped 2 years ago by those pesky arabs. The pope was in Africa and he's angry about the wars there. Pakistan is trying to work out their political differences, and the Americans killed some folks in Afghanistan. and Israel is talking to Hamas...still.
A8: weather and two stories. One about the space shuttle avoiding debris and one about a Texas fatcat who's going back to space. 35 million dollars sure would help a lot of people, Charlie!
B1,B2,B3: This may sound weird to you but sports isn't news. Sports pictures, sports statistics, sports NEWS isn't news. The overwhelming majority of people that follow sports don't do it through the Herald Democrat.
B4: Comics and crossword puzzle. This is the only page of this paper I like. It makes me laugh and it makes me think. Besides food, water, and being loved, that's all anyone really needs.
B5,B6,B7,B8: classified ads
It's funny how a company that claims to strive to give me what I cannot get anywhere else is giving me the majority of my news from somewhere else about somewhere else. You use the Associated Press like an eighth grader would for an easy grade on their essay paper. I sit each night and read the world news and try to peg which stories that Stephens Media will pick to present to the local newspapers as valid to their position in the world or even their own communities. Approximately 90% of this newspaper is from the AP!!! And that includes the sports!! Given the proper resources this paper could supply what you espouse to be your initial goal. Good, honest, local news about local events, local people, local government action and the citizens opinions of it all.
You're running a RAG, Mr. Frederick. Plain and simple. You are exploiting local citizens in an attempt to keep people uninformed, entertained, and in a position of "no say". And all this for only $138/year...that's a dollar a month more than last year, by the way. And speaking of dollars. How is that you can provide an entire year's worth of this newspaper through the AASP to people in nursing homes for only 1 dollar, but I have to pay $138 dollars plus THEIR dollar???? I suggest you take the dollar raise you gave yourself each month per subscription and donate it to the nursing home folks in the form of 12 newspaper subscriptions per subscriber you already have. You'd do that if you really cared. But I have serious doubts to your concern about the people in those facilities or the people of this community. The only reason I even receive this paper is because my 84 year old grandmother reads it for something to do and doesn't understand the ramifications of having a newspaper that lives off sensationalist media and hidden agenda. Maybe you should give her the paper for 1 dollar a year! I have to admit, though, it makes good tinder for the fireplace in winter. But seeing as it is spring I am considering not renewing at all.
-Justin K. McBride
Denison, TX
I'm getting kinda tired of listening to "activists" right now. Not so much the stand in the street and shout your defiance to corrupt politicians and unjust laws kind of activists, but rather, the sit at home and bitch and whine about saving the(insert creature of your choice). While sitting around pining about politics is almost as pointless, at least there is a point. Freedom! What is the point of campaigning to save a particular species of animal/insect when there is no scientific gain for doing so. Now I love a cute little broad-toothed rat or a short-nosed sturgeon as much as the next guy but if we are going to save THEM then let's look at who we are ignoring. Not many people talk about Burma - but we should be. Burma, also known as Mynamar, is a country of 50 million people who are being systematically brutalized by their own government, a military regime known ironically as the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). The SPDC's army has destroyed over 3,000 villages in eastern Burma over the last 10 years, creating over 1 million refugees and over 500,000 people trapped inside the country. As many as 400 children die daily. These displaced people are unable to live in their own villages, their crops are destroyed, landmines are laid in their fields and they are pressed into modern-day slavery by the army. Additionally, the democratically-elected leader, Aung San Suu Kyi is the only Nobel Peace Prize winner who is under house arrest, where she has been for over 10 years.
In Africa a child dies every thirty seconds. In the time it takes for you to read this far 2 little kids died from starvation. It's sickening. We have every available technology to turn Africa into a fertile, life supporting continent but instead we choose to deal with corrupt country and village leaders who steal the aid money and hoard any food supplies for themselves while letting people die needlessly. And why do we do nothing? Because, Africa is rich in mineral content and jewels to be mined. African families give up the rights to their own land for a little money, food, and supplies and when that runs out they are screwed...again. And since we are in Africa companies don't worry so much about environmental cost of dumping wasted products into fields, streams, rivers. Those that are near water sources have to deal with contamination. Those who lived off the land they owned couldn't use it even if they wanted to. The soil is dead. In Ecuador U.S. officials are suppressing a root-remedy that was discovered by Alpha Omega Labs that is 95% effective in treating and sometimes curing skin cancer. Skin cancer created mostly by the unethical dumping of waste into pristine the water sources of the Ecuadorian rainforests. Thses are the actions of our government at work. This is why the world hates us and I am sick and goddamned tired of listening to fat, stupid americans tell me that we need to save some fucking marsh rat. We need to wake up, people!!! The world is a vast, beautiful, wonderful place that we have barely begun to understand. And while I believe that all creatures have a purpose, we will never discover them until we start recognizing our own. Humans beings have evolved to a point where we are almost completely without instinct or physical survival skills. Humans survive almost solely off the seeminly unlimited capability of progressive thinking. We never cease to come up with new ideas and we are always improving the old ones. But humans have four traits that no other animal exhibits:We kill for pleasure, we can committ suicide, we poison our own environment, and we allow our own species to suffer and die right under our feet.
And in the midst of all this turmoil we hear these people screaming that we need to save the California Rain Beetle or the Sumatran Tiger. How about observing the fact that we are all animals and focus some attention on saving them! And don't be fooled all you tree hugging, bug kissing, liberals out there. Things are this way because your government wants it this way and until you stand up and fight for the true cause of freedom and a healthy environment, then we are all doomed. Even the Zayante Band-winged Grasshopper.
In Africa a child dies every thirty seconds. In the time it takes for you to read this far 2 little kids died from starvation. It's sickening. We have every available technology to turn Africa into a fertile, life supporting continent but instead we choose to deal with corrupt country and village leaders who steal the aid money and hoard any food supplies for themselves while letting people die needlessly. And why do we do nothing? Because, Africa is rich in mineral content and jewels to be mined. African families give up the rights to their own land for a little money, food, and supplies and when that runs out they are screwed...again. And since we are in Africa companies don't worry so much about environmental cost of dumping wasted products into fields, streams, rivers. Those that are near water sources have to deal with contamination. Those who lived off the land they owned couldn't use it even if they wanted to. The soil is dead. In Ecuador U.S. officials are suppressing a root-remedy that was discovered by Alpha Omega Labs that is 95% effective in treating and sometimes curing skin cancer. Skin cancer created mostly by the unethical dumping of waste into pristine the water sources of the Ecuadorian rainforests. Thses are the actions of our government at work. This is why the world hates us and I am sick and goddamned tired of listening to fat, stupid americans tell me that we need to save some fucking marsh rat. We need to wake up, people!!! The world is a vast, beautiful, wonderful place that we have barely begun to understand. And while I believe that all creatures have a purpose, we will never discover them until we start recognizing our own. Humans beings have evolved to a point where we are almost completely without instinct or physical survival skills. Humans survive almost solely off the seeminly unlimited capability of progressive thinking. We never cease to come up with new ideas and we are always improving the old ones. But humans have four traits that no other animal exhibits:We kill for pleasure, we can committ suicide, we poison our own environment, and we allow our own species to suffer and die right under our feet.
And in the midst of all this turmoil we hear these people screaming that we need to save the California Rain Beetle or the Sumatran Tiger. How about observing the fact that we are all animals and focus some attention on saving them! And don't be fooled all you tree hugging, bug kissing, liberals out there. Things are this way because your government wants it this way and until you stand up and fight for the true cause of freedom and a healthy environment, then we are all doomed. Even the Zayante Band-winged Grasshopper.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Ok. Here we go. This will be the first post ever from me as a blogger. I am not sure the direction this will take or even how long I plan to keep it up. For now let me state that I love my country, my home state of Texas, and my hometown of Sherman, TX. I occurs to me; however, that most people trample through their lives with little regard to the laws that surround them. State laws, county laws, city codes, district and local. Hell, most people living withing a H.O.A seldom know the very laws they agree to follow and most police do not know the very laws they are expected to uphold an defend on all levels. While perusing the city of Sherman's city codes via online I noticed that I didn't see any statutes regarding filming ie videotaping, digital recording, audio visual etc. within public spaces. The website directed me to call the city clerk, which I did. She had no answers for me and seemed quite displaced by my asking such a question. She did her best to inquire as to why I would want to film at all to which I responded that I had no specific motive but was sincerely trying to understand the law; if there was one, for the sake of not breaking it unknowingly. Two hours later I received a phone call from the head lieutentant of the City of Sherman police department who informed me that the Chief of police had instructed him to call me and answer my questions. He did so, politely, and very matter of fact. He did express concerns that citizens could become little anxious about seeing someone filming them in public and could possibly complain but he assured me that if the law was being followed then the law would be upheld and defended. In a day and age of mass police brutality and corruption in courts across this nation it is nice to live in a city where people are respected and the law is followed. So far this has been an exercise in theory. Testing of said laws and lawkeepers shall follow.
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