You've read about the current flap in which City Attorney Mike Gridley, an unsuccessful candidate for the state Legislature, has accused the Coeur d'Alene Press of giving preferential treatment to his opponent, Repub Marge Chadderdon.

The Coeur d'Alene Press has dismissed Mike's comments as sour grapes. I don't. My sources in the Hagadone empire say there's something to Mike's complaint. In fact, they say, Brand X has been doing these shenanigans for years, dating back at least to the 1992 state Senate campaign between Repub Frank Henderson and Demo Barb Chamberlain. It works like this:

The Press doesn't make fave candidates pay up front like other candidates. Instead, the business department sends a delayed invoice after the election with no expectation for payment. Then, when the bill isn't paid, the biz dept. writes it off as bad debt.

A lot of full- and half-page ads have been written off that way over the years, according to my sources. Brand X isn't as blatant as it used to be, according to my sources. I think a full-scale audit of Brand X's political ad practices would determine who's right about this very important political issue.

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