Fitzgerald Phony Election "Newspaper"

[Bridget Conant]

Looks like the unsinkable (but unlicensed ) former gubernatorial candidate plans to come back to life with his "investment" newspaper that isn't a real newspaper.

Ohio Neighborhood News will likely arrive in time for the election, spewing phony "news and editorials" about the hospital issue. It's sole intent and purpose is to mislead and influence the election by pretending to be a newspaper, when it is, in fact, a political campaign flyer.

Please alert your friends and neighbors so that when it gets mailed to Lakewood homes, they will know what it's true intention is. Post this thread on your Facebook and tweet it so that more people learn about it.

And if anyone is looking for a job, or more information, feel free to email them at the email on their website.
http://www.ohioneighborhoodnews.com

[Michael Deneen]

Is that website new, or is it still up from last fall?

[Bridget Conant]

It's not what was up last fall. It's either new or revamped. This one only mentions Lakewood. The previous incarnation said Lakewood, Brooklyn (where Butler and Fitz's buddy Clauusen was running, until he got arrested for drug trafficking,) and more to come.

More to come is right. More lies and BS to mislead the voters

[Bridget Conant]

http://www.whois.com/whois/ohioneighborhoodnews.com

The domain belongs to Ed Fitzgerald on Overlook in Lakewood. It was renewed Oct 2015 and is good until Oct 2016.

[Lori Allen _]

While Fitz! may be spewing the stuff out, it's Kevin Butler! that actually is in charge of the company that puts out the paper (Great Lakes Strategies ,ultimately).

Perhaps Fitz! will put an article in the paper explaining where all that money went that was missing from the county budget after he walked his trail of destruction out of the county's doors. This was covered on Cleveland.com, but was quickly squashed (like most things around here).

[Brian Essi]

Looks like the unsinkable (but unlicensed ) former gubernatorial candidate plans to come back to life with his "investment" newspaper that isn't a real newspaper.

Ohio Neighborhood News will likely arrive in time for the election, spewing phony "news and editorials" about the hospital issue. It's sole intent and purpose is to mislead and influence the election by pretending to be a newspaper, when it is, in fact, a political campaign flyer.

Please alert your friends and neighbors so that when it gets mailed to Lakewood homes, they will know what it's true intention is. Post this thread on your Facebook and tweet it so that more people learn about it.

And if anyone is looking for a job, or more information, feel free to email them at the email on their website.
http://www.ohioneighborhoodnews.com

Hilarious! 4 pages with a total of about 100 words of empty shallow content.

So this "newspaper" took money from a Bleed PAC--money that CCF essentially stole from a public charity (Lakewood Hospital) to promote CCF's corporatist domination of healthcare in Northeast Ohio?

And this from the guy who sat in our mayor's chair and told the media that he was going to finish Bobby Kennedy's march to the White House?

The same guy who got caught with his pants down in a parking lot?

I can't wait for all the "Good News" they will publish.

Priceless!

[Bridget Conant]

Fitzgerald's got almost $150,000 left from his failed gubernatorial run to finance this type of sleazy campaign tactic:

http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf ... chall.html

"It's a political campaign fund, and my intention is to use it for campaign purposes, which will be for political candidates or causes I believe in," FitzGerald said.

[Bridget Conant]

This was the Scene's take on the phony "newspaper".

http://m.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard ... o-election

Everyone knew it was a complete sham, and the fact that NOT ONE installment followed this political flyer really cemented the fact that is was NOT a community news publishing venture.

So let's see what happens when it reappears prior to the next election, and works to defeat the hospital issue.

Is this the type of politics that we want, or deserve?

[Lori Allen _]

Bridget,
Did you notice the people/businesses that advertised in the Fitz's Fake news? I believe we could consider them part of the extended "Company!"

[Bridget Conant]

Absolutely, Lori.

I'm hoping that if people are aware of this previous activity, when the paper drops there will be less confusion. It will be out there in the community that this is slick political campaign propaganda, nothing more. And, whoever advertises will be carefully scrutinized.

[Bridget Conant]

Don't forget:

http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-hea ... -election/

In one last political push for the establishment, Ed FitzGerald literally created what appear to be newspapers in Lakewood and Brooklyn. A quick flip through the ol' birdcage liner reveals, however, a cache of wildly biased "stories" that serve only to sway voters against the Save Lakewood Hospital crowd and into the arms of incumbent Mayor Mike Summers (FitzGerald's City Hall successor, mind you).

http://www.cleveland.com/lakewood/index ... avors.html

From their own mouth:

"It is not a neutral newspaper," Summers said. "But historically, there have been a lot of newspapers that aren't neutral."

http://www.cleveland.com/brooklyn/index ... ecuti.html

So how has that worked out. Seen ONE paper since that last effort to mislead voters went out?

"Well I've been an investor in this effort to try to have more community newspapers," FitzGerald said in a phone interview Thursday.

Be prepared for the resurrection of this phony "newspaper" as the election approaches. I guess it's published yearly?

[Lori Allen _]

These are the entities that advertised in the "Lakewood Neighborhood News":

- O'Neill Healthcare
- Rozi's Wine House
- Team Summers
- Laskey & Costello
- Peter A. Russell, Attorney at Law
- The Law Firm of Michael A. Kenny Jr.
- Agostino's Catering & Event Center
- Ronald Petrie, No on 64 Campaign
- Lakewood Hospital Association (whole back page)

It also had an article endorsing the campaign of John Litten as well. The article alleged that he was running a positive campaign, even though I was told by several people that he was not disclosing the fact that he was on the LHA Board in his campaign.

There was only one article in this paper that was signed by the author, and that was an article by Tom Einhouse. Although I do not support Tom, I give him credit for owning what he wrote (unlike the rest of the author's, evidently).

Did anyone ever hear back from the Ohio Elections Committee about this and all of the other alleged campaign law violations and/or fraud? It should be noted that both the Ohio Elections Committee and the Ohio Ethics Committee are independent bodies and that they do not have to answer to anyone in the state government. Their decisions are final and are subject to no oversight by the Governor, State Senate, State House, etc. In other words, is it possible that they could be easily persuaded in their decision-making, since nobody apparently holds them accountable?

[Stan Austin]

I wonder what relevance such a local compartmentalized piece of literature could have on an election that is mostly national and some state wide? If they wanna waste their money-- let-em.

[Bridget Conant]

Stan

The turnout in November will be high due to the presidential election. There WILL be a concerted effort to to defeat the referendum. You don't think they are going to pull out all the stops? A "newspaper" mailed to every home can impact the election. The last time it created enough confusion that some voters voted against saving the hospital because the sensationalistic headline that issue 64 could "doom" the hospital led them to vote against it.

[cmager]

These are the entities that advertised in the "Lakewood Neighborhood News":
- O'Neill Healthcare
- Rozi's Wine House
- Team Summers
- Laskey & Costello
- Peter A. Russell, Attorney at Law
- The Law Firm of Michael A. Kenny Jr.
- Agostino's Catering & Event Center
- Ronald Petrie, No on 64 Campaign
- Lakewood Hospital Association (whole back page)

- LHA advertised in breach of their fiduciary responsibility to Lakewood Hospital and the City of Lakewood. Well-documented.

- Rozi's Wine House advertised.
- Rozi's Wine House advertised? Why?
- Rozi's/Rossen Wine House advertised. Boom!