Did You Know #23

Did you know that our local Havasu newspaper has "come out of the closet" with their bias about this Refuge Annexation?  It's been pretty clear in all of the reporting that has taken place over the last 18 months that this newspaper has slanted its stories in favor of the Aldridges and City Council.  But now they have openly come out with their statement of bias.

Last Sunday, the News-Herald printed an Editorial about the goodness of the Refuge Annexation and why it deserves a YES vote. (See: http://www.scribd.com/full/54751718?access_key=key-jomf3wrw6da9yddvv5j  ).

This was shortly after the paper announced that it would no longer print any "Letters to the Editor" on the issue of the annexation.  Many of the opponents of the annexation had letters in the queue that were never published, letters that met the 300 word deadline and had been verified for publication. But never quite "got there".  

So the newspaper chooses to silence the public, and then comes out with their own Editorial telling everyone how important a YES vote is. 

Biased? 

Then, yesterday, the News-Herald printed an article about the red-tagging of the tent that contained several incorrect statements made by Jerry Aldridge.  When the newspaper was contacted and informed of the inaccuracies, they refused to issue a retraction.  (See http://havasunews.com/articles/2011/05/05/news/doc4dc23046c74f5635281178.txt ).

Incorrect Statement #1: "Jerry Aldridge said the Fire Department’s measure of red-tagging the structure didn’t close the pavilion event tent down." Reality: The tent was closed for any occupancy other than contractors or sub-contractors.

Incorrect Statement #2: "Aldridge said he was aware of the approaching expiration date and didn’t schedule any events past the expiration date." Reality: There were, in fact, events scheduled.

Incorrect Statement #3: "Aldridge said Wednesday he doesn’t need the homeowner’s permission when it comes to a fire access road." Reality: Aldridge can create a fire road on his property, but would not have access to that road without the use of the private HOA roads.

Unbiased reporting?  Think again.  To find out what is really going on in our City, we have to do our own research since it is obvious that our local newspaper will not.