Entries Tagged as 'campaign finance reform'

The Stories That Cannot Exist

January 17th, 2015 · 1 Comment · campaign finance reform, Congress, economy, financial coverage, health care reform, journalism, regulation

By Arthur Alpert All hail Nick Estes’ Op Ed column in the January 9 issue of the Albuquerque Journal. We won’t see its like for a long time. Under the rubric, “Yes, we DO know how to fix the economy”, Estes took syndicated columnist Robert Samuelson to task for writing the reverse. Estes explained: “The […]

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Siding With the Rich and Powerful: The Journal’s Lack of Support for the Voice of the Citizenry

September 13th, 2014 · 1 Comment · campaign finance reform, Congress, inequality, tax policy, voting rights

By Denise Tessier Unlike the Albuquerque Journal, New Mexico Telegraph blogger Matt Reichbach saw the importance of one particular news story from Thursday. The first entry on his “Morning Word” list of stories from around the state today was this: • As expected, a Republican filibuster blocked the passage of a constitutional amendment to reverse […]

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George Will’s Ethical Lapses Bespeak Allegiance to Oligarchy

September 12th, 2014 · No Comments · campaign finance reform, Congress, inequality, journalism

By Arthur Alpert The Albuquerque Journal just published still another George Will column (9/11) in which he upends history, common sense and rationality to argue for the interests of the American oligarchy. That may not be coincidence. Will’s argument may be a quid pro quo for what his benefactors paid him. Recently, the Society of […]

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More Flailing Against Obamacare, and Related Backdoor Attacks on the IRS

April 14th, 2014 · No Comments · campaign finance reform, health care reform, tax policy

By Denise Tessier When the health care enrollment deadline of March 31 passed with more than 7 million people signed up nationwide – “beating expectations” as the Associated Press put it – the Albuquerque Journal put the news inside , deciding the front-page story should be “NM lags on health care sign-ups.” The latter, more […]

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Journal Isn’t Telling Whole Story About IRS “Scandal”

March 14th, 2014 · 2 Comments · campaign finance reform, journalism

By Arthur Alpert You’ve probably noticed I shy away from writing about the major political parties. There are several reasons. One is my working premise that both parties respond to their corporate underwriters.  And there’s a practical concern – were I to condemn Albuquerque Journal editors for tilting toward Party A, it might read as […]

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In Cahoots with the Kochs

January 27th, 2014 · No Comments · campaign finance reform, Fact Check, journalism, Uncategorized

By Arthur Alpert I prefer short, common words, but the Koch brothers have earned “ubiquitous” by dint of their generous, energetic efforts to fund sundry conservative and Far Right political causes from seemingly inexhaustible pots of gold. At the Albuquerque Journal, however, the Kochs’ civic efforts don’t get them much ink. For a long time, […]

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On the ALEC Front: A Review – With an Eye Toward 2014

January 6th, 2014 · 1 Comment · campaign finance reform, Education, energy policy, environment, NM Legislature, regulation, tax policy, voting rights

By Denise Tessier In 2013, more light than previously before was shined on the secretive yet highly influential 40-year-old corporatist lobbying organization known as the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). That light came mostly from blogs, alternative media, journalist Bill Moyers and the British-owned Guardian newspaper, rather than by so-called “mainstream” news. The Albuquerque Journal […]

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Two Journals

January 14th, 2013 · 3 Comments · campaign finance reform, energy policy, environment, journalism, NM Legislature, tax policy

By Arthur Alpert (January 10) Here we are, 10, 11 days into 2013 and I haven’t written a word about the Albuquerque Journals. Yes, Journals. Plural. If all this Journal-watching has clarified anything, it’s that there exist two newspapers in one body, a variation on the old Steve Martin movie. The local staff does professional […]

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The Point of the Exercise

July 25th, 2012 · No Comments · campaign finance reform, journalism

By Arthur Alpert “The Journal still hasn’t reported Senate Republicans blocked passage of the DISCLOSE Act, aimed at identifying big contributors to non-profits engaging in political activity,” I wrote here July 19. That’s still true, but an AP Washington Bureau commentary posing as a news story did mention it Friday, July 20 on A6. I […]

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How I Know What the Journal Thinks of Citizens United

February 24th, 2012 · No Comments · campaign finance reform

By Arthur Alpert I know the Albuquerque Journal’s stand on the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United and I didn’t come to that knowledge by way of an editorial. Nor did I rely on a few Op Ed columns on the issue, though pro-Citizens United essays have outnumbered the others. What I know didn’t even […]

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