I long ago stopped reading the opinion pages of the Arizona Republic. The diversity of opinion that former editor of the editorial pages Keven Ann Wiley brought to the paper is long gone, replaced by a plodding, deeply unserious recycling of right-wing talking points and boosterism that would be hilarious if the stakes were not so huge. Yes, to declare an interest, I chose to leave the paper in 2007 rather than accept a new assignment that would have eliminated my centrist (“socialist) column.
Still, I came across a mention in the New York Times that wealthy Republican John Sidney McCain III had won the endorsement of his “home” state newspaper.
The endorsement is remarkable:
We have seen the irascible McCain. The bawdy and irreverent McCain.
And, yes, the temperamental McCain. Likewise, we here in Arizona have
seen the former Navy pilot and war hero evolve – slowly and with lots
of fits and starts – into a statesman. We have witnessed John McCain become a leader – not only of a
delegation from a fast-growing Southwestern state, but into a national
leader with a reassuring habit of stepping to the front when things
seemed most difficult.
It’s almost as if we’ve been watching two different presidential campaigns. Obama has a big lead in newspaper endorsements, including many Bush ’04 editorial boards that switched sides. But not in Phoenix.
Sarah Palin. The disastrous “suspension of the campaign” to “save” the financial bailout — which actually nearly blew the compromise apart. McCain’s inept campaign. His platform that would largely continue the failed policies of the past eight years. Flip-flopping on torture and taxes. Bomb-bomb-bomb Iran. The medical records non-disclosure. The conservatives jumping ship to endorse Obama. Did I mention his choice of the unqualified and dangerous Sarah Palin to be one heartbeat away from this 72-year-old man?
Statesman? Leader? Reassuring?
Even the Anchorage Daily News had the courage to endorse Obama, citing the governor’s inexperience. But of course McCain’s hometown paper is about as hometown as he is Arizona’s senator. It’s owned by the massive Gannett Corp. which runs its newspapers with a tight leash from on high. With McCain supported by most likely Arizona voters, and the threat of retaliation from the right-wing thugs and the Real Estate Industrial Complex which has profited from his interventions on land swaps, and the skittish “business community) i.e. advertisers — well, you get the picture. Gannett also has business before the government where it wants a sympathetic, pro-media concentration politician. The Republic is also terrified of McCain and Sen. Jon Kyl — so no serious or skeptical reporting will be found, much less thoughtful or independent analysis and opinion.
This is not Gene Pulliam’s damn-the-torpedoes paper of old, which was conservative but in a Goldwater way. With most of the experienced staff gone, it can’t even get Tony Hillerman’s characters correct in his obit. And I don’t think Pulliam, who most of all loved Arizona, would have endorsed a man who has done nothing to address his state’s pressing problems.
The endorsement makes much of how Arizonans know McCain best, when in fact they know McCain the least. But the same is true of this shadow of a newspaper that, while never great, had its moments of greatness and a potential never realized. Its editorials long ago stopped being influential beyond the amen corner. But to be influential requires a newspaper with guts and excellence. Thus, we have to go elsewhere to read about McCain’s real “work” in Arizona.
Read more on Rogue’s Real McCain archive file.
The Republic is facing a 10 percent involuntary reduction of workforce, but they’ve had about 150 percent reduction in brain power since you and a few others left.
I suspect the real determining factor here was the outrage an Obama endorsement would have created. Thousands of dittoheads would have cancelled their subscriptions. A paper only tenuously germane to public debate would have become even more marginalized.
Even Bob Robb seems to understand how awful McCain’s candidacy has been. Outside of ueber-wingnut Doug MacEachern, there’s little genuine enthusiasm for the explosive senator – the same piece of work who wouldn’t even let a Republic reporter on his Straight-Talk Express back in 2000.
I cancelled my subscription when you left. Obviously the Republic is a shell of its former self, partly due to the Internet and partly due to Gannett. The remaining fragments of community consciousness can’t be galvanized by it or the electronic media. The few of us posting comments on lonely blogs can be forgiven for thinking we’re keeping some candles lit.
Newspapers are desperate to appeal to the lowest common denominator. The upper echelons (of all political strains) have long ago moved to the Internet.
Mr. Talton’s assessment is spot on. The “minority view” at the Arizona Republic is usually relegated to small patches of space on the margins. Nevertheless, these do sometimes manage to bring some sense, insight and perspective to the op-ed pages, even if limited to blurb-like commentary a paragraph in length.
For example, there is something called “Quick Hits”, which isn’t likely to show up in the Internet version, but can be found in the print version at the top of the op-ed pages. In the Tuesday, October 28th edition, there was one by Viewpoints editor Joe Garcia, titled “State GOP keeps attack hoax alive with e-mail”.
The text read: “The Oct. 23 e-mail alert from Sean McCaffrey, the Arizona Republican Party’s director, warned that “Democrats are running wild”. As evidence, he cited the John McCain volunteer in Pittsburgh attacked by a Black man, a Barack Obama supporter who carved a “B” in her cheek. As of Monday afternoon, no subsequent e-mail had noted the story was a hoax.”
That says a lot about the state’s Republican Party leadership.
Regarding Tel’s comment that the upper echelons have moved to the Internet, I don’t know anyone I would regard as “upper echelon” who doesn’t read some print edition first. The Internet is great for finding or referencing individual articles, but terrible as a substitute for the experience of reading the paper.
All the polls and studies I have seen indicate that the broader problem is a general decrease in news readership, and show that this hasn’t been offset to any significant degree by Internet use. They also show that those who don’t read newspapers are far less likely (statistically speaking) to get news from the Internet than those who regularly read newspapers and use the Internet as a supplement.
Incidentally, I’ve just had a large (by my modest standards) amount of money stolen from me. Until I regain it, over the next few weeks, I doubt that I will have the time or feel in the mood to participate in, or even read, online news or news commentary. It’s unfortunate, because I value this website, but the damage is already done. Just a heads up, if I seem to drop off the radar screen.
Thanks for mentioning Keven Ann Willey, I hadn’t thought about her in a long time. I had the pleasure of meeting her twice, once while working for Bruce Babbitt in Des Moines in ’88. She, along with Joel Nilsson and Jon Talton, once made the Republic readable.
As usual Jon, you are right on. I had many of the same thoughts when I read the ridiculous endorsement. The word “statesman” just about made me lose my lunch. It is gratifying to see that many polls now say that Arizona is not a lock for McCain, though I doubt he will lose his home state.
You are absolutely right about The Republic fearing McCain and Kyl. Long-gone reporters and editors who tried to do critical pieces were yelled at, marginalized, and finally either reassigned or forced for their own sanity to leave the newspaper. All for just trying to do their job.
It is no wonder that many people have noted that the presidential election coverage this year pales in comparison to the Republic’s effort in 2004. Those were the days!
So glad to see you have your own blog. I’ve missed reading your column in the repub, quit my subscrption when they endorsed W. in 2004 but read your pieces online and got worked up over the comments section–lotsa trolls. What ever happened to frequent comment person, Walter?
MCain is a fraud.