Local Nobody Saying Something Stupid - Globe Thinks it’s National News
August 30, 2007 · By Greg Farries
An excellent example of shoddy journalism - an unelected nobody comments on conservatism in Alberta (on his blog no less), and the Globe and Mail thinks it’s national news.
CALGARY — A man who wants to run for the Alberta Progressive Conservatives says newcomers to the province must “adapt to our rules and voting patterns†or go back to where they came from.
[...]
“This is our home and if you wish to live here, you must adapt to our rules and our voting patterns or leave. Conservatism is our culture. Do not destroy what we have created.â€
Come on Greg. Craig Chandler is hardly a “nobody” given his past in the Albertan political ring. As the article points out “Mr. Chandler moved to Alberta from Ontario and ran as a Reform Party candidate in the riding of Hamilton Mountain in 1993″ and furthermore has declared publicly that he “wants to run for the Alberta Progressive Conservatives … [and] represent the Calgary riding of Calgary Egmont.”
So, if both of these facts are true, then why shouldn’t media write about the things he has put out in the public sphere?
Well… at least you don’t agree with him.
*crickets*
If you people think that Chandler has any profile or influence whatsoever in either the national or the Alberta Conservative parties, then you’re out to lunch.
Hey, folks, this appeared in the (fanfare) Globe and Mail! In Toronto, it’s the gospel, and further proof, though none was needed, that Albertans are ignorant rednecks.
15000 Torontonians just had their prejudices confirmed. sigh.
Aaron is right, as far as I’m aware, Craig Chandler does not have a high profile with either the provincial Progressive Conservatives or the federal Conservatives.
Chandler is running to be a candidate in a local riding, I’m not sure how the ramblings of a local candidate have national importance?
This is shoddy journalism - complete with a quote from Premier Stelmach:
No shit…
and then a quote from David Taras:
Again, no shit. What’s the point of that quote?
The “journalist” then quotes Taras directly:
To which I respond: how exactly is a nobody running in a local riding contest telling the “majority of Albertans to take a hike”? Other than the few people that read Chandler’s silly ramblings on his blog, how is a majority of Albertans going to hear Chandler (and apparentely the Conservatives) tell them to take a hike?
Come on Ezra, this is brutal journalism, admit it…
I am still not sure what the big deal is or how this constitutes shoddy journalism. Newspapers write things to sell paper. They should try not to be biased (but we all know damnwell that they are - which is why we tend to seek out media sources that fit our ideological perspective - (g)od am I sick of people complaining about media bias - get over it) and good journalism tries to - at the very least - illustrate more than one perspective. This article presents a few perspectives(as you so kindly point out).
I am also amazed at how strongly people react to stories like this in the media - like the sky is falling, or people will all of a sudden change their opinion on every Albertan, or stop eating beef because Ophra doesn’t like hamburgers anymore. As Frank Luntz points out (for those of you who have not read his book Words that Work - I highly recommend it - even if this guy does peddle his knowledge to Republicans and helps them get elected, his grasp on Rhetorical theory and practice is bang on) “It’s not what you say, it’s what people hear.”
So maybe when you read something about a few retarded comments made by a whack-job wanna-be “nobody” who wants to run for office in Alberta you hear “the rest of the country thinks all Albertans are whack-jobs” and think to yourself “why do they print this shit…see, that damn Globe and Mail hates us and is biased”. Don’t forget, they do mention that the whack-job in question is from Ontario - I hope you are not reading into this fact that Alberta attracts whack-jobs - that is not what I am saying. Because the guy is from Ontario and now resides in Alberta AND he is a whack-job saying stupid stuff publicly (the internet is still public, right?) perhaps it could actually garnish some national attention, and that is why it made the Globe and Mail?
I am a firm believer that people get the democratic representation they deserve. If the majority votes for a whack-job, and (s)he is elected, then you have to live with it or move (which is why I am moving out of Ottawa - we have a recently elected whack-job mayor who is running this city into the ground). I also think it is important for people to know exactly what these whack-jobs are saying publicly prior to elections, because you never know whether or not they will get elected (again, Ottawa’s mayor was elected out of nowhere - had no press prior to his election, and we are feeling the effects of being uninformed).
So take a look at this article from a different perspective. Yes, Craig Chandler is a whack-job who has gone on the record saying some pretty stupid things. It is important for the current Alberta PC party to distance themselves from him, so as not to confuse Chandler’s whack-job views with their own (which is also how Klien got rid of and distanced himself from Day back in the good old days when it came out that taxpayers paid a hefty legal fee for the retarded things he said publicly). To validate that perspective, they quote some mucky-muck academic who, as usual, points out the obvious. But ask your self this, wouldn’t you rather know, and have everyone know, what this whack-job is saying before he has even a remote chance of getting elected? I hope your answer is yes. Does this constitute poor journalism? I hope I have convinced you that perhaps, no.
[...] Ross on the always entertaining Craig Chandler: Considering the success that the Albertan Progressive Conservative party has enjoyed in recent [...]