The http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=argKE6FdtM8. Consider, finally, the tagline of the Wisconsin Center: “Protect the Vulnerable, Expose Wrongdoing, Seek Solutions.” Fine ideals. That’s true at the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, and there are other good newspapers across the state that have similar ideals, however expressed. What happened that so many have turned away from these ideals, so…
Press
Press
The Public Service of a Private Newspaper
by JOHN ADAMS •
Government taxes to establish a public school system, from the property of private parties, draining them of resources they could use to build alternatives, requiring their children to attend, to be placed in the care of publicly-paid teachers and administrators, but only supplies an answer for why an administrator — with authority over children —…
Press
Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism: 16 Die, But Boating Safety Stalls in Legislature
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’m not a reporter, nor am I journalist. I’ve never aspired to be either one. Like most bloggers (and most people), my knowledge of the press comes simply from reading newspapers, and thinking about the stories they publish. Not too long ago, readers expected reporters to ask officials serious, pertinent questions. There have always been…
Press
NYT Blogger Who Knocked Fox News’ Audience Diversity Has the Same Problem
by JOHN ADAMS •
Interestingly, though, the media site where Stelter [the NYT blogger] primarily blogs (New York Times’ Media Decoder) suffers from the lowest percentage of African-American readers (4.6%) when compared to comparable media sites like Mediaite (5.8%), Gawker (6.4%), Mediabistro (9.2%), etc., according to Nielsen Media Research. I haven’t seen Fox News in who knows how long,…
Politics, Press
The Congressman’s Constituents
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a video making its way through cyberspace that’s sure to the the first of many like it this election year. The video shows the reaction of participants in a town hall meeting to Congressman Brad Sherman’s declaration that he knew nothing about a Department of Justice dismissal of a case against of voter intimidation…
Politics, Press
The Real Surprise in the U.S. News and World Report Poll on Sarah Palin
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a U.S. News and World Report poll about Sarah Palin, asking what readers think of her. It’s not surprising that newspapers and websites have polls about Palin, as she’s well-known, and typically evokes an opinion from readers. My point here isn’t about Palin, but about the website that offers the poll. What’s surprising is…
City, Development, Planning, Press
Whitewater’s Planning Commission Meeting from 5/10/10: Overview
by JOHN ADAMS •
On May 10th, Whitewater’s Planning Commission held a meeting at 6 p.m., with principal the topics being a possible expansion of our local Walmart, and an overlay to an existing residential zoning ordinance for the Starin Park neighborhood. Recording of the meeting — Here’s the video of the meeting, which I will be using for…
Charity, Development, Economy, Free Markets, Planning, Poverty, Press
Madison’s Isthmus: Janesville on the Brink
by JOHN ADAMS •
From Madison’s Isthmus, one reads a story about hardship in nearby Janesville, hardship that should be of concern to those in Whitewater, too. No matter how dire the conditions for Janesville now, I believe that an abandonment of virtually every aspect of commercial and business regulation, along with drastic reductions in government spending except principally…
City, Police, Press
Whitewater Chief Coan and Mankato, MN Candidacy Update
by JOHN ADAMS •
There are a few updates on the search for a Public Safety Director in Mankato, MN, a search for which Whitewater Police Chief Jim Coan is a candidate. First, there’s a story in the Mankato Free Press, entitled, “Public Safety Candidates Go Public,” about the search for the next public safety director for Mankato. The…
City, Police, Press
Whitewater Chief Coan Interviews with Mankato [MN] Free Press
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater Police Chief Jim Coan is a candidate for the public safety director’s post in Mankato, Minnesota. I’ve written about his candidacy before, in Whitewater’s Police Chief and the Job in Mankato, MN. The Mankato Free Press has published interviews with all four candidates for the job. The paper posed the same five questions to…
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Planning, Press
On Whitewater’s “Advancing” Tech Park, Part 2
by JOHN ADAMS •
The first part of this topic appears separately, in the preceding post. In this post, I will consider more of Whitewater City Manager Brunner’s published remarks, from a February 8th story entitled, “Whitewater Tech Park advances; panels to study second building.” A Unique Design. Here’s Brunner, remarking on the building’s supposedly unique character: “We are…
Press
What’s Wrong with PBS, NPR, Etc.?
by JOHN ADAMS •
One month ago, I wrote about launching a fictitious candidacy for one of the non-existent congressional districts to which the federal government had laughably claimed to have distributed stimulus funds. See, Press Release: John Adams to Run for Wisconsin’s 55th Congressional District. In my campaign platform, I was critical of the Public Broadcasting Service and…
Press
Retracto the Correction Alpaca
by JOHN ADAMS •
Over at BigJournalism.com there’s a pseudonymous columnist named Retracto the Correction Alpaca. He submits retraction requests to newspapers and magazines when he believes that he’s spotted an error in a story. His columns are available online. He’s become popular, and he even has his own theme song. I don’t always agree with his analysis of…
City, Police, Press
Whitewater’s Police Chief and the Job in Mankato, MN
by JOHN ADAMS •
Update, 6:21 PM: Fixed link for “What Happens in Vegas…” appearing below. Link now leads correctly to that post. Longtime readers of FREE WHITEWATER know that I have been a critic of Whitewater’s long-tenured (too long, really) police chief, Jim Coan. A search of this site offers ample analysis of Coan’s disappointing tenure in Whitewater,…