The Northwest Indiana Times has a column from the Associated Press (the author of which didn’t jump out at me if that information is displayed somewhere) entitled “Inner Workings of Indiana Government Rarely Disclosed.”
I’m sympathetic to the message, but ultimately it seems a little superficial. It’s true that there are policy decisions and deals that are either ill-advised or self-serving or both. The column gives this abbreviated list (in addition to the Tony Bennett grade changing scandal):
The chief of staff to Secretary of State Connie Lawson has spent the last five months negotiating a job with lobbying powerhouse The Corydon Group. An ongoing Indianapolis Star investigation uncovered that a contractor hired by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Elevate Ventures, had sent $800,000 in federal money meant for startup business to companies it had ties to. And the Indianapolis Business Journal uncovered a pay-to-play scandal at Indianapolis’ land bank program months before federal agents spent a day hauling records from the City-County Building and indictments were announced.
But then the column goes on to complain that lawmakers only issue press releases about the good stuff they do and don’t announce the bad stuff. Well, duh. But in a lot of these cases the information was available to a public or a press that was paying attention or was digging into the details.
As much or more than public malfeasance, this is an indictment of public apathy and the deterioration of journalism. I’m not sure what we can do about public apathy. I’m more of a public policy and state politics nerd than your average citizen, and I feel the apathy in myself. After a day of work, coaching soccer, getting in some exercise, washing the dishes, and reading to the kids at bedtime, my appetite for being a citizen watchdog is awfully low.
Which brings us to the journalists. There has been some excellent work – Tom LoBianco’s recent efforts in particular. But, do we even have a dozen journalists working the state government beat in this state? I can name maybe six off the top of my head (but I won’t for fear of inadvertently leaving out someone I should remember). Most of them are really good at what they do (there are one or two kiss-asses who seem to be primarily engaged in stenography), but they are simply outgunned. The State government is a billion dollar industry with thousands of employees. To effectively cover it simply requires more resources. But, long ago, newspapers seem to have made the decision that wire stories, opinion pieces, and fluff was a more cost-effective way to sell ad space than devoting resources to investigative journalism. But, that was like eating their seed corn, and that’s why (in my ever so humble opinion) the newspaper industry has been in such disarray in recent years.
So, I don’t disagree that State government has behaved badly in certain respects. But I can’t agree that the acts were hidden particularly well. We just weren’t paying much attention.
If you think apathy is bad at the state level (and it is), it tends to be FAR worse at the local level. It takes an enormous effort for a citizen group to get facts out to voters, many of whom don’t care, and don’t vote in local elections anyway.
And, unfortunately, all too often, the citizens making the most noise at the local level are only marginally informed and, sometimes, borderline crazy. I’ve seen more than a few going off half-cocked about something that displeases them without understanding the relevant divisions of government and their functions.
What about the unfounded case against Charlie White? And the free pass that is given to Lugar, Daniels and Bayh!
And in my community of 80,000, we don’t even have a daily newspaper (a weekly that ones one or two local government stories), and we seldom get any mention in the Indy TV stations. A few bloggers, read by a few hundred people, helps a little.
Thats funny you should mention bloggers Greg! Seeing as you have criticised Gary Welsh and Paul Ogden the best bloggers in Indiana (except for Doug Masson) all because they have shown that the case against Charlie White is built on a house of sand. If you honestly believed the case against White had merit you would say why rather than insult people who disagree with you.
Here is my summary of the time line and relevant law in the Charlie White case. I can’t say others didn’t get a pass, but the case against White was far from “build on a house of sand.”
White pointing at the other guys reminds me of the joke about the motorist getting a citation. “I wasn’t speeding officer, but I passed a few guys who were.”
For those who have forgotten, I am the guy who turned Charlie White into the Hamilton County Prosecutor, as I had seen more than enough evidence to convince me that there was probable cause to believe that a crime or crimes had been committed. So if there is contrary evidence, no one has ever put it forth, even Charlie White, who actually testified to the Grand Jury. But he has a court hearing coming up this week, so we will see which story he tells now.
I couldnt agree more Doug! Although I think much of the problem is that to many of the press in Indiana are lapdogs and willingly refuse to report on the corruption in Indiana. The press has been aware of the shenanigans of Dick Lugar, Anne & Ed Delaney, Mitch Daniels and Evan Bayh but they have done less than nothing! That is why the blogs will takeover and replace the traditional media!
Given the foot dragging by a party in power I don’t think the Tony Bennett Grade Changing Scandal would have broke without a change in the party running the Department of Education.
Daniels’ administration denied Open Records requests repeatedly, or at least delayed and delayed.
There is lots about the IEDC that could have been found (and was) prior to indictments and such, but some times they didn’t get published until after they could have done much good (for the public). Like the series the Indy Star did about the lady that had close ties to the IEDC, Daniels, and Chinese businessmen. She gets accused of corruption and dies before it really gets resolved.
Yes, papers have shot themselves in the chest but they are also not interested in the public good either. Media doesn’t have a liberal or conservative bias, it has a ratings bias. Even those that do (Fox, Jacobin, DailyKos, etc.) they are trying to get ratings, page views, or whatever.
They didn’t just eat their seed corn, they’ve squandered their trust. I trust Doug because I’ve met him and his wife. He lays down a decent line of reasoning and interjects his perception and thoughts. I don’t always agree but I don’t get the feeling Doug is trying to sell me out as a reader (although I would expect him to for the right number).
I do know however, that almost every politician has sold us out to the highest bidders.
The newspapers are dying because it costs too much to print, and distribute a paper. The ones that put out decent, well though, interesting information will do just fine in the electronic age – this is just a transition stage. Television will never replace some form of print journalism, because it absolutely relies on pictures, and because so many stories really don’t have a picture, it uses talking heads – specifically talking heads who are part of the story, and they’re often the least likely suspects to really tell the story. Blogs are as good as their reporting. Far too often they’re just opinion pieces (nothing print media is immune to) but if there’s actually accompanying research, it’s often simply research done to bolster an opinion.
The real problem, of course, is the audience. Most writers begin over-estimating their audience. At least in the electronic world, an author gets to see who’s reading, which may result in an increased suicide rate among writers. At best, you hope that there’s a group out there who aren’t responding, who, maybe, learned something from what you wrote.
Please, someone tell the Star that they are committing suicide. I couldn’t get through on the customer service number today, so will try again tomorrow. The only reason I keep it at all, is because my husband just can’t give up actually turning the pages, but we have gone from every day down to 4 days a week, and now going down to 2. The new “columnists” chicksontheright, are the last straw for me. I had never even heard of them before they show up on the Star opinion page as regulars, but their toothy whitened smiles and snotty snark made it easy for me to cut back again.
What an opportunity for public radio investigative journalism this is! Chicago Public Radio has the attention of their governor and legislature because of the bombs those journalists are regularly dropping on their criminal justice system. The State refused the station entry into the prisons, and Jenner and Block went to bat for the station in a pro bono law suit. The papers are picking up their stories and politicians are getting very nervous about what shoe is going to drop next. Indiana needs that treatment.
Off topic but I saw a bald eagle at 116th Street and Hazel Dell Parkway in Fishers today.
Very cool.
Saw a very interesting program on bald eagles today at the state fair. For almost 100 years there had been no bald eagles nesting in Indiana. Then, in the 90’s Indiana began researching and trying out what other states had been doing to bring back the eagles, and …success! It takes Hoosiers so dang long to get off the go-it-alone track.
Heard some other interesting but, in the end, trivial gossip at the fair, but not at liberty to divulge for fear of embarrassing an organization I esteem. Plus, I don’t know the other side of the story. Has to do with higher ups at state level throwing their weight around, taking advantage of position, and costing tax payers money and angst.
Even in the best of times, state government was criminally undercovered. These are not the best of times. The brilliance, if you will, of the Koch Brothers and ALEC was recognizing this, and realizing that the return on the dollar was insanely high if you could buy off state legislators and legislative seats.
Speaking of state government, the cost of sitting idly by while the Indiana Department of “Environmental Management” approves permits for every factory farm and other development that fouls the land is growing greater. Camp Tecumseh is fighting the latest factory farm approval, and given Interstate 65 smells completely like crap from the Kankakee River to Lafayette (even with the windows up — and I gagged when I stepped out at the rest stop in White County), I can imagine why. Really, does the state government understand how off-putting it is to people to have a state that literally smells like sh*t?
http://www.jconline.com/article/20130819/NEWS/308190022/Camp-Tecumseh-asks-court-stop-hog-operation
It would be great if the churches and other institutions dedicated to doing good would speak out about government misfeasance. How about if the pastor would organize a discussion period for this purpose.