Wednesday 29 April 2009

Cairns Post catches Swine flu

The Cairns Post made an astounding revelation in their follow-up story today, about the dodgy deal between Cairns Regional Council and Radio 4CA...
  • "Media Watch and Crikey.com have also reported on the issue," writes Thomas Chamberlin.
What about your own true blue local CairnsBlog, Cairns Post? Surely you could make mention of the other local media that has covered this toroid tale in such a substantial way? Or does CairnsBlog bother you folk? Get under your page 3 girl skin? Maybe that's why the last four online comments to Cairns dot com dot au from myself, have never made it onto your free and open press, perchance?

It wasn't what Courier-Mail executive editor Neil Melloy said on my ABC panel discussion last Friday. "We allow anyone to comment online on our stories, nothing is vetted," Melloy exclaimed. Yeah, right.

Anytime I reference a story from our local noospaper, I always credit and link it. Surely common courtesy should extend the other way.

Now I searched Crikey this morning, and couldn't find said article Mr Chamberlin refers to (can anyone?), however maybe he should have a look at the story about...
  • 'Murdoch's News Corp looks set to join the club of under-performing media giants. The company is due to report third quarter results on May 6 and could produce a 45% slump in net earnings...

7 comments:

CBD Warrior said...

You're exhibiting all the signs of "multiple personality disorder", Michael. On the one hand you revel at being the "news outsider". You claim vociferously that you're a journalist equal to the mainstream. And then you piss and moan that they won't publish your letters!

Is this psycho, or what?

You wouldn't see Cairns Post reporters expecting their "letters to the editor" at the Courier-Mail published. IT ISN'T ETHICAL JOURNALISM!

The ABC didn't quote your blog either, Michael. Because you missed the story, you were behind the curve. You claim to have "insider emails" and yet you failed to produce them. The Post was out before you jumped on the bandwagon.

Your story about the Simpson's was on Fox News two days before you treated it as "news".

Blogs are poorly behaved terriers nipping at the heels of reporters, nothing more. Sometimes that's a good thing. Except in this case when you've decided to take a pee on their shoes.

Dutchie said...

At least there is no censorship here on this blog, CBD warrior. I sent a comment on Mackenzie-gate to Cairns dot com dot au and they published only the first sentence of my comment, that there's "two (or more) sides to a story".

The rest of my commentary stated that I thought that "when employees go behind their bosses' backs, it says more about their employees". And that I thought "the 130.000 paid to the communications manager is the real waste of money here". I also said that "Val's mistake was not to sack these people when she became the mayor". This was deleted!

It appears that only blogs against the Council or Val are published.

Why?

That (the editing / censoring) is more unethical than submitting a letter to a medium!

And if Cairns Post wanted to publish opinions here, they could do so - uncensored.

It is just interesting that CairnsBlog was not mentioned as a source, but not surprising.

I find more information behind many news stories here than in the paper. I would say most people read this blog in addition to other news sources, so even if you don't consider this blog 'news' in the purest sense of the word, it is a nice alternative source of information and opinion!

Alison Alloway said...

I was the person who quoted from "crikey" which ran a story on 27/9/2007 on John Laws' "Cash for Comments" breaches
under Michael's piece, "ABC Media Watch to Investigate Council."
Thus, it would seem that Thomas Chamberlain of "The Cairns Post" simply picked up my comment and didn't read it properly, before inserting it into his story.

I note Thomas Chamberlain has FINALLY quoted Clause 3.1 of the Commercial Radio Codes of Practice probably also picked up from reading "cairnsblog" as Michael was the first and only journalist to actually quote and explain this.

CBD Warrior, you are wrong in asserting that "blogs are poorly behaved terriers nipping at the heels of reporters...".

Chamberlain has just provided more evidence that "reporters" are in fact trawling this site and using Michael's research and knowledge.

Ruperts RightHand said...

Michael, if your comments to the Post's website are not getting through, it is probably the spam filters knocking them out for having links to another site in them - yours.

And the above quoted comments by Dutchie were quite possibly knocked out because they would be defamatory. There are laws against publishing defamatory material, as you of all people should know, Michael.
No website publishes every comment uncut; it could not afford the defamation law suits.

The ACMA code of conduct is available to anyone with google, and even reporters are smart enough to operate that. Maybe it has not been the main thrust of the reports, because as Media Watch presenter Jonathon Holmes said on ABC radio today, it is a toothless tiger and all 4CA is likely to get is a slap on the wrist.
As a ratepayer, my biggest concern is that my money was wasted on geting the mayor on radio in a show that should have done it for free. Poor financial management. Seems to be a bit of a hallmark.

Jan from Kewarra said...

Re Dutchie's comments - what alot of people do not know Dutchie is that Val is not in charge of Council staff and she cannot hire and fire the CEO.

The CEO is responsible for all the staff and operational issues of the Council. I am sure she would have loved to have ditched Kevin's mate Noel, but that decision went to a Council vote and the gang of
4 at least (Blake, Bonneau, Gregory and Cochrane), plus one or two others voted to keep him in.

Her hands are tied when it comes to hiring and firing - it is not her responsibility.

So, it all falls back onto the CEO to do his job, hire and fire, look after the staff and make sure that the services that run this City get done with financial control etc.

Therein lies the problem, that keeps raring its ugly head.....We all expect for things to get better and they are not, our money continues to be wasted, scandals keep happening within CRC, developers keep getting away with destroying our unique tropical environment to build ugly shitty units that destroy the quality of life for everyone around them, its either incompetence or unethical behaviour, on the part of the CEO and other senior staff and I must say, at least two Councillors, and I am assuming that he (NOel)has some qualifications to be in that position, which leaves the other alternative....

Over to you.

Michael P Moore said...

Hi there "Ruperts RightHand" (beggars belief what you do with you left hand) ...

When I complete the comments section on the Cairns Post website (below a story) I fill in the comment and details, like anyone else.

I have not written anything that could be construed as "quite possibly knocked out because they would be defamatory."

I simply comment on the relevant story, like anyone else. If you visit Not the Cairns Post, you will see examples where they have also posted comments which have been edited or have never appeared.
My friend Janine Aitken who scribes her own Blog , was in my office last Thursday afternoon. I posted a comment on the Posts’ website, and Janine wrote one following mine. You can guess which one appeared.
You go on to say that no website publishes every comment uncut, because of the defamation law suits.

Well I do, as do many Blogs, in the spirit of openness and genuine freedom of speech, no matter how much I disagree with what the comment author wants to say. The ONLY ones I've ever removed are personal hatred ones (unfortunately there is always the odd one) and those that try to use my Blog to defame a third party and expose me, as the publisher, to possible litigation. This has only happened twice.

You should avail yourself of my Posting Comments Policy, where I explain what is acceptable to post, and you'll see I allow almost anything, so long as it follows the discussion thread. A Blog allows a unique debate interaction, that is not available to readers and letter writers of other ‘old’ media.

Censorius said...

Quote MM: The ONLY ones I've ever removed are personal hatred ones (unfortunately there is always the odd one) and those that try to use my Blog to defame a third party and expose me, as the publisher, to possible litigation. Unquote.

So you do in fact cut and or censor comments on your website, by your own admission.

As do all websites, unless they are willing to break the law and publish defamatory material - ie defames a third party - or material inciting hatred based on race, religion etc, against which there are also laws.