Boston News Today - DEAR READER: 3/24/16

DEAR READER,

I don’t expect reporters at the Boston Globe to appreciate our work. They have a starkly different philosophy, which is that all sides of an issue—even greedy, shitty ones—must be represented equally and fairly. Mainstream media types call this practice of citing token opposing viewpoints objectivity, but I call it laughable. As things already stand in this country, news at nearly every level gives big business the benefit of the doubt and ignores the devastation often wrought by major industries.

All things considered, I was not surprised that DigBoston was attacked on Twitter by a Globe business reporter for using research from the Roxbury nonprofit Epicenter Community in “The Thirsty Games,” our two-part series about liquor licensing, which wraps this week. As for comments by said Globie that our story was “literally sponsored by its sources”—pure nonsense. The article wasn’t “sponsored,” or underwritten by any “sources.” No money was exchanged. Just ideas.

While the Globe is stuck in the dark ages of striving for an objectivity that doesn’t exist, we’re proud to be engaging the community through organizations that represent small businesses and residents. We’re not the only operation that’s pursuing such partnerships, and for an excellent example of the potential power of cooperation, I recommend the Herald-Bulletin (Madison County, Indiana) series on poverty wage workers done with the United Way. In fact, we’re not even the only operation seeking these collaborations locally. Any Globe reporters who take issue with our tactics might also want to check their own newsroom, which is teaming up with the nonprofit Solutions Journalism Network for education reporting.

Chris Faraone, News+Features Editor

OH, CRUEL WORLD

Dear Asshole,

You cut me and an octogenarian WWII veteran in line at the doctor’s office. You made it seem like it was an emergency. But I’m an eavesdropper, and it turns out that you were trying to get a last-minute appointment for your 25-year-old daughter who had “flu symptoms.” That was your emergency, and you clogged the queue like cholesterol as a result for five minutes. But when I called you a “fucking asshole” for this behavior, I suddenly became the bad guy, reviled by receptionists and onlookers alike. This in a country where two out of every two morons applaud Donald Trump for just “telling it like it is.” I have bad news for all of you—there’s no cure for the common cold, and there’s no cure for stupid.