New York Times Recognizes!!!

[Jim O'Bryan]

Sent to me by local activist Susan Miller, New York Times, recognizes, it is where the stories are found.

Local Papers Shine Light in Society’s Dark Corners

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/10/busi ... .html?_r=1

A lot of important journalism begins with a simple, seemingly obvious question, like why traffic is snarled in New Jersey on the way into New York.

Traffic coverage may be the lowest species in the dog-bites-man pantheon of news, except when it is not.

We have watched as "real media" has eroded into a shell of what it used to be. Reporters afraid to report news for fear of the editor, the advertiser, or even the subject might be mad. "Real Media" is really controlled by $$$ advertisers and the subjects. Yes even the subjects control the very media supposed to be reporting on them. Write a bad story about the Cabs, Browns or Indians, and you lose access, then lose your job. How else does a team go 1-15 and not draw the wrath of everyone. But through handling the media, it is easy to make a 1-15 team into next year's dream team, if the media is afraid to report the truth, that it is an utter failure at all levels.

Lakewood Observer, catches City Hall in two years of lying and skullduggery, and they try to severe all channels of communications, feed the others forms they control, and try anyway possible to kill the project and attacking all involved. "Negative" well you bet if you just got caught, seems negative. "Lies" easy to say, if you are the liar that was caught. If that fails send people into to create havoc, and then point out the place is filled with havoc.

The oast two years have been a real eye opener. Through it we have gathered a ton of legal expertise, interns, and people willing to dig in the dirt. I feel a new direction for the project coming, can the Observer under its new team and leadership become the oversight group this city desperately needs?

Only time will tell.