In the first paragraph of this piece run in Nanaimo Daily News on Thursday, Mark MacDonald says that when he took the job, he had in mind to make positive contribution to….the newspaper. Not Nanaimo or the society at large….the newspaper. The next paragraph goes on to describe how he’s been in the business for a long time. It is, of course a big business for-profit endeavor.
A daily newspaper, although a private entity, is really a public trust, and our management team is committed to making a positive difference.
Too bad the commitment isn’t to make sure the public is informed of relevant issues without bias. Making a positive difference….for the papers business? For it’s advertisers? 80% of the paper is promotional material.
He closes this warm Excuse-Piece with an invitation to McDonald’s for coffee….they’ve gone beyond the clowns and are really pushing the McCafe these days. What a coincidence! Couldn’t he have invited the people of Nanaimo to a local coffee shop like Vancouver Island’s Serious Coffee? Yes he could have, but that wouldn’t be as blatantly indicative of where this guy and his newspaper stand.
