The Seattle P-I’s Neal Modie. The Everett Herald’s Jim Haley. The Columbian’s Gregg Herrington. KING-5 News’ Robert Mak. The AP’s Dave Ammons. The Seattle Times’ Ralph Thomas and David Postman. And that’s only a partial list of Washington state political reporters who have quit the business this year alone. And in a busy, presidential election year at that.
Our state’s news industry is beginning to look like one of those post-apocolyptic movies: a desolate, pockmarked, media landscape, largely devoid of people (especially those journalist/heroes of my own post-Watergate youth)… a chaotic scenario in which bloggers like me find ourselves playing the role of Mad Max.
Well… I may be mad, but I’m not crazy, and as sorry as I am to see the sorry state of political reporting in our region, I also see a tremendous opportunity to step into the void left by the departure of Postman and his colleagues, and help take independent media to the next level. That’s why I am so excited to announce that Josh Feit is joining the HA team to lead our HA’08 Election Coverage from now through the November election.
Josh is a ten-year veteran of WA’s political press corps as a reporter and News Editor for the recently defunct soon to be struggling Stranger, and with his decade of experience HA now claims the weighty mantle of “Seattle’s Only Online Newspaper.” For the next two months Josh will be filing two to three major stories a week, plus numerous shorter blog posts, providing the kind of in-depth, independent coverage of Burner v. Reichert, Gregoire v. Rossi and other statewide races you won’t find anywhere else. Really.
How did Reichert get the NEA endorsement? What is Rossi’s exact position on choice? What exactly does the Commissioner of Public Lands do, and is it really an elected office? These are all questions to which the majority of voters don’t know the answer, because our state’s few remaining political reporters either don’t have the time or the curiosity to ask the pertinent questions.
Well, that’s now Josh’s job.
But it’s a job he can’t afford to do for free, and so after brainstorming the possibilities, I decided to roll the dice on the concept of “community-funded journalism” and promise Josh $2,500 I don’t have. And that, loyal readers, is where you come in.
This is more than just an opportunity to get the in-depth political coverage you crave; it’s an opportunity to prove to the corporate media that there is still a viable market for this kind of reporting, and… an opportunity to prove to potential investors that online ventures like HA’08 can compete for audience and dollars in this new media paradigm.
And, at only $2,500 for two months of in-depth political reporting on the contests that matter most, Josh is coming at a bargain price. That’s only one hundred $25.00 contributions… or fifty $50.00 contributions… or… well… you do the math, and then please give whatever you can:
It’s gonna be fun. It’s gonna be scary. I’ve promised Josh complete editorial independence, while reserving the right to viciously trash his posts in my own. None of us know exactly what will come of this experiment, so stay tuned as we build out the HA’08 Election Coverage page, adding new content and features.
And please, show your support for independent journalism by giving today.
What do you mean, “the recently defunct Stranger”?
Did I miss something?
One small step for HA, one ginat step for Seattle?
Hope this works!
I hope this is the beginning of a real assaault on the system.
There is a hole in the media here and an aopportunity to fill that hole.
OTIH, 15 years from now, when Goldy is a silver haired wealthy resident of the newly built Pike Place Towers, and HA is the major form of political reporting for Seattle, with franchises from Boston to Beijing, is it really likley that HA will retian its charming name?
“Hello, this Chun Yu reporting for Horses Ass Beijing on the ….”
Oh well, there is always Equus.
David @1,
I was just, um, joshing them. But now that it’s been pointed out in the comment thread, I’ll go in and make my planned correction: “soon to be struggling.”
Sorry josh, find a different blog if you want to make some money from readers…
KCTS gives donors coffee mugs, table books or DVDs featuring 18 Years of Charlie Rose. Sweeten the deal.
postman quit the times?
@6
Made a $50 contribution just because of you, Don. Thanks.
Anyone else have something to say? I bet HA supporters could meet the goal today if our friendly trolls come around.
Again asking for donations.
Just tell the ha hooligans it’s a tax increase to read the posts.
They support tax increases so they will be happy to donate their $$.
Goldy, keep those Republican ads in prominant places on your site. I love clicking on them once a day – it costs them a few cents, and puts a few cents in your pocket.
But it only works once a day – beyond that, Google has a system in place to protect against multiple clicks by the same computer.
Maybe the skill set for “reporter” and “PR flack” are not very different when it comes to paid gigs. And don’t think that Stranger writers won’t do the same:
“All members of the public may receive Council news releases by contacting George Howland Jr., Council Communications, 206-684-8159, george.howland@seattle.gov“
Maybe if the Stranger actually did journalism I could believe this was good for HA. Josh will need to show and prove before he gets a dime.
notaboomer @ 7: Apparantly Postman has left the Times and is going to work for Paul Allen at Vulcan Development.
Postman to Paul Allen
It was news to me, too, although I’ve been out of the country for a bit over a week.
Write on—Goldy and Josh!
I do the same thing you do just to waste the money of left-wing democrats.
Check your cookies. Delete the most recent from google ads.
Are you the real rhp or the impostor?
thanks rhp. i’ll take your word for now as the nwsource server seems to be down.
Woo-hoo! Josh Feit. On the Internet, you may get a word in edgewise!
You gotta be shitting me. You view the addition of the juvenile snarky Josh Feit as a positive addition to HA. The credibility of HA is plummeting at the mere idea of Dan Savage’s former squeeze writing political commentary here.
Ten years working for The Stranger counts as around ten minutes of experience in journalism. And that was by accident.
Goo luck, Goldy, in your pursuit of the 14 year old demographic.
Once again, just continuing the stereotype that republicans work and have money while democrats sit around waiting for government handouts.
Seems like you folks on the far-left have your work cut out for you..
This just released by Reuters:
“WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama are dead even in two public opinion polls released on Monday as they head into the final eight weeks of the race for the White House.
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The polls were taken Friday through Sunday after last week’s Republican convention, which ended on Thursday. A CNN/Time poll showed the race deadlocked at 48 percent, and a Hotline/Diageo poll put the two candidates even at 44 percent.
The CNN/Time poll was largely unchanged from the previous week, when Obama led McCain by 49 percent to 48 percent. The Hotline poll showed a significant convention bounce for McCain, who trailed Obama by 9 percentage points in a poll taken the week before.
Another poll released on Sunday, by USA Today/Gallup, gave McCain a 4-point edge among registered voters and a 10-point lead among likely voters. That was a big boost for McCain, who trailed Obama by 3 points among likely voters in the week before the Democratic convention.
I’m afraid most of you are too blinded by your left-wing ideology to understand what the word momentum means.
Let’s put it this way………..O-blah-blah doesn’t have any.
@18: No mention of government paying for Josh Feit anywhere in the post. In fact, handling it by donation is right in line with the libertarian pay-as-you-go approach.
What happened to the landslide victory and end of conservativism most of you Left-wingers so boldly predicted??
Seems like America is more interested in government reform rather than O-blah-blah’s nebulous reference to change…which is being construed by many moderates as BAD CHANGE!
I think Middle America is sick of the angry, heart of stone Leftist rantings. They are unwilling to sacrifice security for Santa Claus O-blah-blah’s promises of many worldwide “conversations” and lots of free stuff for poor folks.
I’ll bet the Clinton’s are having a good laugh.
BTW, where are the Clinton’s???
Aren’t they supposed to be campaigning hard for O-blah-blah??
Seems like they changed their minds.
I’ll bet Bill, Hillary & Chelsea all vote for John McCain…because he is solid and ready to be president.
The attacks on Sarah Palin and her family have failed. They nutroots Bloggers have lead to the alienation of Middle America toward their ideology and anything or anyone they promote.
It was inevitable that Left-wingers with Marxist beliefs eventually fly up their own orifice.
Congrats to my friends on the Left.
You have pulled defeat out of the jaws of certain victory!
It’s Obama/Biden in November in a walk.
Sarah is a corrupt, power-hungry pit-bull with lipstick. The truth about her awful pipeline deal will come out. The truth about her extreme views are already there for everyone to see.
And McSame? The same as Bush. How did Bush work out? Not too good.
Unemployment is rising. Stock market is in the tank. The taxpayers will have to bail out FN/FM and the auto companies. Americans and countless locals died in the sands of Iraqs. America’s name was dragged through the mud by the practice of torture. Republicans had free reign to indulge in corruption.
America is better than this but we won’t have a chance to find out if we don’t throw the bums out. I’m confident we will. A lot can happen in 60 days.
I really don’t think the LEFTIST PINHEADED KLOWNS understand what they have done. Allow me to explain it in very simple terms:
1) You attacked her family….over & over again. 1st it was her pregnant daughter. But the very, very worst were the unsubstantiated & false rumors that her Downs Syndrome baby was also her daughters. And then you launched a false rumor that she had an affair with her husband’s business partner. Don’t you get it KLOWNS? Woman will decide this election. What you have done is irreversible.
2) You attacked her ability to run for office because of her family. YIKES! What have woman been fighting for for the past 4 decades???
Isn’t there one of you KLOWNS out there not so blinded with rage and bitterness to understand the consequences of these vicious, unfounded attacks??
Palin is a strong woman. Unflinching in the face of these vicious sideshows.
Had you only shown some restraint (something you are obviously incapable of), your guy would be winning. Go ahead and challenge her record, her qualifications and people that she affiliates herself with. But you could not help yourselves.
If McCain wins, you only have yourselves to blame.
YLB–
Your hollow rantings are based on what????
Momentum?? NO, that’s not it.
Wishful thinking?? YUP.
You simply do not get it….
You have alienated the women, moron!
@23 A lot can happen in 60 days.
A lot has happened in the last 60 days – McCain has pulled even, despite all the issues we’ve been told Obama has working for him. Why isn’t Obama walking away with this now?
Ahhh Geee….
Which party created the rumor that McC had a mental breakdown?
Which party claimed that Se, Obama was a muslim?
Which party ran the swift boat ads?
Which party currently employs Karl Rove’s shop in its presidential run?
Which party accused McCain of being opposed to Cancer Research?
=============================================
Most of the assorted stuff about Pal;in has not come form the Dems btw. Moreover some of it is true.
O-blah-blah isn’t walking away with this because:
1) People do not trust him on National Security.
2) He has zero accomplishments on his paperthin resume.
3) The fringe lunatic left (aka HA regular-types) have been sooooooooooo offensive to both McCain & now, especially Palin, they are rejecting the loons.
The LEFTIST PINHEADED KLOWNS are once again pulling defeat out of the jaws of certain victory….because of their angry, vitrolic diatribes.
SJ–
You are becoming deluded.
You are allowing your anti-Christian beliefs to distort the facts.
What the Left spewed about PALIN’s family was ridiculous…and untrue.
O-blah-blah’s daddy was a muslim….although I’m more concerned about Barrack Hussien O-blah-blah’s choice of friends and mentors…
Wright, Flager, Ayers & Rezko.
Those are fair game SJ.
Not all Christians are evil SJ.
Snap out of it.
Part of the problem with Hillary’s campaign was that her polling didn’t include the tens of thousands of young Obama supporters which turned out, especially at caucuses. It completely upset her budget strategy for the campaign, and her allocation of resources. The reason why the polling didn’t work? Most of Obama’s young supporters don’t have land lines, they have cell phones only. Pollsters aren’t supposed to call cell phones because it would mean that the recipient is paying for the call.
So I’m still waiting to see what happens in November. Are the Democrats going to be able to marshall those vast numbers of young Obama supporters and get them to the polls? Usually they are an unreliable voting block, in that many never bother to register or vote and those that do tend to vote the same way their parents do. But this year appears to be different, if the primary season is any indication.
If the Democrats can get these young people registered, educated on the down-ticket, and to the polls, it could make for a very interesting election, as the mainstream media is left stammering trying to explain why their polls/predictions seemed so far off.
Of course, that’s a big IF.
The LEFTIST PINHEADED KLOWNS are once again pulling defeat out of the jaws of certain victory….because of their angry, vitrolic diatribes.
So the smartest strategy the “angry, vitrolic” Obama supporters could use to ensure their guy wins is to back McCain using the same methods they now employ to back Obama?
@29 Mr. C
1. Yes Senator Obama’s father was a muslim. Why does that matter to you? John McCain was, at one time, a collaborator. Is that fair game too? Or how about the three children that mysteriously were no present at the convention .. or did the first marriage not count?
I find mud slinging disgusting and the entire R party has that smell.
2. No, Ms. Pain’s form of Christianity is itself extremist. Read my lips .. genetics and evolution .. these are real things. If you want the US to be competitive in the 21st century we better comply with reality.
3. Yeh, your mud machines really got to Rev. Wright. smeared him up REALLL GOOD! Oh BTW, what was that visit by John McC to Jerry Falwell about or his support from Hague?
4. Unlike you Repricans, I RESPECT most religion as long as they are not hypocritical and do nto advocate harm to others. Is that too … Jewish ..for you to understand?
So yeh, there is a lot about Ms. Palin’s religion that scares me .. she seem to think Iraq is a holy war, that raped women should bear their babies against their will, that the world was created 5679 years ago in October, that the world will miraculously absord CO2, that the same world will create endless stores of oil, etc etc. You know hwo else believes most of this? Osama bin Ladin! Sara and Osama, quite a couple!
Oh yeh, she is proud of intentionally making a baby with Down’s syndrome. Or do you think it sis responsible for a 44yo woman who believes that abortion is wrong to have a baby knowing there is this much risk? Oh, and she loves the baby? That is so cool … so cool that the plan is for her sister to raise the baby.
If THAT is your idea of Christianity, then I hope your God leaves me alone!
5. In the real world, in the patriotic world, I live in:
a. the US can not be the world’s policeman. We are not that rich.
b. fossil fules WILL run out and that means we need to plan for the future.
c. we now owe vast sums not just to Chinese people but the the Communist Party of China ..or don’t you know what a sovcerign fund is?
d. Trickle down economics turns out to work fine .. it helps fund jobs in China.
e. College is becoming unaffordable.
f. the American health care system is out of control
g. our miliatry are so overstretched they no longer have even the one 1/2 war capacity set back in the 80s. If war broke out in the Carribean, Nigeria, Iran, Taiwan, … all very likely, we would have no reosurces to respond.
h. we have 12 million illegals in the US and no sensible plans to stop illegal immigration or deal with this rapidly growing under class.
In my patriotic world, a real patriot running for Present would be addressing these realities rather than spending the public’s credibility on fantasees.
So go ahead, demean you own country, tell me all about Joe Biden had a hair transplant or tell me that Rev, Wright’s service to Chicago’s poor does not mean shit to you.
@30 rhp
I agree but think there are more surprises in the box.
I hinestly do not believe that most Americans, even devout Christians, are comfortable with religious extremists. McCain showed he had no loyalty to his country by choosing this person, but I also supsect few folks want Dr. Dobsoin running the WH.
Goldy, I’m donating in my wife’s name because she has the paypal acct, but you’ll recognize the surname.
Goldy,
Back at Josh …
This could be a real opportunity for HA to be taken seriously if Josh can play a real political reporter role and not just the role of a Stranger Curmudgeon. I also hope you find a way to keep hi on after November.
There are real issues to explore in regard to Seattle City government that are simply not covered in the regular press.
24 Cyn
It’s what we’re doing, but McCain is whining and crying nonstop about it. What a wuss.
@28 cynic..
err ahh
please tell me ONE pice oflegislation suported by the Reprican aprty that McC worked for?
+immigration reform
+McCain/Feingold
Has he sponsored ANY legislation that own support of his party?
Here is my proposal for a political ad;
images from McC’s time in the Congress .. three decades. clock wi date running in foreground. “in three decades of service, what has this man achieved?
Cut ins form Bush’s vile anti McC campaign
finish on image of JMcC with sarah snowshoe.
Is Goldy equating his admittedly partisan political blog with a daily newspaper?
Sarah Putin is toxic. Her idea of “reform” is to simply fire anyone she dislikes. She doesn’t grasp policy and is too impatient to try to grasp it. She suffers from megalomania, yet the right has made a hero of her. It’s truly unfathomable how the right worships personalities and never let’s facts intrude on perceptions. Here’s a scary little article about Ms. Putin: http://www.laprogressive.com/2...../#more-954
Sarah Palin:
– Lied and continues to lie about her compleltey fictional opposition to the “Bridge to Nowhere”
– Has good friends who won’t vote for her.
– Is defying a FoIA request for her e-mails by claiming “executive privilege” for e-mails in whose addresses non-advisor Todd Palin was included (Who does she think she is, Dick Cheney?)
– Bragged about how much “earmark” money Sen. Don Young was bringing her state unil she sent her lieutenant governor to run against him in the primaries.
She’s not a maverick, nor a reformer, nor a pitbull, bor whatever the hell else Sarah Palin is supposed to be this week, but rather a thoroughly Machiavellian politician who would sell out anyone to advance.
Troll @38,
Yes.
They’re becoming more blog-like, and HA is becoming more newspaper-like. It’s called convergence.
@40
You can bash, belittle, berate, rant, scream, refute, correct, and protest all you want. It’s not going to change a thing. The new polls say McCain/Palin have taken away Obama’s lead.
The question is, what is Obama going to do about it? He can’t just do what he’s been doing and coast in for a victory.
Godly, it’s incredible to behold.
Anyway…
42 T
This happens every four years. Obama and Mccain each received a polling bounce from the conventions, probably from an infusion of enthusiasm on each side.
Next week we’ll be back where we were.
In the meantime, Obama’s doing what he needs to to win: raising five times as much from McCain’s VP nomination than McCain did, talking to America about the issues that people care about, pointing out the obvious truth that Republicans lie to Americans every fucking day, and building an unparalleled ground organization all across this country that McCain will no ba able to match.
I’m just waiting for the day the headline reads: Seattle Blogger David Goldstein to take media relations position with Tim Eyman. I just hope I’m not eating something at the time, because whatever it is, I’ll spit it out.
Congrats on getting Josh Feit.
So you know, and we all know now, that Sarah Palin never rejecetd the so-called “Bridge to Nowhere,” but John McCain keeps repeating the old, tired lie that she did.
Question: Is it just McCain’s lies that are old and tired or is it John McCain himself?
Question: Is it the impaired judgement caused by years of torture and brain damage that causes John McCain to repeat lies that everyone knows are lies? ANd if so wouldn’t we be fools to elect this doddering old fossil?
I think that the “media relations position” Goldy would take with Tim Eyman would be Goldy’s boot up Tim Eyman’s horse’s ass.
Maybe Eyman should go to work for Goldstein, for free. Then Goldy could teach Eyman how to write an initiative that actually, you know, survives the simplest court challenge.
@48 Like the good Republican she is, Palin will not release her emails.
http://www.motherjones.com/moj.....email.html
“please give whatever you can”
Done.
Oops. Ignore this post. They changed a letter.
Goldy – your blog is fresh and exciting. Adding Josh to it is disappointing. I will not be supporting your blog anymore.
Goldy, I think you should take a better paying media job if you can get it. There’s nothing wrong with being a whore, if you’re an expensive whore. You just don’t want to be a cheap whore.
“Seattle’s Only Online Newspaper.”
It’s the future of news, man — online publishing and volunteer journalists. Printed newspapers and paid reporters are doomed.
With Josh and Goldy both writing, the number of first person (“I”, “me,” “my” and “myself” references in Horses Ass will:
a) Equal or surpass Dan Savage’s self-absorption in the Stranger;
b) Equal Bill Clinton’s references to himself as he campaigned for Hillary in primaries this spring;
c) Reach the 211 first-person references of the McCain acceptance speech.
55
Speaking of whores, Arianna Huffington described McCain’s sell-out to the hard rightwing of his party as follows (from memory, not quite direct quote): “Of course, she’s a whore. Even though she wears an abstinence ring and feels guilty when she sticks the money into her bra, she’s still a whore.” I like that.
It’s gone from a coronation to a scramble.
Picking Biden makes Obama look old and utterly destroys his mantra of change. Yeah, 36 consecutive years in Congress change.
muhahahahaahahaha.
Just keep voting, doesn’t matter whether you’re dead or imaginary, just keep voting until the Mrs. wins.
King County Slogan, est. 2004
Dumbfuck @ 59
Uh, McCain is now representing himself as this election’s agent of change. How many years has he been in Congress? How is it that you people can be so inconsistent in your positions? Do you ever try to reconcile your nonsense?
Jolly good to see Josh Feit begging for nickels at Horses Ass. Now will he stop calling us?
THE SEATTLE TIMES HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT
Fucktard projecting @60 –
Obama had it and he blew it.
There’s no way anyone looks at Bald Joe and thinks agent of change. Not gonna happen. Now if Barrack Hussein had picked someone young, beautiful, with actual executive experience, well spoken, intelligent, and female, like Sarah Palin, he would be unstoppable right now.
As it is, Obama is scrambling. Biden makes Obama look old, staid, and very unlike an agent of change. And like it or not, people see McCain as a maverick.
Laugh, whine, throw epithets, do whatever you want. Reality sucks for the Democrats right now.
I traveled recently to Lake Wenatchee and saw something I had never seen before: Rossi posters which said at the bottom:
Don’t Let Seattle Steal This Election!
I think we should get a bunch of these and post them all over Seattle. That will help Dino, right? In the big town?
And Christine ought to let the state know that dividing people like that is not OK.
Something has got to be done to pay for in-depth newspaper reporting which is leaching away. Getting people to pledge for Josh is a great idea. A similar is model is Spot Us. http://spot.us/ They’re creating a marketplace where anyone can pitch a story, and people can pledge small amounts of money to get that story done. The Spot Us gets the story edited and distributes it free to local media outlets.
Another posting by my secret admirer.