Readers Angry at The Times for Schwarzenegger Stories

Los Angeles Times ^ | October 5, 2003 | Steve Hymon, Cara Mia DiMassa and Mitchell Landsberg, Times Staff Writers

[Nachum]

Kathy McIver is a Democrat from La Habra and a longtime subscriber to The Times. Today's paper, she says, will be the last that will be delivered to her door.

Like many readers, McIver is angry. She is angry about The Times' coverage of the California recall campaign, and especially angry about the stories that the newspaper has run in recent days detailing allegations that Arnold Schwarzenegger touched women inappropriately.

[Calvin Locke]

Just curious. Not being in Kali, does the LAT ever print the truth about Davis? The local paper here uses LAT editorials
(nat/intl issues) a couple of times a week.

BTB, journalism is a TRADE, not a profession, regardless of the ego inflation and hype of so-called journalists and professors of journalism.

[Timesink]

Note that the Times's editor stupidly admits THEY created this story by harassing any female in Hollywood they could get to answer the phone, until they were able to gin up enough women willing to make the claim. No wonder it took them weeks to accomplish!:

Carroll said the reporters had, for the most part, made "cold calls" to people in the film industry after hearing that Schwarzenegger had a reputation for mistreating women. For instance, he said, they had called women listed in the credits of movies starring Schwarzenegger.

What more proof do you need that the Los Angeles Times WANTED to make this story happen, instead of merely reporting?

[Timesink]

Like you, I would like to think it is more, but this the description they used.

Yeah, I just noticed that they said "about" instead of "over" while reading over the article. I still think it was far more, though.

[Nachum]

LOL-

In the view of L.A. times, "about" could be 1,000, give or take 10,000 or so...

[strela]

Hmmm ... have you ever seen THESE two in the same place?

[Nachum]

Yikes, Aahnuld has the "Corbomite device"!

[Pukin Dog]

Careful, Susan Estrich is one of the few honest Liberals.

[Jorge]

Over a thousand readers have recently terminated their subscriptions.

Wow, this is encouraging.
Nice to know that these liberal leftist propaganda machines are finally being held accountable.

[concentric circles]

"... Kathy McIver is a Democrat from La Habra and a longtime subscriber to The Times. Today's paper, she says, will be the last that will be delivered to her door..."

"... She is angry about The Times' coverage... that they would do that type of investigation and not balance it..."

"... To me this is a fairness issue," said Debbie Mahoney, a 52-year-old Northern California resident... She said The Times has demonstrated "true bias"..."

"... The Times has laid "this stuff out like stink bombs at the last moment... " said Bill Agee, a 64-year-old Capistrano Beach resident."

"He identified himself as a political moderate who is registered as an independent. He said he canceled his 20-year subscription to the paper last year. "I just got tired of the slant, to be honest with you," he said..."

"...Lewis Garrigus, 55, a retired financial analyst who described himself as a longtime Times reader, was among those saying he would cancel his subscription..."

"It's not just me saying the L.A. Times is prejudiced," said Garrigus... "It's everyone. I finally got absolutely sick of it..."

"... I swear, I can't stand it anymore," he said. "There are never two sides of something on the front page. Who does your editor think he's kidding?"

"... readers... have flooded the paper with calls, e-mails and letters..."

"As of Saturday evening, about 1,000 readers had canceled their subscriptions to protest the handling of the Schwarzenegger story. In addition, the newspaper had received as many as 400 phone calls critical of its coverage — many angry, some profane."

"About 800 people had written to praise the newspaper's coverage, many apparently motivated by a liberal Web site that urged readers to register their support."

"... Jamie Gold... The Times' readers' representative... is responsible for responding to complaints, said she was aware of few events that have ever triggered such anger by the newspaper's readers..."

"... Editor John Carroll responded that he believed The Times has provided balanced coverage... "We didn't have a story until the day we ran it," Carroll said. "We were working for seven weeks, seeking women, trying to persuade the women we found to talk with us..."

"... Carroll said the reporters had, for the most part, made "cold calls" to people in the film industry after hearing that Schwarzenegger had a reputation for mistreating women. For instance, he said, they had called women listed in the credits of movies starring Schwarzenegger..."

"... Some readers have responded to allegations made on television by a former Times staffer, Jill Stewart, that the newspaper had finished the Schwarzenegger story two weeks before it was published, and that reporters were unhappy that the story had been held up..."

"... Carla Hall, one of the principal reporters who worked on the story, said that was not true. She said the story wasn't finished until the day before it appeared in the newspaper..."

[FITZ]

I thought this would probably backfire on the democrats and their media. People aren't as stupid as they believe. You'd think after defending Clinton for his rapes, attempted rapes, sexual harassment, intimidation of witnesses, and perjury that the democrats would be too ashamed to use these tactics. So Arnold pinched a couple butts on Hollywood movie sets. Maybe it was those bimbos who were photographed jumping on the bed in the Lincoln bedroom in the White House during the Clinton days?

[Kaslin]

hobson Just use the universal freeper user name: hildabeast and password: isaliar

You can also use:

name: membername password: password

They might have worked once, but they don't anymore

[Yaelle]

Here is my letter:

Your paper should be renamed the Pravda. It's so refreshingly retro to be as unilateral as Saddam's voting base, isn't it? We see Davis spokesmen on TV claiming they had "nothing to do" with the hit pieces you cleverly keep releasing on Arnold Schwarzenegger. How Clintonianly true of them; the whole truth is that you and Governor Davis have the same goal: for him to remain in power.

I was waiting to see the heavy-duty tabloid research articles on Davis and Bustamante. The former was accused of physically abusing staff members to the point of them needing hospitalization, and the latter has used the N-word in public (it can't be a slip if you do not use the word at all) and never repudiated Mecha's racist mission statement. Alas. Only one candidate has to have his reputation and honor ripped to shreds in the paper.

You're the number one paper in L.A. so I guess you are like that old Saturday Night Live spoof commercial: "We don't care. We don't have to. We're the [L.A. Times]." A fine thing to be proud of. Just don't call this oldest profession you perform journalism.

Sincerely,

[Dante3]

CNN has continued to report the Hitler allegation. The groping story is old and would cause no great shock in California. However, CNN has reported the false Hitler allegations but not that it has been retracted.

[headsonpikes]

Right. They didn't have a story until the day they ran it.

The question is...Did they meet their production deadline?

It took them weeks to assemble the 'facts', their pursuit of truth having operated on the philosophy that 'parts is parts', creating a news item out of bits and pieces of cloth, as opposed to whole cloth, for which they could be sued.

They are simply a Rat Party organ, as they called these rags in the good 'ol USS of R.

;^)

[freedumb2003]

Mine follows (I haven't cancelled because there is no other alternative -- keep your friends close and your enemies closer...)

---

Dear Editor (also Reader's Representative)
I direct you to: http://kfi640.com/gumbyviolence.html

where a story from your paper has been posted. Please note that it is direct proof, with names named, of individuals in Gray Davis' office who were ASSAULTED by him. Why is this not running side-by-side with your Arnold hit pieces?

I understand your editorial board is against the Recall and especially against Arnold. But I think it is appaling that a paper of your stature would stoop to actually changing the news coverage to support such a position. Your begrudging and late (and minimal) coverage on Bustamante's membership in the racist organization Mecha, your "October Surprise" partisan smear articles (no doubt initiated by Bob Mulholland), the fact you don't link MoveOn.org with the attempt by the Left to IGNORE sexual conduct by officeholders, etc. etc, etc. makes it clear you are in league with the Leftist Socialist government we inadvertantly elected.

If it wasn't for TJ Simers and Michael Ramirez, I would probably cancel my subscription (I may yet, I am still mulling it over...).

As a subscriber, I demand equal and reasonable reporting outside the confines of the Editorial and Opinion sections!

[68 grunt]

BTB, journalism is a TRADE, not a profession ...

Dang, its been a long time since I've heard that, thanks for the reminder.

[Ichneumon]

Susan Estrich:

Susan Ostrich:

[Ichneumon]

Just don't call this oldest profession you perform journalism.

ROFL! Good one.

[Stallone]

MEDIA BIAS? Just the tip of the scum pile.