Letter to the Editor from Donald Weyer, of Batavia:
Investigative Post, a not-for-profit online media outlet, agrees that "advertising is evil." Well, I do too, and I suspect that Howard Owens, editor and publisher of The Batavian, a for-profit online media outlet, would concur! But it's advertising, a necessary evil, part of the cost of doing business. And I think that all would agree that the result of that evil, money or revenue, whether it gets into the hands of a non-profit or a for-profit, or my own greedy ones, is a good thing, an exceptionally good thing, as long as we're playing the game of capitalism! Don't you all agree too? (I suspect that the Post doesn't necessarily think that they're playing that game, although they really are, they just don't honestly admit it, but The Batavian and I are clearly playing it, and we freely admit it).
As far as I'm concerned, there's room for both media outlets in Western New York, and heck, even for a third good source of news and opinion,the Batavia Daily News! And why not let the consumers, the readers, of these three sources decide for themselves whether there is bias, slant, or fakery in the way that the news is presented?
Come on, providers, treat us like adults, and don't tell us, like children, how to think about or interpret what you provide! After all, isn't that what you all promote and encourage: independent, intelligent, and informed readers of your news output? Leave it to us and our capabilities of cognition, reason, and what have you, and you, respected news outlets, worried about your advertising revenue sources, advertising bottom lines, and the directions you aim that advertising money at! Admit that "evil advertising" is here to stay, yes, it's a bogeyman, and get on with the news, so I can consume it; forget about your internecine arguments and accusations. We, the readers, aren't really interested, and to the extent that we are, allow us, sovereign and autonomous individuals, to weigh the importance of what you say or write about each other. I'm tired of hearing about the decline of conventional news reporting and publishing, you know, about how we all are getting our news from social media today, but your attempts to cannibalize each other are only quickening and facilitating that trend. So, stop it!
Yeah, I notice and also think about The Batavian's recent increase in reports by Mr. Bojarski and Ms. Richenberg of Batavia Downs racing results (a subsidiary of WROTB, the bogeyman here). Don't know what to make of it other than that there is a much bigger audience for harness racing here in Batavia than I thought there was. Alternatively, the seemingly progressive stance of Investigative Post's questioning and then demonizing aspects of business, read advertising, and, yes, capitalism makes me note and think about that source and its news reliability.
Gambling, what they do over there on Park Road in Batavia, superintended by WROTB, and the home of Batavia Downs, is a nasty and dirty business! The only difference is that it's legal now. (Remember when people went to prison and were murdered or killed because of gambling? No more prison, at least!) Anyway, what do you expect to avoid stepping in and recoiling from today when you attempt to report on it to look into the business of legal gambling? You're bound to absorb some of its taint, its slime, its smell, merely reporting on it, just accepting advertising from it, merely thinking about or critiquing it, just by your proximity to it! The secret is to keep the "guilt by association" with gambling to a minimum.
All right then, sisters and brothers of the news media, you see what I mean. It's really hard to scrape it off the sole of your shoes or expunge the scent of it from your pant cuffs or skirt hems! But keep on keeping on! We readers want and need you.
What I've learned from this "tete-a-tete," this tiff, this baring of teeth and fists, this throwing of stones at glass houses, between The Batavian and Investigative Post:
- The Post exists.
- The Batavian has a business relationship with WROTB.
- As a consumer of news media and its outlets, I'm better informed and more learned.
So, who's the winner here?
Actually, I vehemently…
Actually, I vehemently disagree with the notion that advertising is evil. Advertising is an absolute positive. It helps local businesses grow and thrive, which is good for local communities.
I thought I made it clear -- one of my chief complaints with non-profit news outlets is they often refuse to take advertising, even from local businesses. That's just wrong. You're not really serving your community if you're ignoring its most important branch -- local businesses.
Local news outlets have an obligation to promote local businesses if they really want to claim they are supporting a local community.
Also, there has been absolutely no increase in coverage of harness racing. We have always posted every write-up we get from Batavia Downs of the races, from even before they advertised. The only thing that has changed is that instead of posting them as press releases, they carry Tim's byline.
And I do believe we are a more honest news organization than Investigative Post, and readers have a right to know why and have somebody point out the Post's flaws. That's part of serving the community, too.