Breaking news, no, actually breaking OPINION, obliges a further delay in publishing the next installment of “Norman, me & the ‘siege’ of Chicago.”
[donation]
By Joel Thurtell
“DELAYING ON DEAL COULD HURT KILPATRICK”
Interesting opinion.
Where’d it come from?
Overheard in some barbershop?
Yackity yack from a cab driver?
Flotsam from some Sean Hannity-like talk-radio stooge?
Why, no, in fact, that piece of self-serving propaganda came from none other than the front page of the Wednesday, September 3, 2008 Detroit Free Press.
Actually, that capital-letter trumpet call does not even pretend to be a fair interpretation of the day’s news. It is part of a back-pat from Freepsters to themselves for publishing a story Sunday that so pissed off Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy that she changed the terms of a plea bargain she’s offering Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.
Reporters love to have impact. They love to brag that their stories caused this or that to happen. And in fact, they often do affect the course of history.
Not for the first time, the blazing print headline is not repeated in the Web version of the story.
The newspaper seems a tad overjoyed at lousing up the deal for Kwame. Why would that be? Because the judges for journalism awards like to hear about impact, and this headline proves the Freep got some mileage from a story?
A bigger question looms: If Prosecutor Worthy’s job is to seek justice, then why is she applying a sliding scale to Kwame — a scale influenced by what a newspaper prints?
She’s pissed at the Free Press so she punishes Kwame? She’s pissed that somebody leaked the story, maybe. So she ups the ante for the mayor? Prosecutors never do any leaking, right?
Well, dumbie, you’re thinking this is about justice. Justice is not the core issue here. Getting Kwame out of the mayor’s office is Priority Numero Uno for everyone involved, except for Kwame, his legal eagles and the retinue of family and friends Kwame installed as city-paid flunkies.
I couldn’t help it. I had to see what the competition had to say. I punched into my Internet browser www.detnews.com.
“Hearings put it all on line for Mayor Kilpatrick,” the Detroit News said. Kind of laid back — none of the hysterics you hear from the other part of the building the News shares with the Freep staff.
Nothing in the News about Worthy’s shifting plea deal. No self-congratulation.
Instead, there’s a list of stories: “Scandals different for Palin, Kilpatrick,” comparing the brouhahas about Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin and Kwame; “Stefani, Ha could be key witnesses at hearing,” recapping the role of the lawyers most involved in the creation of this case; “Council’s case built on own inquiry,” a history of the case, along with a portable data file copy of the Michigan Court of Appeals order denying Kwame’s attempt to stop Gov. Jennifer Granholm from holding a hearing into whether she should order him out of office.
No blazing upper-case headlines.
No high-fiving on Page One.
Just a helpful guide to what’s going on with Kwamegate.
Just workmanlike journalism.
Thank you, Detroit News, for restoring balance to my day.
Drop me a line at joelthurtell(at)gmail.com
