Tampa Bay Tabloid Shuffle

First, the bad news.
Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, the area’s much beloved alternative weekly, was bought out by Euclid Media Group.  Known as EMG,  it owns a portfolio of nine such city publications including the Orlando Weekly.

EMG has shown a penchant for marginalizing and, in some cases, eliminating political news. It didn’t take long for the Cleveland-based outfit to telegraph its intentions to Tampa Bay readers.

Two immediate casualties of the local acquisition were ultra-proficient Editor-in-Chief David Warner and kickass News Editor Kate Bradshaw.  EMG’s track record suggests independently-sourced news stories in Creative Loafing will henceforth be a rarity.  Those who perused the Orlando Weekly before and after its changeover can attest to that.

Readers accustomed to in-depth exclusives can now expect more stories like this: a profile of former county commissioner Kevin Beckner who failed to win the 2016 race for Hillsborough County Clerk of the Circuit Courts.  That campaign was two years ago.

Wednesday’s digital edition of CL carried the story.  It was basically a list of Kevin Beckner’s favorite things from obsession to meat market to performance venue.

The pap was listed under “Politics” on CL’s front page.  The “writer” should be thankful there was no byline.  Embarrassing.

So the fraternity of Tampa Bay news sources untainted by pay-for-play investors and the corporate establishment lost an important member.  The public will become more reliant on local blogs for independent political commentary: Tampa Bay Beat, Eye on Tampa Bay, Shadow of the Stadium, Ybor City Stogie, Bay Post Internet, and the Tampa Bay Guardian.

On to the innocuous.

The Tampa Bay Times announced it would scale back publication of its *tbt tabloid from every weekday to once a week.  Only puzzle aficionados will notice.  Other than offering the more challenging L.A. Times crossword, the *tbt is basically a stripped down version of the Tampa Bay Times with pun-laced headlines.

The *tbt freebie was bad business anyway.  Its only competition: the Tampa Bay Times whose pay news racks are frequently side-by-side in the same locations.  Rolled out in 2004 as a weekly, *tbt started publishing five days a week in 2006.

Reason for the cutback: Trump-inspired tariffs on imported newsprint.

The ironies are too rich.  Last year, publisher Paul Tash announced the debt-laden Times wanted “to connect with Trump voters” while simultaneously accepting a $12-15 million cash infusion from right wing investors.  With propaganda disguised as news stories, the move backfired humongously as subscribers rebelled and voters rejected endorsed candidates.

And, it was the tariffs that triggered the *tbt contraction, not any in-house recognition that it used an incredibly poor business model.

By Jim Bleyer

Tampa Bay Times Right Wing Propaganda

The right-wing Times attempts to shame Florida's best mayor for being too progressive. You can't have "progressive" without "progress."

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Commissioner Choo Choo Ed Turanchik

 Once dubbed by The Tampa Bay Times for his advocacy of commuter rail, the former Hillsborough County commissioner promises to push next-gen transit options, affordable housing and public-private partnerships to create a city that will be a magnet for world-changers.

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"This isn’t about winning the mayor’s race. This is about winning the vision, It’s not about winning the vote, it’s about winning the hearts and souls."
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here
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Gwen Graham’s Minions Spreading Propaganda

Florida gubernatorial hopeful Gwen Graham, her operatives, and allies view Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum as her primary threat for the Democratic nomination and are attempting to marginalize him through a nasty 
whisper campaign.

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Her minions are not so subtly telling Democratic voters that Gillum is one of the targets in the FBI investigation of City of Tallahassee contracts.  That rumor, fueled by Graham’s operatives in Democratic circles has filtered into social media.  Gillum’s lack of involvement has been chronicled but the Graham campaign, along with her Times ally perpetuate an outdated, discredited story.

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Graham’s media ally, the Tampa Bay Times reported the fiction.  Former senator and governor Bob Graham, Gwen’s father, sits on the board of the Poynter Foundation.  The Poynter Institute is the majority stockholder in the Tampa Bay Times.

By Jim Beyer - Tampa Bay Beat

Florida's 2017 Loser of the Year: Tampa Bay Times

The Tampa Bay Times

Ethically. Financially. Politically. Whoever garnered second place trailed by light years.

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 The evidence is compelling. The hubris is off the charts. The hypocrisy shameless. Tampa Bay’s only remaining daily newspaper and its “nonprofit” parent have been in freefall for more than a decade but the moral cowardice and economic stupidity they displayed over the past year has been stunning. 

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A newspaper endorsement traditionally has served as a lifeline to political candidates but one from the Times in 2017 more closely resembled a concrete life preserver. In its announced effort “to connect” with Donald Trump supporters, Poynter/Times managed to alienate the entire political spectrum in its circulation area.

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The Tampa Bay Times took more lumps than a seasoned oncologist. Its machinations triggered subscription cancellations and a still ongoing investigation by the Internal Revenue Service of Poynter’s claimed status as a 501(c)(3). Tampa Bay Times support for an issue or candidate is now meaningless in its home county of Pinellas; in Hillsborough and Pasco counties it’s kryptonite. 

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By soliciting and accepting wealthy, right wing Republicans for $1.5 million each to bail itself out of a financial morass, Poynter ditched any vestige of impartiality, the vision of founder Nelson Poynter, or pretense of participating nationally in a fast evaporating rich journalistic tradition. Even this stab at influence peddling backfired.

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 Poynter/Times, through its subsidiary Florida Trend, sifted through the state’s 20 million residents and named one of its investors, Kiran Patel, as “Floridian of the Year.” One must assume the other nine investors are waiting their turn to receive the honor through 2026. 

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A quick recap of the Poynter/Times lowlights: 

After going all in for Trumpite Rick Baker on its news and editorial pages, St. Petersburg Mator Rick Kriseman prevailed in his re-election bid. The intemperate, non-inclusive Baker stood no chance when voters read the slanted coverage and outright falsehoods that marked the Times election coverage. The Times not only never called out Baker for his deceitful campaign tactics, it abetted him.

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The resignation of sexual predator Jack Latvala, a Times stooge who, in his memorable, mercurial, disastrous attempt at becoming governor had the paper’s endorsement teed up. Tampa Bay Beat revealed the Republican legislator has a decades-long history of predatory behavior which the Times chose to ignore until his resignation. —Lawtrnce McClure’s landslide win in a Hillsborough County special election for state represrntative produced another Times loss. The newspaper supported Yvonne Fry, a pernicious purveyor of false narratives, and cried foul about mailers to district voters informing them of that fact. Bean 

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The Poynter/Times rightward lurch was most evident in their support for St. Petersburg City Council candidate Justin Bean. With a wafer-thin resumé of civic engagement, the 30-year-old Bean had been arrested six times, a fact that the newspaper never acknowledged. Bean lied about his support for Donald Trump, then got trounced in the runoff by Gina Driscoll. 

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In another council race, the Times supported Barclay Harless over Brandi Gabbard. The contest sparked little controvetsy and Gabbard won easily. —A complaint challenging the Poynter Instiute for Media Studies status as a non-profit has been received by the Internal Revenue Service. If the IRS finds that Poynter misappropriated or co-mingled funds, violated its mission statement, failed to adhere to the wishes of its founder Nelson Poynter or participated in political activity, the Institute would be on the hook for back taxes and penalties. In addition, its status as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization would be revoked. There’s more but you get the picture. Loser. Hands down. Judging from the tone and slant of Tampa Bay Times articles published in the past week, 2017’s comsummate Loser is gearing up to successfully defend its title in the new year.

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By Jim Bleyer - Tampa Bay Beat

Rick Baker's Inside Help

Poynter Foundation board member and 

political operative Barry Edwards 

Poynter needs to explain to the journalistic community that it allegedly serves exactly what criteria are used to select its board members.  Are there any background checks?  Why do Poynter/Times/Baker demand details of the 16-year-old charges against King but ignore the criminal missteps of Edwards?  Doesn’t the Poynter/Times/Baker association with Edwards show a complete lack of judgment and standards? here

Tampa Bay's Fake News Source

Aside from not being in the hunt for Amazon HQ2, what do Las Vegas and Tampa Bay share in common?

Both have daily newspapers that were bailed out by conservative billionaires.  Once categorized as “mainstream media,” the papers have rapidly transformed themselves into fake news sources. here

Right Wing Propaganda Tampa Bay Times

Adam C. Smith, who use to be a decent writer follows the new rules well. 

1st

His Winner and losers of the week in 

Florida politics

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Losers: Democrats Jeff Clemens

and Rick Kriseman

Winner: GOP Rick Scott

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2nd

And then this story about a Trump backed singer no one has ever heard of challenging Charlie Crist.
What he had to say about Crist.
Republican/independent/Democrat
/governor/vice presidential finalist/washed-up
 former politician/now Congressman Charlie Crist’s career couldn’t get any weirder, there’s a new development.

here

The Right Wing Infestation Of The Tampa Bay Times

The Republican cabal that infused $12-15 million into the paper are now calling the shots in the newsroom. here

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VOTE

Tampa Bay Times: Right Wing Propaganda?

The once proud Liberal Tampa Bay Times has taken a turn for the worse. Their effort to woo subscribers from the radical right has destroyed what little remains of its credibility.

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 The infusion of $15 million by local investors into the economically flailing newspaper. Every one of the benefactors that have been identified–Frank Morsani, Richard Rothman, and Jeff Vinik have donated gobs of dough to Republicans including Trump, Mitt Romney, George W. Bush, Rick Scott, Paul Ryan, and Jeb Bush. Now they are backing  Rick Baker, (an unrepentant Donald Trump supporter) that if elected could embolden extremists and their racist followers to transform a tranquil, diverse, progressive St. Petersburg into a literal and ideological battleground.

here

Florida INC. Schools

In case you missed it, Newpoint Education Partners, which operated four struggling schools in Pinellas and one shuttered school in Hillsborough, was indicted by a grand jury last week on grand theft and other charges relating to three Pensacola schools. Millions of dollars in grants and state funds flowed through those schools, which begs an obvious question:

Who's responsible for this mess? The simple answer is the management group. But that's a cop-out. When you give a for-profit company access to taxpayer funds with minimal oversight, should you really be shocked when money is missing? here

Feds Open Civil Rights Investigation Into Pinellas Schools

The U.S. Department of Education on Monday opened a civil rights investigation into whether the Pinellas County School District systematically discriminates against black children. here

Victor Licata: Ybor City's Axe-Murdering Marijuana Addict

An American murderer who used an axe to kill his family in Ybor City on October 16, 1933. The killings, were reported by the Press as the work of a 
"axe murdering marijuana addict". 
Evidence that there was a link between recreational drugs, such as cannabis, and crime. Despite evidence Licata had a pre-existing history of mental illness, police and the press made unattributed claims that he was “addicted” to marijuana. On October 17, 1933 the Tampa Bay Times wrote:

W.D. Bush, city chief detective, said he had made an investigation prior to the crime and learned the slayer had been addicted to smoking marijuana cigarettes for more than six months. However, a day later the Chief of Tampa Police Department downplayed the role the drug had in the murders, although he pledged himself to the cause of marijuana prohibition.

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"Maybe the weed only had a small indirect part in the alleged insanity of the youth, but I am declaring now and for all time that the increasing use of this narcotic must stop and will be stopped."

An October 20, 1933 editorial on page six of the Tampa Morning Tribune was entitled "Stop This Murderous Smoke". The editorial writer called for the prohibition of marijuana. here
83 Years later Tampa Decriminalizes Marijuana. here

Tallahassee Open For Business

As Florida legislators begin their annual session in an election year, at least 
$28.5 million 
has been funneled into legislative political committees in the last six months, fueling progress on priority legislation for many industries, and blocking other ideas from advancing, according to a 
Herald/Times analysis. here 

2015 Tampa Bay Times Loser: Bob Buckhorn

Add the "bicycling while black" and police review board controversies to strained relationships with City Council members and tepid fundraising for his political committee. Throw in Graham, a rising Democratic star who may be looking for a new challenge, and Buckhorn no longer looks like a sure winner for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination
 in 2018. here

14 people who didn't have to die in Florida’s mental hospitals

When Florida cut $100 million from mental hospitals and fired a third of their workers, patients paid the price — sometimes with their lives.

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THE PATIENTS

Miguel Menendez Carrera - Tuarus McNair

Luis Santana - Morris Celnikier

James Fleurant - James Bragman

Joerhonda Griffin - Taalib Glover

John Kenyon Whitaker - Steven A. Frank

Loida Espina - Michael Salacup

Blondine Williams - Rashida Wills

here

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article41984748.html#storylink=cpy

Rick Scott's Florida: Mental Hospitals

I’m Leonora LaPeter Anton, a reporter for the 
Tampa Bay Times

I was one of three journalists who spent the past year reporting on a single subject: the violence and decay inside Florida’s mental hospitals. After a grueling reporting effort, here’s what we found. 

Florida Banana Republican

Florida GOP kept alive the distinct possibility that we may soon be able to proclaim 2015 as the most pathetic year in the history of Florida politics. Sacrilege, you say!

After all, this is a state that single-handedly held up a presidential election in 2000. It bungled the 1876 presidential election, too. For crying out loud, this is a state that elected Rick Scott as governor. Twice!  John Romano

The Kriseman Administration Sustainability initiatives

Mayor Rick Kriseman announced a plan to make St. Petersburg a  far greener city Thursday, unveiling an executive order to develop a climate action plan to address sea level rise, retrofit city-owned building of more than 10,000-square-feet for energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption. here

Florida's Culture Of Corruption: Wheelbarrows of cash utility companies dump in Tallahassee

Pam Bondi and 

Florida's Chamber of Commerce

Have both joined with mega utility companies to fight a constitutional amendment on solar power that embraces a competitive marketplace.

 The simple truth is Florida's leaders are a bunch of lemmings running in unison in whichever direction the power companies tell them. Utility companies have donated $12 million to the campaigns of state lawmakers since 2010. Seven members of the chamber's board of directors are employed by the electric industry. Power companies are forever trying to gouge consumers — to the tune of billions — for nuclear plant construction and fracking operations.

The bottom line is this wouldn't be a problem if the Public (Corporate) Service Commission did its job and actually regulated electric monopolies. Or if state legislators showed more interest in reining in their sugar daddies. here

Floridians for Solar Choice