I LIVE in Philadelphia. I have for nearly 40 of my 57 years. It is a wonderful city but also a corrupt one. Power is concentrated in the hands of a select few, who sometimes act in the public interest but too often act in their own interests or the interests of friends who have hot lines into their ears.
The best defense against that, the public’s only defense, has always been the existence of the city’s two newspapers, The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Philadelphia Daily News. They are a shell of what they once were. But the papers, in spite of endless staff cuts over the past two decades, still report. They still investigate. They still provide immeasurable value.
And now the city stands to effectively lose them.
A sad tale. I am not surprised to not see more national coverage of this issue, as Philadelphia does not often make national news, but I wish there was. I too like Ed Rendell, but putting both of the newspapers into the hands of a group of select men is a terrifying prospect for journalism in this city.
- February 19 2012 | 6 Notes - Read More →
