Sometimes Letters To The Media Actually Work

If your local news is anything like ours here in my part of Alabama, you see your share of hack journalism for the rightwing. One of the most aggregious in our market is the NBC affiliate, WSFA. This is a station, mind you, that carries James Dobson's "Focus On The Family" I'm in the process now of writing them about their biased coverage.

Last year, and the year before, Senator Russ Feingold came to our region to play golf and meet people in a town called Greenville. He wrote a piece in Salon magazine about his visit in the town the people and how they are being done in by voting for Bush and Repubs. WSFA decided to do a piece on the article Feingold wrote and sent a reporter down to Greenville who proceed in telling the good people there that Feingold had trashed their town and asking their reaction. I couldn't believe it. When Sen. Feingold came back again some months later, it happened again, which prompted me to write the following letter to the station's news director. Below that is the response that I received:
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April 2, 2005

Debbie Vickers
WSFA-TV
10 E. Delano Avenue
Montgomery, AL 36105

Dear Ms. Vickers:
I have watched WSFA for many years, and have always thought your news programming to be the best in our area. But the recent coverage of the comments and visit of Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold to Greenville, were frankly, the most unbalanced reportage I have ever seen on your station.

Mr. Feingold's comments deserved a more fair hearing than WSFA afforded them. Instead, what was presented was a rather caricaturized version of the Senator's words and the issues that were raised. It played right into the old divisions of North and South that are beneath us all.

When I saw Mark Bullock's report on Senator Feingold's November 2004 visit, in which he reported that the Senator had "bashed" the city of Greenville, it prompted me to log on to the web to find out what the gentleman said. I was expecting to find a wholsesale assault on the good people of Greenville, instead, what I read was a complimentary, compassionate piece that dealt with the challenges of small towns all across America. He never called people dumb for voting for George Bush.
The Senator's comments about the beauty and the generosity of our state and people were never conveyed in the piece, nor were those about our patriotism, i.e., "Meanwhile, their children volunteer to risk their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. I can only be humbled by their sacrifice."

The tone and content of both Mr. Bullock and Mr. Brian Henry's stories seemed uncharacteristically harsh and simplistic. Most of the time seemed to be devoted to asking the people of Greenville what they thought of Senator Feingold bashing their town. I never once heard those who were interviewed asked whether they actually read what the Senator wrote. What's worse is the fact that very little, if any time was afforded to Mr. Feingold to present the essence of his comments.

The economic and personal challenges of people in towns like Greenville, and others like it, deserve real attention from local news organizations across this country. WSFA's presentation of the Senator's comments in that regard not only avoided these issues, but took a point of view, something which served neither the people of Greenville, nor people in this viewing area very well.

Your reporters are some of the best in our state and are too good to have to resort to "attack journalism". I hope that you will consider inviting Senator Feingold back to appear on your Newsmakers program for a reasoned discussion of the important issues, such as healthcare and economic development in small towns, that were the crux of his comments and concerns. More importantly, I hope that your station will present a more three-dimensional perspective of people who comment on our state, one that seeks to engage, rather than enrage the viewer.

Sincerely,

Dar (last name)

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The station's response

Dear Mr. (last name),

Thank you for contacting WSFA 12 News with your concerns about our reporting of Senator Russ Feingold's remarks about Alabama. I apologize for my tardy reply.

You make very valid points and I respect your opinion. We did not feel that our coverage was unbalanced at the time. In hindsight, you have presented a perspective that we did not consider. Your email will certainly make us consider things differently and will help us do a better job in the future.

Thank you again for such a well worded critique of our coverage.

Sincerely,

Denise Vickers

News Director

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