Thursday, June 28, 2012

A Journalist Fails the Public and 1st Amendment



How A Reporter Spins the Crap of A Congressman Who Played A Large Role Of Corrupting NY Journalism

 “The media’s gotten lazy. They don’t check anything out. You report what he reports.” Gary Ackerman Explains What's Wrong With The Media(NYO)  This is the same man who used a newspaper he owed to campaign for congress.  The same man who merged his newspapers he still owns in part with the Queens Democratic organization to control both who gets elected in Queens and what it written about them in campaigns. 
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 A Takeover Of Journalism by Lobbyist and Politicians(True News) The reporter Colin Campbell allowed Ackerman to gone into an incorrect report about his retirement, but never asked him if he felt he help destroy New York journalism by allowing his paper the Queens Tribune to be turned into the house organ of the Queens Democratic Party election machine.  The reporter Campbell never asked Ackerman why he allows the VP and a partner in the paper to function as political consultant and lobbyist. FOR MENG CONSULTANT NUSSBAUM, A HISTORY OF VOTE-SPLITTING.  


Campbell could have asked Ackerman why he allows sex ads which many have charged are involved in sex trafficking of underage women. Campbell is not alone except for a few blog stories most of the media has never written about the Queens Tribune functioning as a political operative or the that one the owners of the paper operating as a political consultant was involved in efforts to spit the Jewish vote to help his candidate.

Campbell is like most reporters today.  In that today's journalist function more as a a megaphone for news spinner who use the media to shape, control or mold public opinion to further their goals to make money or gain political power, rather then informing the public what is really going on. Lancman Campaign Calls for Meng Campaign Aide to Be Fired(NYO)  Ackerman made headlines across the country when, in an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, he described the public as getting dumber. Campbell could have asked him that if the congressman thought that his political fake newspapers helped the public become dumber. Instead he played the role of Ackerman's Sock Puppet. Campbell is not alone but part of a snarky click of young journalist who seek approval not on what they write but on the acceptance by their fellow journalist and the pols and lobbyist they cover. True News pledges to “speaking truth to stupid.”as they say on The Newsroom.



Campaign Consultant Lobbyist Monopoly Conflict of Interests and Media Cover Up Club
Scott Levenison worked for both of Vito Lopez's candidates Jeffries and Dilan. George Artz worked with Levenison on the Jeffries campaign but opposed him on Dilan supporting Congresswoman Velasquez.  Each one of these consultants work with a stable of unions, fat cat contributors and a stable of reporters they own.  The government has laws about monopolies but New York we allowed a group of people who represent special interests to control NY's already corrupt election process.  The job of these consultants is to mislead the public and Levension was hard at work yesterday telling everyone all over town how he won Jeffries a non election in the 9th but leaving out the fact that his candidate Dilan was smashed by Velasquez. Corrupt Hank Sheinkopf who candidate Lancman lost big to Meng is busy looking for another dumb reporter who he can get a sound bite with.  Hank's sound bites help him attract dumb clueless candidate looking for creditability.  The media does not talk about who won or who lost among the consultants because poor sole clueless reporters count on them to give them story tips.  What we have in realty is an inner cycle made up of consultant and journalist who control the news. NY1 lets Levension go on the air from time to time pretending to give objective opinions to issues and pols he represent or is fighting. The good government groups are clueless about the way lobbyists and consultant use subcontracting to make deals between themselves because this way of doing business does not require public disclosure.


Lobbyist George Arzt who won with Jeffries and Velasquez Push NORDSTROM for a big deal with developers. 


Election 2012  
David Chen profiles Grace Meng, calling her “a little-known state legislator from Flushing who is poised to become the biggest political star from New York City’s fastest-growing demographic group.”
She doesn’t see herself as a symbol 
A Breakthrough Candidate and Potential Star (NYT) The Post blasts two “Charlies,” writing that Congressman Rangel fooled enough people to win re-election, and that it’s good Councilman Barron isn’t going to Washington – but it’s too bad he’s not leaving the city * Change Is Afoot In Harlem, Even After Rangel Win  * Long Ready To Run Against Gillibrand(NY1) * After Winning Primary, Meng Now Focuses On Halloran(NY1) * After Winning Primary, Meng Now Focuses On Halloran(NY1) * Rangel Back In Washington After Primary Fight(NY1) * NY1 Online: Charles Rangel’s Victory Tour(NY1) * NY1 Online: Wendy Long Discusses Senate Primary Win * Meng, Halloran fire first salvos in Queens Congressional (NYDN) * Espaillat refuses to talk recount in Rangel victory (NYDN) * Hakeem Jeffries laid out legislative agenda, including  securing tax breaks for parents who send their children to religious schools, easing the deep foreclosure problem, to federal oversight of the NYPD. * Adriano Espaillat didn’t give much credence to new precinct numbers that showed his race against Charlie Rangel getting narrower, but did tell supporters Tuesday night “You live to fight another day. This is not my first loss. I’ll dust myself off and come back again.” * VELAZQUEZ CAPITALIZES ON HASIDIC SPLIT: Rep. Nydia Velazquez fended off Councilman Erik Dilan in Tuesday’s congressional primary thanks in part to the Aronite faction of Williamsburg’s Satmar Jewish community * Noting he got less than 50 percent of the vote, one editorial board said Rangel "has nothing to be proud of." [New York Post] * Storobin Links Felder to 'The Christine Quinn Agenda' and Explains Why Skelos Will Back Him (NYO) * 53rd AD: O'Connor 157, Martinez 171, Velazquez 2,385, Dilan 1,837.  Assemblymember/District Leader for the 53rd AD: Vito Lopez  * 40th AD: Jeffries 3,349 votes, Barron's 3,024  Assemblymember/District Leader for the 40th AD: Inez Barron  Councilmember for almost all the 40th AD: Charles Barron  * 64th AD: O'Connor 501, Martinez 129, Velazquez 2,318, Dilan 182  Assemblymember for the 64th AD: Shelly Silver * Dollars for Democrats: New nominees for Congress show fundraising muscle(New York World) * No contest Queens power broker Crowley leads pack of local members of Congress raising big bucks for unopposed primary races * With Bob Turner Gone, Wendy Long Gets Some Orthodox Love(NYO)
* Lancman's Revenge Against Queens County Dems? (City and State) *s Linares versus is already front-page news in Spanish   *  to file complaint with over voting problems * Dan Halloran called the Supreme Court decision “the biggest tax increase in American history.”






Meng, Rangel, Jeffries $100+ A Vote?
With the low voter turn out and the big money in the congressional election expected to see next money when the FCC requires candidates to file their contributors most of the major candidates for congress paid over $100 for each vote.  That does not include inkind services from unions and volunteers, corrupt newspaper publishers and unreported street money * SuperPACs are prepared to spend big in New York’s House races this fall.
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NYT Spins the Date for the Primary As the Reason for the Low Vote Tuesday, When They Know NYC Stop Voting Years Ago
Date Blamed for Low Vote in Primaries (NYT) While some of the races this week were closely watched, political consultants blamed a judge’s date switch to June for the low turnout. 12-14% turnout. 5 percent for the Republican U.S. Senate contest
NYT Should Google Itself on Reasons for Low Voter Trunout
Voter Apathy Is Leaving Much of the City on the Sidelines of Democracy (NYT, 2011) * New York Voter Turnout Ranks Last Among States - NYTimes.com(2010) * Low New York Primary Turnout May Have Set a Modern Record (NYT, 2009) * NY's Falling Voter Participation  * New York's Decreasing Voter Turnout (True News) * Out of the state’s more than 2.6 million registered Republicans, only 137,000 voted Tuesday, with 97 percent of precincts reporting — suggesting an overall turnout of about 5 percent. In districts with competitive congressional races, that number jumped to as high as 14 percent.* Primary Turnout 'Pathetic' Despite Hot Races(DNAINFO) * Ydanis Rodriguez calls for a federal monitor for the Board of Elections to oversee *Espaillat Will Beat Rangel Once All Votes Are Counted, Councilman Says DNAInfo) City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez told DNAinfo he believes once all votes are counted, Espaillat will win.
 
Political Machines and Incumbents Want Low Turn Out
The Real Campaign is to Suppress Challengers (TN)*** Tammany’s Ballot Control Again and Again(TN) * The Next Mayor? You Don't Care, Do You? (Village Voice)




The BOE Strange Rangel Count
For Some Reason While Every Other Campaign Had All Their Polling Sites Counted the Rangel Race Stopped at 84%
Rangel results still unsettled(Politico) By late afternoon Wednesday, though, the results had narrowed considerably: With 94 percent of precincts in, Rangel’s lead was down to 44 percent to 41 percent, with 1,032 votes separating the candidates according to the AP. * Rangel Doesn't Know About Numbers Changing in Tuesday's 'Strange Race'(NYO) * video: calls editorial board members "strange"   

The gap between Rep. Charlie Rangel and state Sen. Adriano Espaillat narrowed to 2.7 percentage points as primary votes continued to come in, but the incumbent’s campaign is confident of victory (NYDN) * "An unknown number of absentee ballots, plus returns from 32 of the district's 506 precincts, remain to be counted when the vote is certified next month." [Associated Press] * Perhaps as many as 1,000 affidavit ballots. [Jeff Mays] * Cindy Adams is “glad” for Rep. Charlie Rangel about his (closer than originally reported) primary win.* Roberts may be the best politician in the country, Ezra Klein writes, upholding the conservative constitutional arguments about the law but upholding it on a technicality.

A tale of two Charlies (NYP Ed) Barron and Rangel Rangel — proved Tuesday that while you can’t fool all of the people all of the time, you apparently can fool enough of them to win a 22nd term in the House of Representatives. First, Barron — a loudmouthed racist clown who was proved on primary day to be of no political consequence whatsoever.



NYT Says City Budget Relies on Overly Optimistic Revenue Projections
New York City’s Balanced Budget, for Now (NYT) The mayor and City Council have made their deadline, but will the proposed budget need to be revised because of overly optimistic revenue projections? The New York City Council’s budget deal avoids tax hikes and proposed cuts, but it may not last since it relies on optimistic projections of taxi medallion sales and other one-time revenue items, the Times points out

City Council Releases Member Items List(WSJ)






Member item pork is once again shady(Queens Crap)

The City Council dished out $147 million in pork this year, including to a health center in Queens whose funds are under examination by the city’s Health Dept. 

 

 

Quinn Gives Corrupt Bosses Non Profit Political Machines $573,589  . . .  Using Government $$$ Pay to Play for Lopez Support for Mayor
City Council to cut pork on nonprofit founded by Brooklyn Democratic boss Vito Lopez(NYDN) Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Citizens Council has been under scrutiny from investigators since a probe found it had submitted fraudulent and questionable claims for taxpayer cash


Is New York Council Speaker Christine Quinn building close ties with Gov. Andrew Cuomo just in time for her 2013 mayoral campaign? One interested observer following the race notes Cuomo's decision to shun the traditional gaggle of elected officials, and instead march just with Quinn and her new wife in last weekend's gay pride parade. Quinn, who helped lead efforts to legalize same-sex marriage, has been attempting to strengthen ties with the governor in other ways as well. For example, she has brought on former Cuomo political advisor Jennifer Cunningham to advise her own campaign. And Quinn recently had a fundraiser co-hosted by the wife of Steve Cohen, a former counsel to the governor, where one source told us Cohen had given Quinn a glowing introduction. (City and State)


Albany Bums Do Not Deserve A Pay Raise
The Journal News doesn’t think state lawmakers deserve a pay raise.









NYPD ticket fixing probe finds more police agencies might be involved(NYP)




Court Rules NYC Taxis Need Not Be Wheelchair Accessible  * Federal Court: City Does Not Limit Disabled Access To Taxis(NY1)


NY1 Online: Expert Analyzes New Congressional Maps(NY1)





Bloomberg is set to launch Project PopUp NYC, a competition that offers the city’s most promising fashion retailers and technology start-ups the opportunity to win prizes to coincide with New York Fashion Week in September.





New Yorkers Begging for Jobs City Council Does Nothing 
Amid Gloom, Job Hopes Rest Heavily on New Arena(NYT)  The competition for the 2,000 jobs as ushers, ticket sellers and food and drink vendors that will become available at the Barclays Center is a powerful illustration of just how bleak the city’s job picture is. *Residents Line Up For Chance At Barclays Center Jobs*NY1)

But Push A Living Wage Bill That Effect Few and Creates No New Jobs








As Retail Hub, Manhattan Tops National Average and Outstrips Other Boroughs(NYT) The retail success in Manhattan, fueled by an influx of tourists, has forced residents of other boroughs to travel far for staples or rely on shops like drugstores.



Why Not A Bridge for Abe Beame Who Saved the City From Going Broke
Pol says give Dinkins  a bridge(NYDN) The mayor who not only turned the city around but saved it from going to the creditors has nothing in the city named after him


 

 

 


Emails obtained by an environmental group reveal that the Cuomo administration gave drillers access to draft regulations about new hydrofracking rules.

 

 

 

 

Officials Hint That M.T.A. May Restore Some Service(NYT) * MTA responds to viral video of people tripping up subway step. (NBC) * WATCH: People tripping on stairs at B'klyn subway stati NYP) * Now that he is on the MTA board, David Paterson said he regretted raiding the agency’s funds. * Paterson, who is legally blind, also voiced concern that a new MTA cost-cutting initiative will negatively impact disabled riders.



911 Families Mad At Pols for Delay

9/11 Family Members Blast Govs Over Stalled Museum Some family members of September 11th victims have sent a letter to Governor Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie saying they are allowing the 9/11 museum construction halt to continue. * Spite at museum as 9/11 kin call delays a ‘betrayal’ (NYDN) * The frustrated relatives of more than 200 victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks blasted the delayed Ground Zero museum as a “betrayal” to their loved ones’ legacy. (They’re allied with Mayor Bloomberg and angry at the governor).





Webb Ave. tenants file lawsuit in Bronx fire escape (NYDN)  * Some Bronx Tenants Evacuated After Fire Escape Fiasco Allowed(WCBS)




Kelly: Judge Put Safety of New Yorkers Last
Commissioner Ray Kelly writes in the Post that an appeals court’s dismissal of a case against a teenager possessing a gun “may be as dangerous as the weapon itself”


'Frisk' kid freed by court shot a man months after release: DA(NYP) * Courts again put NYers’ safety last (By Ray Kelly) * Why was Darryl free? (NYP Ed) Darryl Craig, a Bronx teenager who was freed by an appeals courts that ruled he had been unfairly stopped and frisked, later got another gun and shot a man. The Post echoes the criticism of the three judges, who voided the arrest of a Bronx youth who was stopped and frisked by police without valid grounds, even though he had a gun and later shot someone. Bloomy re appellate gun ruling: "It's just the definition of insanity. I cannot imagine what was going through these judges heads."


Citing Discrimination in Stop-and-Frisk Practice, Coalition Calls for Reforms(NYT) * A Vocal Reaction to an Article on Stop-and-Frisk Experiences(NYT)








City Schools Let Out For Summer(NY1) * Graduating in their own way (NYDN) * Teachers Starting to Hear if They Are Part of Turnaround (NYT)




More Education News
At One Brooklyn School, a Lesson in the Danger of Success (NYT) What happens when an educational institution is too rich for federal funding, but too poor to make up the difference? The head of StudentsFirstNY wonders if Cuomo's new education panel "is too focused on comity," and says the governor needs to focus on boosting teacher performance. [Micah Lasher] *  Eva Moskowitz’s Success Academy Schools network rolling in money but still wants 50% increase in management fees from state (NYDN) One of New York City's wealthiest charter school operators is expected to be approved for a 50% increase in per-pupil management fees


P.S. 10 Flash Mob: Brooklyn Parents Dance For Their Kids At School (WATCH)







Sharp Rise in New York Beach Closings Is Found(NYT) * Swimming Areas Closed(WSJ) *Beach Closings Rose in N.J., N.Y. Last Year(WSJ) * Needles found on Rockaway Beach(NY1)








 Mike Bloomberg will re-open McCarren Pool this morning, a move that The Daily News cheered. * The Daily News praises the New York City Parks Department for restoring and re-opening Brooklyn’s McCarren Park pool: * City Pools Open In Time For Latest Heat Blast (NY1)* McCarren Park Pool Is Now Open for Swimming(NY Mag)






HEALTH LAW STANDS

Roberts Part of Majority Affirming Mandate

Victory for Obama, but Ruling Limits Medicaid Provision(NYT)

Obama, Roberts Legacies Intertwined(WSJ)  * NY Times Warns SCOTUS Justice Ginsburg: Retire Soon Or Risk Being Replaced With A Conservative (COLUMN)* Leading POLITICO: SCOTUS win-lose scenario  *President scores big win as court backs health law in historic 5-4 decision(NYP)

 
House to Vote on Holder Contempt(WSJ) * Opinion: Suffering through the 'Seinfeld' election - Joe Scarborough  * Mort Zuckerman: Obama's Middle-Class Vulnerability(US News) * The new NBC-Marist data: MI: Obama 47%, Romney 43%; NC: Obama 46%, Romney 44%; NH: Obama 45%, Romney 45% * New round of swing state polls shows tight race between Obama, Romney (Huff Post) * Caroline Kennedy to Campaign for Obama throughout N.H.(Wash Post) * Eugene Robinson: The Supreme Court, helping to heal the nation - The Washington Post * NY Times points out that both Obama and Biden voted against John Roberts as Chief Judge. * Michelle Obama compared the ruling today to the struggles to the fight for justice during the Civil Rights era. * Roberts may be the best politician in the country, Ezra Klein writes, upholding the conservative constitutional arguments about the law but upholding it on a technicality.

Even OBAMA thought he'd lost health-care ruling because of wrong CNN, Fox reports(NYDN)



UPDATE: House votes 255-67 to hold Eric Holder in contempt for Fast & Furious.(ABC) *AG failed to comply with subpoena over 'Fast and Furious' case: House(NYP) * Holder Found in Contempt of Congress Over Gun Inquiry(NYT)


News Corp. Is Said to Back Papers’ Spinoff(NYT) *News Corp. Approves Split(WSJ) News Corp.'s board has approved in principle the separation of its publishing and entertainment businesses


Ann Curry Ousted from 'TODAY' Show, In Tears...

Ann Curry Says Good-Bye On Today: ‘I Love You And I Wanted To Give You The World’





Trading Loss at JPMorgan Could Rise to $9 Billion(NYT) * Madoff’s Brother Sets Plea Deal in Ponzi Case(NYT) * Jail for Bernie’s pig bro(NYP) * News Corp. board approves company split(WABC)






Anna Gristina in Talks About Pig Rescue Reality TV Show(DNA Info)

 

Law and Order
Beau hunted in exec’s murder(NYP) * Police Search For Boyfriend Of Queens Homicide Victim (NY1)* B’klyn boy, 14, shot in the head(NYP) * Celeb jeweler slapped with misdemeanor weapons charge for umbrella parking space 'spat'(NYP) * Police Had Unusual Access to Nightclub Data, Suit Says(NYT) A lawsuit alleges the NYPD had a database of scanned identification cards of all the patrons at a SoHo nightclub, raising privacy concerns and questions of how many clubs recorded similar information,* Ex-Students Acquitted of Hazing in Cornell Death(NYT)* Rapper-brawl bar didn’t tell patrons, but it gave cops their personal info(NYDN) * No bail for gun thug in alleged rape (NYDN) * Profs (NYDN) * Police Search For Boyfriend In Connection With Murder Of (WCBS) * Armed Robber Strikes 3 Laundromats in 3 Days(NBC) * 'Brawling' broker refuses 8-month plea deal in New York Athletic Club slug-fest(NYP) *  The Bronx D.A.'s office has upgraded charges against a man accused of attacking a bus driver in a case of road rage.

WATCH: Stewart Blasts Christie's Marijuana Veto