Curious who is behind the ads telling you to vote for or against a casino?
So are we.
State law says that groups supporting ballot issues don’t have to disclose how much they are spending or where they are getting their money until Dec. 31 – a full 21 weeks after the election.
That’s why the Eagle has been asking groups to release the information early.
As you’ll see in a story in this Sunday’s paper written by Deb Gruver the response from the three groups has been less than enthusiastic, with one exception.
– Jean
A reader sent the Eagle an e-mail today to express shock upon seeing a cigarette advertisement on the back page of our GO! entertainment section. She asked whether the Eagle routinely accepts cigarette ads, noting that in the two years she’s lived here she couldn’t ever recall seeing one.
She’s right that cigarette ads aren’t often in the Eagle. But, according to Eagle advertising manager Lisa Fetter, the paper doesn’t have a policy against accepting them. Lisa said the Eagle’s philosophy is to place such ads in sections where they make the most sense. The GO! section, she noted, contains entertainment information for weekend activities, including nightclubs.
She’s not sure how long the ad will appear in The Eagle, but she didn’t think it
would be too long, saying, "It’s rare that we even have cigarette ads
anymore."
– Lori Linenberger, features editor
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This fall, we expect to launch a series of new newsletters, including a daily news headlines e-mail. Got an idea for an e-mail newsletter you’d like us to do? Let us know.
– Nick Jungman
We’ve been doing a poll with our Business Today section since we launched last September. And, for the most part, we’ve gotten a few hundred responses to the weekly question. Lately, we have discovered what makes a successful poll question: Anything about Wild West World or the upcoming casino vote. This week’s question on the Chamber’s decision to oppose a casino already has drawn more than 1,000 votes. Previous polls this month on Wild West World’s bankruptcy drew more than 1,800 votes and another on the casino advertising campaigns drew 1,400. What we need to figure out now is a question that incorporates Wild West World and the casino.
Vote early and often.
Tom Shine
I have a couple friends who work at the Wall Street Journal, and my stepdaughter writes a bi-weekly restaurant column for the paper’s Saturday edition. I’m a daily subscriber, and I love it. We often run well-crafted Wall Street Journal wire stories in The Eagle. If Rupert Murdoch gets his hands on the paper, I pray he doesn’t do anything to make it less appealing. It is truly an American gem. One friend who works there has told me how grueling the WSJ editing process is for reporters, especially when he’s writing for Page One. As a reader, I’m grateful. The paper has such high standards for writing, reporting and originality. And I appreciate how it’s broadened its audience by featuring brilliant consumer news, trend stories and the smart "Personal Journal" section.
Nearly every journalist in America knows how stressful it is when the company you work for is about to change hands. We went through that at The Eagle when Knight Ridder was up for sale, and we survived and are growing more and more used to McClatchy, our new corporate family. I know Rupert Murdoch scares a lot of us because he is flamboyant and has a reputation as a cutthroat businessman. But he has not turned his Times of London into a clone of his New York Post. He knows how to cater to different markets. He’ll be buying a fine, respectable product if he lands the Wall Street Journal. And he’ll alienate a lot of his customers if he messes too much with the franchise.
Theresa