Hi folks:
I spent 45 minutes at the library recently reviewing our local paper's coverage of Howard Dean. The results were shocking - the Kalamazoo Gazette has provided almost exclusively negative coverage to Dr. Dean in its editorial pages.
I would recommend that others do a similar exercise either for Dean or for the candidate of their choice. Reviewing the content of your local paper's editorial pages and classifying each column mentioning Dr. Dean as positive, negative or neutral takes very little time and has a potentially large payoff.
I'll let you know if they publish my letter.
Here's the letter I just submitted:
*****
Dear Editors:
I recently reviewed the editorials, opinion columns and political cartoons published on the editorial pages of the Kalamazoo Gazette from December 21, 2003 to January 13, 2004. Howard Dean was mentioned by name in twelve editorials or columns during this time. Nine of those portrayed him in a negative light and two of them were neutral. Only one painted a positive picture of Dr. Dean.
Two editorial cartoons published on your pages over this time period mentioned Dr. Dean by name - both were negative. There were no corresponding positive or neutral references to Governor Dean in an editorial cartoon over this time.
As the sole newspaper in our community the Gazette has an obligation to present a balanced view of candidates so that voters can make informed decisions. Given the importance of the upcoming Michigan Democratic Party caucus on February 7th, one can only hope that the Gazette will strive to present readers with more even-handed coverage of the Democratic frontrunner.
Sincerely,
KJD