It’s funny how sometimes fate will hand you something on a silver platter.
I guess you call it fate. Maybe it’s the stars aligning. Whatever it is, there’s little doubt when it does happen, it’s a wonderful thing.
If you haven’t read last week’s newspaper, I urge you to do so. Our coverage of the resignation of former DA Mike McAfee was the focus of that paper. I will say I am proud of how we handled the situation.
I am not proud of the way our county handled the situation, but what is new. They did everything they could to make it look like there was nothing really there when it came to the resignation of McAfee.
They knew what was there yet once again chose the, “Oh, nothing to see here” tactic.
It failed miserably.
But this is not going to be a rehash of that story. It’s out there for everyone to see and they can be the judge.
Getting lost in all of former DA coverage were some other quite important stories, as well. Those include the controversial firing of a ranger in Yosemite National Park, a controversy involving the Mariposa County Unified School District, an update on the Ferguson Project and so much more.
Did I mention the 64-page Mariposa County Fair publication that was also included?
I bring all of this up because there is a theme here, and it’s not about those stories in particular.
Earlier this year, I was among a group of people who formed the California Independent News Alliance, or CINA. (We’re “sinnas,” you know.)
The group was formed so we could try to find ways to have a voice as locally owned, independent newspapers. Many of us have been frustrated that our own trade group has focused on the big papers while we are left to fend for crumbs.
Thus, CINA came to be. Somehow I was elected secretary, which is another situation all in itself. Nevertheless, I am a board member of a statewide group that is somehow trying to give its own voice to the plight of small, independently owned newspapers.
When the story about the DA began breaking a couple of weeks ago, it became apparent we had to find someone outside of this organization to do the bulk of the work. We were involved in the story and that was a conflict of interest. (The county board of supervisors should take note.)
We turned to Tom Lyden, a seasoned reporter who spent years working in television news in Minneapolis. Lyden reported on the George Floyd controversy — from Minneapolis.
That is here nor there when it comes to my point. As we began diving deep into this story, Tom made a comment to me that will stick until the bitter end.
“This is why local newspapers are so important,” he said.
No argument here.
What if, like so many other places, there wasn’t a local newspaper? Where would the person in Merced who got this all started have turned? Would someone else have even ran with the story?
These are crucial questions and the answers seem obvious to me.
We ran with the story because we had credible evidence. That’s why local news outlets exist. To find out information, verify it and decide on how to proceed.
We did all of those things.
But if the shenanigans being pulled by the county supervisors had been happening in a place with no news outlets, what would have happened?
Not a damn thing.
Study after study has warned us (as citizens) about the dangers of the so-called news deserts. Those are places where there is no local news outlet.
They are many and growing by the day.
In those places, it has been proven over and over again that when there is nobody watching the hen house, the foxes run wild.
And who pays the price?
The taxpayers, of course.
It also empowers those in office to do even more because they know they can get away with just about anything.
That is the power of the press, which is also the power of the people.
I cannot stress enough the decisions we made concerning the DA situation were based on one thing — the people of Mariposa County.
Not the government. Not law enforcement. Not our image.
The people.
This is why local news is so vital. We, as a newspaper, can help the people understand the good, bad and ugly of what is happening with their local governments.
Of course, the local governments would prefer if we only told you about the good, but that’s not going to be happening. Governments are made up of people. People are humans. Humans make mistakes.
Decent humans admit their mistakes and most other humans understand and are forgiving.
Other humans refuse to admit anything and what is the result? They dig their own graves.
I have an old saying I use a lot: “Give ‘em enough rope.”
It almost never fails that when you do that, the noose will tighten. I’ve seen it happen over and over and over again.
Yet sometimes, those people are more like goldfish than humans.
“Hey, it’s a castle.”
“Hey, it’s a castle.”
“Hey, it’s a castle.”
I wonder if a 2X4 to the head over and over would even work.
Okay, maybe I’m getting off on a tangent, but the point remains that local news outlets are vital and as they close, it is only going to get worse.
That’s why I was one of the founding ‘sinnas’ and am proud of that fact. I may fail miserably, but I will not go down without a fight.
This is not about the Mariposa Gazette, it is about all locally owned newspapers, radio stations, TV stations, blogs and more that report the news. Locally owned being the key.
The people doing this work are tough, fair, independent and looking out for the public. They aren’t doing it for glory and certainly not for riches.
That’s the beauty.
We are people who care about our fellow citizens, want to know where our hard-earned tax money is going (or not going) and are deeply devoted to our communities.
That’s how the system was set up and, when done correctly, still works.
I haven’t a clue what the future of local newspapers holds. The outlook is grim, but there are fighters among us and with the support of the public, we, too, will survive.
Everyone will be better because we do.
Greg Little is editor of the Mariposa Gazette and can be reached at greg@mariposagazette.com
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