The UC News Record has more on the Elkington Affair and political inertia on UC's campus.

Council Race Blog Fodder

Wes Flinn and Sarah Riegel have a news summary and analysis on the council race.

Test CIN For Yourself

XRay Magazine has identified the online testing copy for the Enquirer's CIN. The site looks like one big advertisement. The new content is not viewable, but you can find every event you could want to know about, assuming they are mainstream enough.

Here is the staff for CIN:
Beryl Love, editor
Sue Cook, design editor
Katie Kelley, content editor
Gina Daugherty, reporter
Tabari McCoy, reporter
Mike Royer, designer
Jonathan Berndt, designer
Kelly Hudson, copy editor
Leigh Patton, photographer
David Clark, online
Dan Mahan, online

UPDATE: It appears that the CinWeekly folks have caught on to the problem and have removed the test copies of their website some point early Monday morning.

Endorsement Bonanza

The big media Endorsements are in from the Post and the Enquirer and there are few surprises.

From the Enquirer: 3-3-3 a political party trifecta. I would not have guessed 3 Charterites would get a full Enquirer Endorsement and only 3 Republicans. Only 5 incumbents were tapped to continue. Chris Monzel got the shaft? He did not even get included as an "honorable mention." This was not officially an honorable mention category, rather a new comer pat of the back saying "try again next time around, we liked what we saw." Nick Spencer could be considered the number 10 pick, but I think their impression is that he is a front runner for 2003. I was surprised that Alica Reece got endorsed. The Enquirer pushed the Convergys deal fairly strongly, enough to hold a column, and Reece voted against it. It was a meaningless vote, but they looked past the grandstanding. That seems odd. The oddest of all is why the word "abortion" has to be used in endorsements for City Council:

That happened during the past year when the administration failed to act to eliminate abortion payments from city health benefits, and when in negotiations with the police union it gave up on the issue of allowing the city manager to appoint assistant police chiefs.

Monzel pushed that issue to appeal to "Westside" voters. Why does the Enquirer bring it up now? Hmmmm....

From the Post: Everyone is back but Cole? Charter gets a big boost with 3 out of 4 getting the nod. 3 years between DeWine(35) and Reece(32) and one is young and the other is not? The big difference with the Enquirer is the attachment to the incumbents. I guess change is not good to the Post.

Bathroom Reading

Well, there will be a stand-alone website for CinWeekly, the Enquirer's new YP orientated publication. The Launch Date is October 29th, but if you go to www.cinweekly.com right now you will see their promotional graphic with their PR slogan "For a good time" written on a bathroom wall next to an empty roll of toilet paper. I would guess the subliminal message is that when you run out of toilet paper, CinWeekly will at that point come in very handy.

What is just as hilarious is a report from XRay Magazine of the plight of the one of CinWeekly distribution boxes in Norwood. The picture with the article is most telling, and was not faked. I am looking forward to reading CinWeekly. The PR campaign so far is very WEBNish, as a reader pointed out to me, so it is not original, however for the Enquirer it is ballsy. If they are push the edge of social taboos, or at least refrain from being over sensitive to the handful of prudish people under 35, then I will be mildly surprised. I might even be a little impressed, but I don't want to get ahead of things quite yet.

GOP Push

In the final leg of the campaign for City Council, the Hamilton County GOP has gone on the offensive. They have put out a TV commercial lambasting David Pepper, David Crowely, and John Cranley for voting to loan Lashawn Pettus-Brown money to redevelop the Empire Theater. It is a classic attack ad with newspaper clippings and candidates portrayed like dancing theater ushers. It works. It will hurt these democratic candidates. I was not surprised to see Alicia Reece or Laketa Cole included with the 3 male Dems. Anything that could be seen as remotely referencing race could backfire on the GOP, so you will likely not see GOP sponsored Reece or Cole attack ads.

The story got some play on both WCPO and WLW early. I found it interesting to read this fact in the WLW story:

In June of 2002, seven council members approved $220,000 in loans and grants to LeShawn Pettus-Brown to rehab the 88 year old Over the Rhine landmark.

Did it mean anything to the story to state how many council members voted for the loan? There are two problems with this bit of information. One is that it implies a party split: Only 2 of the 9 council members are Republicans. Now, the average person would likely not know the breakdown of council by party on that day or any day. So I will let that go. The real problem is that 7 people did not vote to loan money to Pettus-Brown in June of 2002, according to the council minutes from June 5, 2002. Jim Tarbell was excused from that meeting, so it was 6-2 in favor. I am nit picking a bit, but I would hope journalists might get that kind of thing correct. I would bet their error was in not checking the press release they got from the GOP or Pat DeWine, which ever source pushed the story.

CityBeat's Updated Website

CityBeat debuted their redesigned website this week. I have to say I am not a big fan so far. When I open up the site I don't see the current issue's content, I instead see their listings. That is a selling point I am sure they are trying to promote, but it looks nothing like a periodical, and more like a web portal.

Holy Shit!

A positive headline on a farily positive story about attending Miami University in the Enquirer! I thought it was a stipulation of earning a degree from the Ohio University School of Journalism that each reporter must speak ill of Miami, except when they play "The" Ohio state University in sports.

Maggie Downs, Homeward Bound

Now, Maggie Downs knows from where she comes, but I would I not want to be in her shoes if she ever runs into the Mayor of Dayton:

Drive to Dayton - It's only an hour away. And that town is a lot like a dorky cousin - it's kind of boring, but you have to see him occasionally for no reason.

Also:

Watch half a movie - I heard the end of Kill Bill stinks anyway.

Clever, very clever.

A Daily, a Weekly, a Pocket full of Folly

A story on the Enquirer's new "Cin" has hit the Atlanta Journal-Constitution via the AP:

The Cincinnati Enquirer will start a separate, free weekly publication Oct. 29, offering young families and singles articles about travel, dining, music, health and careers.

As I said, it sounds like NBC's the Today Show in Print.

CincyNation, a quasi-log, is thinking about going from the web to the print world:

Cincinnati Nation is considering publishing a mini-daily newspaper that would be distributed free to workers heading home from the office. "It would be a four-page news sheet with all the day's news that affects Cincinnatians," said Richard Hines, who is no stranger to starting papers here. "People will no longer have to read day-old news in the Enquirer." He said a decision will be made later in the year, with a debut targeted for Spring 2004. Hines co-founded several weekly papers on the west side and two downtown papers including the Downtowner.

For a website that spews some of the most anti-Cincinnati rhetoric, it seems like a tall order to produce a print publication that will make money. What I want to know, how does he plan on distributing a paper in the afternoon with information that is any more up to day than the Cincinnati Post?

Happy Trails Laura Pulfer

The columnist Laura Pulfer is leaving the Enquirer. I am not sure if she is retiring or just moving on. I enjoyed her columns. She stayed with the human-interest side mostly, not an area I always jumped on, but she was a warm writer.

Does this open the door for a second Maggie Downs column every week?

Touché Korte

Greg Korte of the Enquirer added this little section to a special Thursday edition of his City Hall column:

To vote or not?

"Because we don't have a strong ethnic community, we get trapped into thinking the vote is our salvation. The real battle now is on the economic front. I understand the argument for voting. I just think what is important is economic parity."

- Damon Lynch III, now a candidate for Cincinnati City Council, in a Cincinnati Enquirer interview published June 2, 2001.

The Enquirer has been getting a little heat, a lot of it from me, for their Lynch coverage so far this year. I think Lynch has been attacked with a feather. Bringing out this quote does not address the questions I think Lynch should be answering, but it shows an example of what Lynch has to contend with, the words of his past. I would guess that Korte has not had much luck in getting Lynch to talk about his past statements on the boycott or on the letter he sent calling Police rapists and murders. It is almost as if Damon Lynch has pulled a page from the script of the Arnold Schwarzenegger for governor campaign. I hope it does not turn out to be a winning strategy.

McMain Street 45202

When last we left our fearless Anti-Chinese bigot, he was back peddling like a Miata stuck in reverse. The Mayor had cut him loose and Elkington's wing man, John Cranley, had turned tail and run, seeking shelter behind his master’s gavel.

Elkington is back! He is determined to make his dream of cookie cutter if you build it they will come entertainment destinations in the Main Street district. We have plans for a Paulaner brewery and a Bootsy Collins nightclub in the works that were reported previously as types of places that could appear. We don't know where on Main Street such places could go. I don't know why this plan was not presented upfront, without the call for paying Elkington 100K. You might have thought that would have been simpler.

If Elkington can get his businesses to open, then I will visit them. I just do not want a dime of city money to go to someone with bigoted beliefs. I just wish the city would do that more often. The gave Damon Lynch money for picking up garbage and his bigotry is a matter of record.

Editor's Note: Nate you might want to stop copying here. If you happen to copy this part of my work people will know that you are taking my work without permission and without even adhering to the “fair use doctrine.” In case others are wondering what I am talking about, just read this site and see the many examples of Nate Livingston copying my posts (as well as other local bloggers) and pretending that I posted them to his message board. I have asked Nate to stop, but so far he has just increased his illegal use of my work. I don’t want to have to inform places like Media Bridges that he might be using their computers to break copyright laws. They may not like that.

UPDATE: Nate actually thinks he can pretend to be me and use the "N" word? I am surpised Nate has the time to rewrite so many posts on his website. Defamation of character is a dangerous thing to play with. I guess Boycott B likes to play.

Lynch Admits Obvious

In a profile from the Post, Damon Lynch admits what I consider to be the obvious, he will not be representing the entire city on council:

"Nobody is leaving our city because we don't have a vibrant downtown," Lynch said. "They're leaving because we have dying neighborhoods and underperforming schools -- . So, I don't say I want to represent everybody. I will benefit everybody, but I will represent the pockets of poverty no one wants to talk about."

Now the “progressives” will say Good! The poor needs someone to champion their cause. I have no problem with council members wanting to help out the disadvantaged in the city. The problem here is that Lynch admits that he does not give a damn about anyone who is not black or not "poor," although I think poor whites will not be high on his list of people to help. I think he see the "majority" community (read white which is ill defined) as the problem. Lynch is walking a bizarre populist road. He is very socially conservative personally, but he adopts the rhetoric of a far leftist. He is playing racial politics with a muted militancy subtly lined in his grassroots organization.

I would guess by now it is rather obvious that I am not voting for Lynch. I really am disappointed in the big media's fear of aggressively asking him questions for the record, or at least printing/airing those questions and responses. Lynch has grassroots power in the black community. The local media is regularly dogged in the black community and considered "racist" by people who I would expect know better (Yes, I mean Jay Love). I don't believe the most of the local media will come out swinging against Damon Lynch out of fear of being labeled racist. If he gets on council they might try to dip their feet in with a little criticism, since the office gives a little political cover for criticism.

We need a fearless press, but we instead have a gutless one. The newspapers are going to be getting even more gutless as they abandon city hard news coverage for human interests in the burbs. Gotta love big media. (Cough, Cough)

Kettle, Pot, and Bill O'Reilly is a Wuss

The conservative bloggers are all up in arms at the "harsh" interview of FOX News Personality Bill O'Reilly by NPR's Terry Gross. The NPR ombudsman even sided with O'Reilly that Gross's interview of him on October 9th was not a shinning journalist moment:

By the time the interview was about halfway through, it felt as though Terry Gross was indeed "carrying Al Franken's water," as some listeners say. It was not about O'Reilly's ideas, or his attitudes or even about his book. It was about O'Reilly as political media phenomenon. That's a legitimate subject for discussion, but in this case, it was an interview that was, in the end, unfair to O'Reilly.

So basically what is the chief complaint of the ombudsman? Gross pulled on O'Reilly. He faulted her for doing to him what O'Reilly does to most of his guests on his FOX News program.

Gross says this about the flap:

"How thin-skinned can this guy be?" asked Gross. "He's known as a tough interviewer. He's known for being very opinionated. I find it hard for me to imagine he was so mortally offended that his sensitivities could no longer stand to hear my questions."

O'Reilly's response is Denial (with a capital "D")

The thickness of his skin had nothing to do with O'Reilly's reaction. "I don't do interviews like that, I back up my stuff with facts," he said. "I don't carry anybody's water. I don't try to embarrass people on the air. I ask tough questions and people are held accountable for their answers. But we're fair."

Where does Bill get his "facts"? Answer: From someone else, his staff. Where did Gross get her facts? From someone else, Al Franken's book. Bill can't take the facts that show he lies.

O'Reilly is such a wuss. I sound like a schoolyard kid by saying that, but there is no other way to illustrate it. He acts like a little girl whenever anyone questions him. He is a textbook bully. He can't take what he dishes out. He really can't interview anyone unless he has a plan of attack all scripted out for him before hand. He is mean and nasty to people all the time on his program, yet he cannot take a little gruff from NPR? Bill, those who live by the sword, die by the sword. Of all people, he should know that. I guess we have a new poster boy in the media for those who don't practice what they preach.

New VigPol

VigPol is up!

This is Radio X!

Bam, the future is now, and 97X is kicking ass online!

Teenage Thugettes

It appears some of the Teenage Thugs on Short Vine have been arrested. These are the kids who where allegedly spouting racial insults at people for no apparent reason. The Enquirer actually reported in an editorial that the racial insults were anti-white. This fact was not listed in the original news story. I am in favor of hate crimes laws, where the motivation of the crime is taken into consideration in sentencing. What must happen is that these laws must be applied equally. Black on white hate is not excusable, no matter what some of the callers on WDBZ may say. What hasn't City Council members who voted for the hate crimes ordinance called for it to be invoked? Is the problem Mike Allen's office refusing to apply a law he disagrees with?

Reactionary Squeaky Wheels

Without even considering the future ramifications, the Florida House has voted to give Governor Jeb Bush the power to restore the feeding tube to a comatose woman. The Florida Senate is expected to follow with approval later on today. This woman has been comatose for 13 years, but her parents want to carry on, while the husband has gotten a court order to allow him to let her die. This is a sad case, but why are the Florida politicians jumping into this case without thinking about what they are doing? What is next? Will Jeb Bush have power to keep me on a respirator if I am brain-dead after a car wreck? Will Jeb Bush have power to prevent any abortion? Or prevent the use of contraceptives? They are reacting to the Anti-abortion lobby who have seized on this case and are making it into a battle by marching their jack booted foot soldiers headlong into it.

You know Jeb Bush is playing politics when you read this:

"This is a response to a tragic situation." Bush said. "People are responding to cries for help and I think it's legitimate."

Schiavo has been at the center of a court battle between her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, and her husband, Michael Schiavo. The parents want Terri Schiavo to live, and her husband says she would rather die.

The Florida Supreme Court has twice refused to hear the case, and it also has been rejected for review by the U.S. Supreme Court. Last week, a Florida appeals court again refused to block removal of the tube.

If someone were to ask Jeb Bush for a law to prevent Johnny's lemonade stand from being driven out of business by the new Starbuck's juice bar, I guess Bush would be getting his oil can out to fix the squeaky wheel.

Cincinnati Loves the 80's

A big wow goes out to Sarah at the Hedgemo for this list of I love 80's for Cincinnati. I came to the area in 1990, and that was Oxford, so I only actually lived in Cincinnati starting in 1994. This would make a great TV special for one of the local TV stations to pick up. It would be fluff, but fun fluff that someone my age might actually find entertaining.