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A shadow on good journalism

Shawn Vestal, as usual, was right. There is good journalism in the Spokesman-Review. It’s a shame to cast the entire team in the same trough as the self-serving, super rich editor by canceling subscriptions to the paper after his insanely short sighted endorsement of Trump. After listing many of Trump’s most obvious deficiencies, the editor’s obsequious support of a man who hates both the news media and democracy leaves most readers shocked and baffled. I am but one of what I assume is a flood of readers who have unsubscribed. After fifty uninterrupted years of subscription, this endorsement is enough for me. I hope this is not the death knell of this struggling and often excellent newspaper.

Mr. Vestal does, however, hint at a possible remedy that might return some of us to the fold. Bring back the editorial board; a board both balance in political viewpoints, and a board without any of the Cowles family (editorials do not need a tiebreaker). While there may be positive outcomes from local ownership of media outlets, the control and positioning of the the main newspaper, and one of the bigger television stations, by one family with a clear bias in favor of the privileged class has for many years placed our region in an information stranglehold. Honest and accurate reporting of events and a fair and balanced editorial policy should be the governing credo of a powerful, single source media and would, I believe, restore credibility and improve subscription rates. Till that happens, I’m out.

John Luppert

Spokane



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