Over the years I have argued that the Daily Times has acted unethically by refusing to disclose certain relationships and potential conflicts of interest. These include, but are not limited to, then Executive Editor (now General Manager) Greg Bassett’s relationship with former congressman Wayne Gilchrest (his wife Cathy served as Gilchrest’s Communications Director) and Managing Director Erick Sahler’s relationship with the Wicomico Board of Education (his wife serves as the BOE’s public information officer).
To be clear, I am not arguing that either Cathy Bassett or Tracy Sahler have done anything wrong. I am not even arguing that the DT has done anything wrong, other than their failure to disclose the relationships. I will argue that they have shown bias in favor of both Gilchrest and the BOE. However, I will also admit that this bias would probably have manifested itself without the aforementioned relationships.
No, my request is a simple one – DISCLOSE the relationships. Let the reader make up his or her own mind.
The Daily Times has further eroded its own credibility when it argues that in an area like ours it is ridiculous to expect such disclosure. The gist of Sahler’s argument is that we are all a bunch of incestuous bumpkins and EVERY article written would require such a disclosure. Sahler attempts to justify this foolish theory by claiming that, under my argument, they would have to go so far as to disclose op-ed editor Susan Parker’s role as a member of the Salisbury Orchestra when writing about the Orchestra. I wasn’t even aware that the DT had a music critic.
Yesterday we ran an op-ed regarding a Virginia lawyer declaring his candidacy against House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. In the post we linked to an article in the Richmond Times Dispatch. At the bottom of the article ran the following disclosure:
Cantor's wife, Diana F. Cantor, is a member of the board of directors of Media General Inc., parent company of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Is that so difficult? Is the Daily Times so filled with earth shatteringly important news that they can’t afford to print an extra 25 or 30 words?
Such disclosures can go a long way into showing motive (or at least suggesting it). Is the Daily Times an independent agent when reporting on the board of ed (as the most current example)? Maybe. Maybe not. One thing is certain, their childish refusal to do the right thing and disclose a potential conflict leads many readers to believe that they are less than independent.
G. A. Harrison is a frequent contributor to “Salisbury News”. “Delmarva Dealings” appears each Wednesday and Sunday at Noon on SbyNEWS.com.
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15 comments:
How come we never see you disclose that you're a Republican shill whose only point in life is to carry water for the Republican Party?
The DT has political interest the same as a lot of MSM.
If their interest conflict with SBYNews then so be it.
If they have broken the law , then that is another thing.
the DT has a long history of this problem. mr. harrison; i agree with you 100%.........
What about asking PRMC to disclose certain relationships and potential conflicts of interest between them and some of the vendors they have hired to partner with them?
And, don't the Saylers and Pollitts attend the same church and I think are good friends? And, live fairly close to one another? Is this how Pollitt gets such "friendly" coverage too? Please check this out Joe. You would think the DT would be even more scrutinizing over the BOE and Executive if this is the case so there won't even be a thought of conflict of interest or as we say it on the sho' goot 'ole boy politics.
GA I couldn't agree with you more.
I too have been saying the same thing about The Daily Times having an agenda. I have witnessed it in their reporting time and time again.
There is a stark contrast in the reporting styles of SBYnews verses The Daily Times. Almost as much as there is a difference in Fox News reporting verses ABC.
For so long our residents have been spoon fed information by The Daily Times because there was no other alternative media.
I now know that The Daily Times is more referred to as pure 'tabloid' and I try and keep that in mind as I scan their articles.
We canceled our DailySlime subscription 3 years ago, mainly due to the apparent bias in their reporting (or lack of reporting, as the case may be).
Don't miss `em one bit
Anon 1220 -
Everyone has a right to their opinion. However, opinion does not equate to fact. First of all, I disclose on a regular basis that I am a conservative. Second, I don't shill for anyone. Finally, your claim about carrying water for the GOP is ridiculous on its face. If you had bothered to read LAST Sunday's column, "Big Fish in a Little Pond", you would never have made such a foolish statement.
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Anon 1324 -
I understand where you are coming from, but we're talking apples and oranges. PRMC doesn't claim to be a news organization. It is standard journalistic practice to disclose potential conflicts of interest. The "Daily Times" is one of the few newspapers I have ever seen that does not follow that practice.
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Anon 1326 -
Yes, it is my understanding that the Pollitts and the Sahlers are good friends and that the Sahlers are frequent guests at Rick's beach house. I don't know about attending the same church.
That said, I'm not arguing that the newspaper be forced to disclose every relationship. That starts to become the absurdist argument offered by Erick Sahler. However, when a family member has a direct financial stake in the subject of a story then it should definitely be disclosed.
For the past 25 years -- under the ownership of Lord Thomson and now Gannett, and the local leadership of buffoons like Bassett and Susan Parker, the DT has become probably the worst daily newspaper (and the most overpriced) in America.
We can get more and better news for free in the Coast Dispatch -- try it.
It always amuses me that those who sling arrows (calling someone a Republican shill) hide behind an anonymous comment.
Craig Theobald
Ironshire
Are you going to disclose your relationships GA? If not stop throwing mud. Your relationships explain ALOT about your positions and the hack job so called articles about those you oppose and those your support. maybe you should tell everyone why????
Anon 2155 -
First of all, neither Greg Bassett nor Susan Parker are buffoons. I may disagree with them on a regular basis, but that does not make them stupid.
One of the great things about America is the (relatively) free market. If you or I don't like the DT, we don't have to buy it. If you don't like SbyNEWS (which we hope you do), you don't have to read it.
God Bless America!
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Thanks Craig.
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Anon 2302 -
You are referring to ....?
What mud did I sling in this post? I merely expressed an opinion that is shared by many readers and those in journalism. I used a recent example I came across when doing another, unrelated post.
Whether you realize it or not, you are paying me quite a compliment. If this makes you that upset, it's pretty obvious that I'm not a hack. If I was, you wouldn't be worrying this much. Would you?
The FT ahs published opinion as news for years. They should disclose relationships such as those you mentioned when writing about BOE. Their pieces about Onley Rd. were filled with misinformation that seemed to favor Ireton and Frederickson.
It's sad the DT is the only newpaper in our area. If I believed everything I read in the DT newspaper I would have moved out of Wicomico County years ago. What a disservice they do to our leaders and the community. I am familiar with most who serve this county and think they are good people. When the DT runs their name in the mud in a story they seem to only have half of the story. Unfortunately they have no investigative reporter on staff to really dig into a story or issue.
I used to give the local plant closings to the DT staff, and, I would also give them key pieces of legislation that were anti-business - (i.e. Removal of Maryland's Special Equipment Tag for Construction Trailers, tag increases, registration increases, mammoth increases in Medivac Helicopter fund expansion) - most all of these issues were 'brushed under the carpet.'
I spoke many times to Greg Bassett about my concerns regarding Maryland being anti-business and particularly the State and Local government expansion.
What-a-shame for unbiased news coverage. I always felt that special interest was their paramont concern.
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