Imagine a world where there was only one source of national news and information. Imagine what it would be like if that source of national information was controlled by the presidential administration - and I don't care which one it is, Bush, O'Bama, Clinton, Reagan, etc.
How would you feel if you were told that this is the "official view / official source" and this is the only source that you were permitted to listen to?
Now consider the Mt Lebanon Public Information Office and Mt Lebanon Magazine. How should we feel about having what is effectively a "state-run" news organization? A news organization that is critical of all other news organizations or information sources that dare to report or to opine with any perspective that is different than the "state-run" entity?
Is this something that we all want to live under?
I don't. But I'd like to hear what all of you think.
How would you feel if you were told that this is the "official view / official source" and this is the only source that you were permitted to listen to?
Now consider the Mt Lebanon Public Information Office and Mt Lebanon Magazine. How should we feel about having what is effectively a "state-run" news organization? A news organization that is critical of all other news organizations or information sources that dare to report or to opine with any perspective that is different than the "state-run" entity?
Is this something that we all want to live under?
I don't. But I'd like to hear what all of you think.
41 comments:
The official community magazine features snow covered trees. The unofficial community blog features hotel interiors running 16 months behind schedule.
Thanks Elaine.
The PIO went absolutely ballistic and ranted when "IN Mt. Lebanon" began publishing and postal delivering its free quarterly magazine. UPMC was and continues to be a major advertiser, among others.
Sad to say, however, that "IN Mt. Lebanon" primarily consists of what are called "puff pieces", nothing controversial or problematic, with somewhat dated material.
Hasn't our PIO has been very critical of Post Gazette and Almanac articles also?
Why does Mt Lebanon need to have an "official" community mouthpiece?
It seems to me that when we have a free press we have many sources of information and from all of their communication we can have unbiased clarity and truthful reporting.
We don't need a single source of information, we need many sources who are free to opine and exercise their right to free speech.
This is just one man's opinion, but I can't classify either "MTL Magazine" or "IN Mt. Lebanon" as news organs. "IN Mt. Lebanon" is, as one poster describes, a "puff pieces" publication whilst "MTL Magazine" is a propaganda vehicle.
Frankly, while I think a lot of what is written in both magazines is silly and sometimes condescending I can't really get bent out of shape over it because these articles are "in character" with the goals of their publishers. "MTL Magazine," if I remember correctly, states in its masthead that it desires to deliver "positive, uplifting" articles to the community - words to that effect. That does not describe a news magazine. "MTL Magazine" does not employ any investigative reporters, nor does it dig into local controversies - a controversy is not "positive and uplifting."
What does get me bent out of shape is the quality of the reporting amongst the "working press" in the Pittsburgh area; our three major television stations and two major newspapers, for example. There seems to be no desire to "dig" into a story anymore. Oh, they'll cover some local controversial issues superficially, then it's on to the weather and house fires. This is not the way it used to be around here. Adversarial journalism is hard work, but it is necessary if we are to continue to have a free press and accountable governments - including school boards. Unfortunately a lot of the working press are taking the easy way out.
The great Canadian broadcast journalist Dick Smyth (of CHUM, CKLW, CCN, etc.) once cautioned me about "swimming in the fish bowl" - i.e., identifying with the subjects of one's report and losing one's objectivity (one of my prized possessions is my Canadian Contemporary News guide for journalists). That could happen to reporters who live in the towns that they may have to cover.
Unfortunately, Mt. Lebanon has a number of area reporters who live here and are "swimming in the fish bowl."
Hi Richard,
You have raised some very interesting points, partiucilarly about, "swimming in the fish bowl"!
Have you ever seen this?
http://bulletin.kenyon.edu/x1656.xml
I've noticed a lot of recognition of Reed Smith over the years on the pages of MtL, yet only 8% of the workforce in Mt Lebanon are attorneys.
I also remember a months worth MtL of articles dealing with divorce. Exactly how high is the divorce rate in Mt Lebanon?
That email from Gerry (?) at Dollar Bank with a positive comment about the PIO's, "To Market To Market", was interesting. How is Dollar Bank tied into the Public Information Office in Mt Lebanon?
I've noticed a couple of articles about Dennis Unkovic in MtL over the years -wasn't Meyer Unkovic the solicitor for Dollar Bank?
I think that Richard raised a valid point.
Exactly what is the current publication policy of MtL?
RG, I have sent leads to ALL of the "working press," but they don't care to deal with the wrath of both PIO in Mt. Lebanon. Ask any of the "working press" if they have ever heard of Cissy Bowman, Susan Morgans, or Laura Lilley and they will all respond the same way with "Ohhh yes..."
Susan complained to the PG about having McKeesport in the same newspaper as Mt. Lebanon. The nerve of the PG to make Mt. Lebanon share space with McKeesport! Ugh!
There was hell to pay when a reporter mentioned "Lebo Citizens" in a PG article.
"In Mt. Lebanon" was threatened with a lawsuit by the PIO.
Remember how I was asked to remove the 100 year logo from my website? "In Mt. Lebanon" had a two page article about censorship in Mt. Lebanon and it never ran. Interesting.
How about the Devil's Advocate post here? There were 236 comments published. The PG was going to write about it and never did. Why is that?
I started this blog because I was tired of being humiliated and bullied at school board meetings by both elected officials and residents attending the meetings. I am tired and want my life back, but since there is no other place in Mt. Lebanon where people can vent about the lunacy that goes on here, I am motivated to continue. As long as we have "puff pieces" and "propaganda vehicles," here in the bubble, I will hang on as long as I can.
I am not trying to toot my own horn, but when I read that Baldwin Whitehall has to give out tickets to be admitted to a school board meeting and we have one or two residents at any given meeting, obviously the community is being sold a bill of goods.
Elaine
Hi JDK:
Thanks for the Kenyon story.
As far as MTL Magazine is concerned it is slick and well laid out - and I'm sure some people find it interesting - but it is aimed at the upper 20% of the community and it shows. I'm sure its avid readers probably can't wait for the next issue to arrive so that they can see if they or their friends are in it. In that respect, in dealing with its target audience it does a credible job. But a news magazine it is not.
EG:
There is no question in my mind that you have provided an outstanding service to the community by providing unedited podcasts on www.lebocitizens.com, and an outlet for all points of view on this Blog.
As far as the "working press" not caring to deal with both of our local PIO's: that in itself illustrates my point. A reporter who does "not care to deal" with any PIO in covering any local issue should be seeking another career. Reporters are not hired to "care" or "feel" - they are hired to find the truth and report it. If that means one must incur the wrath of any local official then so be it. And at one time that was the way it worked. Unfortunately, many journalists come out of college thinking that they need to "make a difference" and be "part of the solution" in local affairs instead of being a conduit of truth. It is sad that many of them condone the "noble lie" that many politicians use to bamboozle the public "for their own good."
Comparing INMTL to MTL magazine, I'll give MTL points on its design and format, but beyond that if both closed up shop tomorrow I wouldn't miss either one.
Lebomag.com is so rediculous in its content, visiting the site has become a local joke in some circles.
Self-absorbed iphone photos, introspectives on staying home or working, intrigue on how women in a TV series put their lipstick on and last but not least coverage of one residents leg problem/hospital stay.
Why, is there a large segment of the community that care about these individuals and their routines?
Maybe I'm out of step and people really care about these high-profile residents, but what I find most irritating can be summed up in this contrast.
The school district just had an Internation Night, the purpose of which I'd think is to show students to accept and respect people different from themselves.
The PIO on the other hand writes articles bashing people that look, speak different or aren't as affluent as she. Its odd she come across any short, pompous people with attitudes in her grocery store visits. Now that would be satirical.
This attitude that somehow if you're from a select MTL zip code, you're automatically better, richer, more intelligent than someone from Dormont, Bethel, Peters or USC is disgusting.
Hate to burst these peoples' bubble, but they're not living in the wealthiest or most desirable western PA community anymore.
Hi Elaine,
I want to echo RG's praise for the tireless and thankless work that you have done. You've created a forum that allows an open exchange of viewpoints from residents with all political perspectives.
Thank you.
Richard, one of the reasons I suspect that the main stream reporters don't dig too deaply, at least here in the bubble, is that pissing off the PIOs and their friends will make their harder.
If the PIOs conveniently feed them upcoming 'events' and the 'incidentals' of a story they don't have to work very hard to dig up the truth.
Correction to 12:47.
"... is that pissing off the PIOs and their friends will make their jobs harder."
RG, and JDK, thank you. I wasn't fishing for compliments. I just wish our PIOs would share public information and offer a platform for public comment; something more than Facebook, comments on volunteer blogger written posts, or the limited polls offered on lebomag. mtl Magzine doesn't accept public comments on staff articles! I wish that the fourteen remaining elected officials would publish a blog and would be willing to accept comments. But heaven forbid that there is any individualism within either government body. It is sad to hear how elected officials discourage their constituents to participate here. Why don't elected officials comment here? I can only remember a time when Dave Brumfield defended Dave Franklin here. Very sad.
Elaine
I assume the PIO is not reporting on real Mt Lebanon because if they did, they'd be fired. They probably can't share any info without authorization from Mr. Feller. Further, since Mr. Feller is the one keeping them as employees, perhaps that's where the pressure should be. The Commission is who keeps Mr. Feller.
Q. Why can't the "official community magazine" cover an issue like spending $1.2 million turfing Middle/Wildcat.
• The health issues
• The cost and financing
• The potential fee increases
• The proponents, the opponents
That's a reasonable suggestion, 2:24 PM.
My suggestion is that the "official community magazine" work with the PTA Juvenile Protection Committee and cover the Go Zone issue. I had no idea what Go Zones were all about since I have no kids in school. How would households without school age children know about it, unless it is in the "official community magazine?" I don't know how you made the bullets, 2:24 PM, but if I could, I would list:
Background
Why it should work
Why it doesn't work
How to improve it
What about crosswalks in Mt. Lebanon?
The law
The problem areas
Raise awareness
What about real wildlife safety issues like protecting your pets from coyotes?
We know that "humor pieces" like "to market, to market, to buy a..." and the Devil's Advocate "You and I are not equal" are not universally accepted as humor. Unless that writing style is an attempt to boost readership, I don't see it working well. That is not fluff. It is just poor taste.
People want to be informed with what is happening here in Mt. Lebanon. They are too busy to go to meetings or scour websites looking for agendas or meeting minutes. Travel stories may be interesting to cover, but taking the time to write about Mt. Lebanon can become a full time job. The pay sucks, but it sure keeps me busy. It would be wonderful if the "official community magazine" would start covering real issues instead of reading material for Noah's Ark.
Perhaps they would have less time to be less critical of "all other news organizations or information sources that dare to report or to opine with any perspective that is different than the 'state-run' entity."
Elaine
If the "official community magazine" and the "PUBLIC INFORMATION officer" don't do what their titles suggest, why do we need two "foo-foo" publications?
Let INMtLebanon magazine bear the cost of healthcare, pensions and office space, utilities, etc. for staff which I'll betmtl magazine probably doesn't exactly account for in its bottom line.
*Perhaps they would have less time to be critical...
Elaine
If Mt Lebanon magazine doesn't provide info on Mt Lebanon, who does? Where do citizens go to try to understand this place? Even if one went to every Commission meeting & discussion for a year, one would still be confused.
If Mt Lebanon magazine continues to exist, it should provide transparent info on our government at a minimum. For example, what are the goals of all the municipal boards? What are their budgets? Do they all have the same budget? How did the SAB pay for the services of an outside consultant at the outset of their first couple of meetings? Do other boards obtain the services of outside consultants? Are they mandated to follow the recommendations? What happens with the recommendations?
What is the satisfaction level of the community on the goals accomplished with the previous comprehensive plan? What does the municipality aim to accomplish this year with respect to the comprehensive plan? What did they accomplish last year?
5:19 all great questions!
5:19 PM, I think that is the job of the PIO, not the magazine. All that and more should be on the municipal website. It is wonderful how the commission meetings and the SAB meetings are videotaped, but they should ALL be taped. We would have seen Kristen lying to the ESB, had they been recorded. I see that "Video recording of advisory board meetings" is on the agenda for Monday's Commission Discussion Meeting. I hope that means that the commission is moving in the right direction. A resident tried to get the wish list from the SAB consultant and all the names were redacted. Not good! Names should NOT be redacted, just personal information such as email addresses and contact information.
Another thing, where does the money come from for the Boards and Authorities dinners? From each board's budget, if they have a budget? When are they going to have a community coffee with the manager again? How about community coffee with the PIO, not that I would want to, or community coffee with the commissioners? Does the School District get billed for coverage in the magazine? I think the Library does.
Elaine
Has anyone tried to get their hands on the accounting for MtL and the Public Information Office? I made some enquiries, but didn't get a lot of clarity.
Do the employees in the Public Information Office have a fixed amount of time that they bill to the Magazine every year, or does it fluctuate so that MtL always appears cost-neutral every year?
I also don't understand exactly what the MtL entity is -is it a community publication, or is it something else? Who engineered this entity? Is it there for political purposes, or is there a legitimate mission to inform the community and nothing more?
John, I would be curious as to what they charge groups for design work for charitable events. I heard thousands for a logo design. I have been following regional trends in what designers are charging for their work since there is a recent RIT grad in graphic design living in my house. Two words come to mind...trophy case.
Elaine
Interesting read on salariies for magazine editors.
http://www.foliomag.com/2012/2012-editorial-salary-survey#.UuT4ASc8Kc0
http://blogs.wsj.com/peggynoonan/?ref=/news-opinion-commentary
"The problem with this kind of statement, obviously, and whatever your politics and wherever you’re from, is that a great and varied nation [or municipality] cannot function like this, with its own leaders declaring huge swatches of voters anathema and suggesting they should go someplace else. [exactly what the high school proponents did] It is an example of the kind of government-encouraged polarization that can do us in. Democracy involves that old-fashioned thing called working it out. You don’t tell people who disagree with you they’d be better off somewhere else. And you don’t reduce them to stereotypes; you address them as fully formed people worthy of respect. You try to persuade them."
Franklin, Brumfield, Linfante, Morgans all work to polarize the community. Thats what made the grocery store piece so infuriating.
Excellent piece, 8:46 AM. That nailed it for me. "Government-encouraged polarization" is alive and well and living in Mt. Lebanon.
Elaine
From USC's official community magazine:
http://www.twpusc.org/magazine/usc-today-home
"UPPER ST. CLAIR TODAY, the official publication of the School District and Township of Upper St. Clair, is made possible through the combined resources of the staff and volunteers of the Township and School District of Upper St. Clair."
Why does Mt. Lebanon need two PIOs and two separate offices?
Merge the two and cut staff and overhead by 50%.
Plus let seniors interested in writing, graphics and business management intern with the community magazine. It'll give them precious real world experience and portfolio pieces for college applications.
Also cut the mtl magazine to quarterly publication. With the internet do we really need to be filling landfills with 10 issues a year, President Linfante?
You were educating your son on filling landfills with unneccesary trash weren't you? Four print issues of mtl should be sufficient to communicate schedules, contacts and community events, everything else could appear online.
9:24 AM, I am trying to find the presentation that Susan Morgans made to the Commission last year, but I haven't been able to pinpoint which discussion meeting it was. I seem to remember Susan saying that at one time, there was only one PIO, but MTLSD broke away as a cost saving effort. Also, Susan provided answers to some of the questions being asked here in my post,
Answers
Elaine
Interesting Elaine.
Morgans writes: "The magazine is charged with generating revenue, so we made a small profit on the insert, as we do with any "insert," which covered our time spent."
So why does the magazine make "a small profit" on a job for the taxpayer funded school district? Shouldn't school district information be provided to the community "at costs?"
Even at that, if the magazine's costs are highly inflated and over fair market the taxpayers could be getting fleeced twice.
For those that don't have a clear understanding of the meaning of profit.
From investopedia:
"Definition of 'Profit'
A financial benefit that is realized when the amount of revenue gained from a business activity exceeds the expenses, costs and taxes needed to sustain the activity. Any profit that is gained goes to the business's owners, who may or may not decide to spend it on the business."
Elaine,
Am I understanding you correctly that the PIO has a graphic arts service? Did they brand Mt Lebanon? Is there intellectual property protection around the Mt Lebanon brand?
In other words, if the man at Rolliers sells one of those shirts by the exit that have the Mt Lebanon logo does he have to send a royalty to the Public Information Office?
I'd really love to see how the employees of the PIO and MtL assign this time to the various cost centers. If there is variablity in adverstising revenues and this entity ends up cost neutral, then I'd expect to see variability in the allocation of the employees time to the various cost centers.
I wonder how they allocate the cost of the servers within the municipality?
How do they make MtL Magazine break-even year after year.
I've lived in Mt Lebanon long enough to remember when MtL Magazine was truly a community news letter that was a joint publication the municipality and the School District. I think that was a better time. One thing for sure, we've increased the budget of the magazine through the roof and it hasn't helped to preserve the stature of the Mt Lebanon brand! I think that we should wipe-out the Public Information Office and the entire staff of MtL Magazine, and dump the responsiblity of amplifying the school distict with the existing staff of the SD. The SD could produce a community news letter like it did in the late 1970's on a quarterly basis using local residents as volunteers.
I don't think that we need a high end fine paper lavish monthly magazine that frankly gets dumped across the waiting room of every major downtown law office! Let's get back to basics, save some money and get the government off of all of the taxpayers backs!
Mr. Kendrick, most newspapers, magazines and TV stations provide some sort of "ad service" for businesses that may or may not have an ad agency.
If the publication doesn't provide the service its not unusual for them to have a stable of designers they can refer the advertiser to call.
Its a shady area and debated for years in ad agency circles.
If the media is cutting into the ad agency business by doing the work customarily done by the agencies, why support the magazine or paper.
In essence the municipality magazine is cutting the throat of creatives, writers, designers, photographers and illustrators living in the community.
Hey 2:01 - how about a class action suit against the municipality magazine for tortious interference with business relations.
Anonymous said...
I'm guessing Susan is busy preparing a lawsuit against you and Kelly Fraasch for conspiracy to defame her and tortious interference with business relations.
December 8, 2013 at 1:17 PM
I guess if you're looking to do ads for the local pizza shop, nail/tan salon and think mtl magazine isstealing your clients, lawyering up is a possibility.
Eventually, the smart money clients will come to realize that they aren't the magazines #1 client when you have two banks, two hospitals or two realty buying full page ads In the same magazine.
See at reputable ad agencies, they recognizes one cannot serve two masters. You can't tell both you're doing you best creative work for each of them!
The biggest problem with mtl is hard to see, but it’s serious: It fosters poor government.
Let me explain.
Because the local government has its own cheerleading division that sings nothing but praise, the public gets a false impression of how the government is performing. Waste, mistakes, and poor decisions never soil the pages of mtl. Government officials and elected representatives are always doing a good job, even when they’re not.
Making matters worse, mtl competes with real news organizations and, thanks to its government sponsorship, deprives them of the advertising revenue they need to pay for genuine journalism. According to mtl’s own rate card, “MTL MAGAZINE OFFERS ADVERTISERS A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY” because the magazine has “100 percent saturation: mtl magazine reaches virtually every consumer and business in Mt. Lebanon.”
Why does mtl have “100% saturation”? Because the local government forces every household and business to buy it. Newspapers can’t do the same, and so they lose out on ad revenue. And ad revenue is what pays for reporters.
It’s a double-whammy for citizens. First, they are forced to buy a magazine that exists to make the local government look good. Second, that magazine has an unfair, government-given advantage that lets it out-compete the very newspapers that the public could otherwise have looked to for critical coverage.
Honestly, does anyone think that paying for a cheerleading squad while cutting off your critics’ air supply is a recipe for accountability and good governance?
Well put Tom!
Years ago, I asked Susan Stroyd to take my name off the magazine mailing list - you should have read the response that I got!
The bottom line (also mentioned in her response) is that the magazine is going to keep coming and there's nothing that she, I or anyone else can do to stop it! She went on to say that I could throw it away...
The PIO/editor is so isolated from the realities of the marketplace that it is inconceivable to them that their readers could have issues with the publication.
For a normal magazine, consumers decide whether the publication is of interest thru subscriptions and newdtand sales.
mtl as Tom points out so well, always achieves 100% saturation and high readership... simply because the municipality- i.e. the taxpayers guarantee it.
The editor could send out an issue with totally blank pages and still make her claims that it is read in every Mt. Lebanon household and business.
Here is how Baldwin Whitehall is doing it.
Baldwin-Whitehall school dispute mobilizes parents
Something that I have been trying to achieve for the last FOUR YEARS!
"The community has continued to stick together and show commitment to our district, which I think is great."
Both PIOs have done everything they can to polarize the community and alienate those who disagree with them. They have even gone to great lengths to try to shut down others.
Elaine
What I find amazing is that one woman with no budget, no municipal financial support, no staff and basically on her own provides more information and closer scrutiny on community and school district matters than two highly paid PIOs and their staffs.
If you want to know something about board or commissioner meetings you're sure to find it discussed here.
On lebomag.com we get mundane "heartwarming" snap shots, personal travelogues and self-examinations.
What I can't understand is why one gets financial support and the other that provides actual community-pertinent news and relishes dialogue and debate constantly gets attacked!
I do get help from David Huston with recordings and from many readers who email me and keep me informed.
But you're right, 11:04 AM, why is that?
Elaine
It sounds like residents have to pay for advertising and disturbing "to market, to market" columns via the magazine and get the honest info from community volunteers via this blog.
1:43 it sure sounds like resident/taxpayers have to pay for "advertisers" like the the school district, which is funded by... ta da taxpayers. Of course though, our gracious managing editor charges us her best rate and only makes a modest profit.
Now here is a question to which I don't know the answer and doubt you'll get a straight one from the commissioners.
Does the magazine book expenses like rent, utilities, employer SS and UC contributions, healthcare, pension contributions, vacation and sick leave against the revenue of the magazine or do these expenses appear only in the municipalities ledgers?
In private industry these affect the bottom line and determine if the publication is making a profit or not.
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