Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Patriot Paul writes to WFYI regarding Jim Shella & Indiana Week in Review

Copy your letters to Jim Shella and/or WFYI and we'll publish them if you like.
mail to: statehouserevolt@gmail.com

Yellow Journalism from the Shella Show

Much as been blogged in the aftermath of the Indianapolis 'Revolt at theStatehouse' Rally held on March 25th. As several heads of Taxpayerdelegations from various portions of Indiana gave their troubledexperiences with their local government that doesn't seem to beresponsive to them, Jim Shella, political reporter for channel Wish-TV arrived with microphone for interviews.

The channel 8 film clip interview that played Wednesday evening followed by Friday's airing'Indiana Week in Review' with the same clip and remarks by Shella weresome of the worst yellow broadcast journalism I can remember.

Billed as a politically non partisan speaker event, there werenevertheless tables of information by various groups and politicalparties intent on proselytizing converts to their respective parties, including the Republican Libertarian Caucus, Libertarian Party, and the Campaign for Liberty group. Mr. Shella seized upon this floor area for quick interviews, later edited and aired to show those unflatteringtable representatives' halted and impromptu comments as the meat of his broadcast, rather than the subject matter of multiple speakers who each spoke of grievances with their government. Missing the over arching theme of accountability and transparency in government well documented in advance, Mr. Shella violated fundamental values of objective reporting through focus of what can be only described as majoring in the minor, tantamount to criticizing tribes of Indians while ignoring news of a Boston Tea Party in progress.

Admittedly, there is bias in all of us. We all see through colored glasses. But this exceeded elementary reporting 101 with commentary that demeaned citizens who spoke and who attended.

The basics of who,what, when, where, and why were trashed in favor of discrediting those on the floor who had other agendas. With a broad brush, he and most ofhis panelists piled on and treated the story as a rally that went bad.

Further, the Friday program was saturated in an elite smugness that was suffocating. I'll not watch this tabloid again. WISH-TV and IndianaWeek in Review's backers should be ashamed of being represented this way.

Paul Wheeler
Marion County

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