(12.16) Head over to the Wild Colonial on Monday for the Holiday Muckrakers Ball, a fundraiser to support the best muckraking journalism in Rhode Island — Uprise RI and Steve Ahlquist. (It’s like Nine Inch Nails: Steve is Uprise RI.) I can not overstate the service this gentleman is providing to the people of this …
If ever a state needed two newspapers, it is Rhode Island. Three or four would be better. For decades Providence had one of the premiere newspapers in the country, but regional offices have all been closed and the staff has been gutted — a sadly familiar story these days. In addition to the diminishing coverage, …
(7.12) Journalism is not free. And true journalism, like that practiced by reporter Steve Ahlquist of Uprise RI, is going to cost you. And since our local paper of record is so conservative it supports the likes of Devin Nunes and Nicholas Mattiello,* the citizens of Rhode Island desperately need someone keeping an eye on …
So this is how Frank Coletta wants to end his career? As a cynical collaborator in the attempted authoritarian take-down of American democracy? Why not just retire — and speak out. By now we have all seen the reports about Sinclair Broadcasting forcing its local on-air newsreaders to recite verbatim the Sinclair/Trump “fake news” manifesto. …
News outlets across the country are being taken over by deep-pocketed corporations with no interest in winning Pulitzers and Edward R. Murrow awards; sadly, Rhode Island has been no exception. The purchase of Channel 10 WJAR by the Sinclair Broadcasting Group brought about an immediate swing to the right in their editorial decisions. And now …
We need them now more than ever and they need to be paid! Apparently subscriptions to the bona fide newspapers are on the rise since the election and that is a good thing. Democracy can not survive without a free press and they have to be supported . . . with cash dollars! Journalists can …
The uneven coverage of the Democratic primary race by the national media outlets has been getting major attention — although, not in the national media outlets. Everywhere you look — it’s all Hillary, all the time. Even when Bernie is filling arenas with thousands of rabid, cheering supporters, we get Hillary visiting a diner. And …
Historian and former Upper Crust guitarist, Ted Widmer, has been conducting a short series of conversations — Climbing Down from the Ivy Tower — Tuesdays at Brown University. This week he hosts Alex Kingsbury, the deputy ideas editor at the Boston Globe. The Globe has been running a well-deserved victory lap this year following the …
Conversations With Ted Widmer — Tuesdays At Brown Read More »
The democracy depends on it. Unfortunately it is the field of public relations that is exploding, and just as newspapers continue cuts into their reporting staffs. Edward Fitzpatrick illuminates the seriousness of this imbalance in Tuesday’s ProJo with “R.I. needs less spin, more transparency.” Look at these figures for Rhode Island. And The Journal’s Katherine …
And why we don’t need the Catholic Church. First: This is an excellent movie. I was on the edge of my seat despite knowing perfectly well how the story ends. That’s good movie-making. (NYT review here. ) Second: This is a local story — Providence is in this movie — and as such should be …
You may need the police some day. Would you prefer that the officer responding had been hired and promoted on merit? Would honor and integrity be desirable attributes in a law enforcement officer? Then vote for Jorge Elorza. Today’s ProJo cover story “Buddy’s Boys” shows exactly what a police department run by Buddy Cianci would …
(9.22) Writer, journalist, and media critic, Ken Auletta, will speak at Brown University’s MacMillan Hall today. “Tales From a Journalist’s Visits to Other Planets” starts at 5:30pm. Auletta has written the “Annals of Communications” column for The New Yorker since 1992. He is the author of ten books, including “Greed and Glory on Wall Street: …
Dear Santa — Please send Providence a benevolent, progressive, billionaire anxious to burnish his/her reputation and create a new respectable legacy for the family name. The sale comes as no real surprise given recent noises and maneuvers by the parent corporation, A.H. Belo of Texas, which is currently in negotiations with its largest union, the …
(11.21) And it’s free. This invitation comes from the good people over at the Providence Phoenix: Please join us in celebrating the 35th Anniversary of Rhode Island’s longest running alternative newspaper! A night filled with the sounds, sights and ideas of the Creative Capital, the cultural heart and soul of Little Rhody. Singing, dancing, live …
“We have met the enemy and he is us.” As true now as when Pogo first said it in 1971. All Osama had to do was take down two buildings then sit back and let us dismantle the rest of the country. The citizens of America have more to fear from the loss of a …
A sad day indeed. Ian Donnis and Scott MacKay report on the new staffing cuts at the Providence Journal and offer up a brief history of the ProJo’s sad decline from one of the finest privately-owned papers in the country to now. (WRNI 9.7.12) The Journal had considerable swagger in the ’90s, with the kind …