“Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.”
The Kansas City Star has been criticized—rightly and wrongly—over the years for seemingly following that policy. And the McClatchy-owned paper may be finding itself in that position today following the Romney-Obama debate.
There is no doubt that President Obama will be endorsed by the Star again. That is not even in question.
However, based on the news media around the nation, the clear victor in the debate last night was Romney.
A KMBZ reporter went out this morning in search of anyone who would say Obama had won the debate. The reporter said on the air she could not find a single person.
Chris Matthews on MSNBC almost burst into tears on the air over Obama’s poor performance.
On KMBZ, uber-liberal afternoon talker Dana Wright said that not only did Romney win the debate, but that Obama was “steamrolled.”
The Kansas City Star ran a poll (below) on its site “Who do you think won the first presidential debate?” The results so far: 72% voted for Romney, 17% for Obama.
With that overwhelming response one might think KC Star staffers would have also felt Romney had the edge in the debate. Well, not exactly.
Political columnist/reporter Steve Kraske wrote a column declaring the debate was a draw. “Call Round One a tossup,” was his lede.
His view of the debate forced Star Public Editor Derek Donovan to try and explain it to irate readers.
I’ve spoken to and gotten email this morning from many readers who are extremely upset with Steve Kraske’s analysis of last night’s presidential debate. And when I say “extremely upset,” I’m not exaggerating,” noted Donovan, who said the paper’s editorial said Romney was the victor.
“One caller just now, her voice trembling with anger, told me she was canceling because the front page didn’t say boldly that Romney had won the debate. She then slammed the phone down in my ear.”
The newspaper’s editorial did say Romney was clearly the winner, but then dismissed his victory with “Romney clearly exceeded largely low expectations.” The Star chided Obama for not hammering Romney on his 47% of Americans don’t pay taxes gaffe and for not attacking Romney on specifics.
Even Lewis Diuguid, the Star’s editorial columnist and Obama loyalist, couldn’t give the nod to Romney, saying it was simply “a good show” and that Obama should have hammered Romney on the 47% issue. “Maybe we will get to see that when the two meet again in their second of three presidential debates,” he sniffed.
KRASKE’S LOYALTIES
Where does Kraske spend most of his time when he isn’t at the “Falling Star”? Public Radio of course, where Romney would like to provide the proverbial budget axe. I think we know where his loyalties lie.
STAR OUT-OF-STEP WITH COMMUNITY
How long can the KC Star can continue to exist when it’s so out-of-step with the community it serves.
According to KPIX CBS 5, even the majority of those polled in San Francisco said Romney won the debate. In California, the only demographic that gave Obama the win were African-Americans, and even that was narrow. Every other demographic said Romney won the debate.
http://ow.ly/1OM1PA
DIUGUID
Try spelling Diuguid correctly.
Go ahead, try. We’ll wait.
NATIONAL NEWSPAPER WEEK
National Newspaper Week is next week. The Star won’t do it and really shouldn’t have to do it, but it would be an ideal time for the paper to educate its readers with respect to some of the basics of the profession. Namely, columns are just that – one man’s or woman’s take on a particular issue or question and thus not necessarily the truth, which usually lies somewhere in the middle between two diametrically opposed points of view. Ditto for a paper’s official editorial. Again, it’s not necessarily the truth, simply an opinion. On the other hand, a story should be accurate with respect to the facts and objective in nature. Unfortunately, many readers of The Star and other papers don’t seem to understand any of this. Yes, The Star leans to the left these days and can be expected to endorse the President for re-election. Is it out of step with the community? Perhaps, but then Kansas City proper has traditionally voted Democratic over the years, although I’m fully aware that some of the elections in years gone by had “ghosts” casting ballots in support of the Machine.
EDUCATE STAR READERS
And one more thing. Derek Donovan is The Star’s public editor. In this capacity he should be doing everything he can to educate the readers of the paper. It should not be his job to have to defend what the columnists are saying in their columns other than to say that the columnists are simply exercising their perogative to opine on a given subject. This is part of the educational process.
KOOL AID
Kool Aid is one heck of a drug.
I offered to buy Steve a consolation beer, instead, but I’ve not heard back from him.
WHAT IS THE KC STAR?
What is the KC Star? Was it that wet mass of paper I used to get tossed on my lawn and ended up under my car? My memory is a bit foggy because it’s been years now but I think I remember it was about as irrelevant as anything could be. Soon no one will be commenting on anything they say.