For whatever reason, the New Orleans news media has a love affair with Bobby Jindal. I don't understand it. Even the African-American newspaper, The Louisiana Weekly, endorsed Jindal's run for Governor. I have no idea what the New Orleans media loves about him. He is very bad for New Orleans. Bobby Jindal's Louisiana "Science Education" Act, which allows for the teaching of creationism as science, cost the city a major convention.
The Gambit, which ran that article, seems to be the only media outlet willing to challenge Jindal. For those of you who don't know, tourism is New Orleans' number one industry, employing 70,000 people in the area, and bringing in 4.8 billion dollars in extra spending to the area, so losing conventions and threats of boycotts from other science organizations, is a big deal.
More below the jump.
Then there is the fact that Jindal is closing the only public psychiatric hospital in the New Orleans area. That means, for an area with 1.1 million people, already lacking in psychiatric care facilities, there will be no public psychiatric facility. Now, the media in New Orleans did cover that fact. But this went without any questions as to Bobby Jindal's commitment to the area.
Last year, Jindal cut a $50,000 appropriation out of the budget, calling it pork? What was this appropriation for? It was forUnity Greater New Orleans. That $50,000 dollars would have gotten 44 homeless people off the streets. There has been a major homeless problem in New Orleans since Katrina, and this tiny little part of the budget was deeply needed. Any outrage from the local press? No, not at all.
There's been no real criticism or scrutiny of Jindal, and his apparent distaste for all things New Orleans.
Now there is news that the state of Louisiana may have played a key role in an $8 Billion Dollar Ponzi scheme. Does the Times Picayune look at all at anyone in the Jindal administration? Not at all. It tells us that "an office in Baton Rouge" cleared the way for the scheme. What it doesn't tell us is what office in Baton Rouge? Who heads the office in Baton Rouge? Who appointed the head of that office in Baton Rouge? It doesn't even attempt to answer these questions.
On the other hand, the New Orleans media are more than willing to rake Ray Nagin over the coals.
Now, I am no fan of Ray Nagin. I voted against him both times. But Nagin has recently been raked over the coals by the New Orleans media, for falling behind on his home association fees, and then made fun of because he complained about the treatment.
Then an employee may have paid for a trip to Hawaii. Ethically questionable, but so far, no evidence that a law was broken. So, the media rake him over the coals.
But Jindal gets a pass on everything. No serious questions about shutting down the hospital, no serious questions about cutting a 50,000 dollar appropriation to keep 44 homeless people off the street ($50K out of a budget of $30B), no serious questions about his horrible education policy, no investigation into this Ponzi scheme that Jindal's government may have been involved in.
Nagin, on the other hand, is treated like the anti-christ.
Update: I changed the entry to reflect pico's absolutely correct assertion about Gambit taking on Jindal -- they have been good at questioning him. Also, as pico noted in his comment they did run an article questioning Jindal's ethics. I guess when I wrote this originally that I was pretty pissed at the entire Louisiana media. Pico was right. So, this criticism should pertain to all Louisiana media but the Gambit.