Readers of the Ontario-based Inland Valley Daily Bulletin yesterday (Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009) may have noticed that the first page featured a story by Josh Dulaney bylined: "ECONOMY IN CRISIS," and headlined "Conference promises hope in hard times: Thousands expected at Chino event." It occupied a prominent place, above the fold and above the main story of the day, President Obama's signing of the $787 billion jobs and recovery bill.
When I saw first saw this, my thoughts turned to local TV news coverage of thoroughly commendable and newsworthy efforts by Southland churches to help persons driven to desperation by the downturn. One church in the L.A. basin went so far as to help pay outstanding and overdue bills for people who were not even members.
Was this an similar, local effort? I hoped so. Which explains why reading it turned out to be an exercise in all-too-common infuriation with the Daily Bulletin.
What made this story newsworthy enough to place just under the masthead of the front page? At best, the only promise of any concrete help is perhaps, a free meal. And that wasn't guaranteed. Ofterwise, this story concerns an albeit large but otherwise un-newsworthy confab of holy rollers and snake-oil peddlers. At least Rick Warren earned his front page coverage months ago by having presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama attend his event in Orange County. This event in Chino is no more newsworthy than a Benny Hinn freak show.
The Chino get-together is called: the Southern California Prophecy Conference, and the conference itself is entitled: "Finding Hope in the Global Crisis." All the guest speakers are luminaries in the far fringes of the Christian right, and at best, will likely offer attendees the same sage advice that Cal Thomas, formerly the mouthpiece of the late Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority, offered in his POV of a few days earlier: "work harder and get by with less." Other than that, one can expect routine rants on favorite right-wing obsessions couched in the language of biblical prophecy. About the only newsworthy thing that can be anticipated from this event is a speaker comparing Barack Obama to the Anti-Christ. And heck!, we can get that piece of illuminating info from talkradio.
So what exactly, Josh Dulaney, made this story so newsworthy? And what possessed the editors to place it where a hundred more important, useful stories could have gone?
Perhaps, the more important question is: When, at last, is the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin going to become a serious newspaper?
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4 years ago
Good post, great points.
ReplyDeleteHowever, to answer your question:
When, at last, is the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin going to become a serious newspaper?
I believe the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin turned away from that path many years ago. Anyone can/may editorially agree/disagree with any newspaper; but over time the IVDB has shown disregard for hard news in favor of fluff feel good articles/targeted directives. How unfortunate.