Grumpy Editor

Media mum on Okinawa battle, Korean War anniversaries

 

Two major anniversaries shamefully went unnoticed by major media --- and the White House --- last week: The 70^th anniversary of the 82-day Battle of Okinawa, one of the bloodiest and costliest of World War II in the Pacific, and the 65th anniversary marking the outbreak of the three-year Korean War which remains open ended following a July, 1952 cease fire, noted Grumpy Editor.

But those anniversaries were remembered overseas.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe placed a bouquet of flowers at a memorial service in Japan as he marked the Battle of Okinawa anniversary with 5,000 people in attendance.

The American victory over Japan was costly.  The U.S. suffered substantial losses in Okinawa: on land and at sea, more than 12,000 Americans were killed and more than 36,000 were wounded while 36 American ships and nearly 800 aircraft were lost.

Meanwhile, the Korean War anniversary was observed in South Korea, North Korea and even New Zealand.  North Korea marked the date with 100,000 participants in a rally at Pyongyang's Kim Il Sung Stadium.

The Korean War, often called the “Forgotten War,” resulted in 36,574 U.S. military deaths and 103,284 wounded.

Among media that did remember the Korean War anniversary were KHON-TV, Honolulu covering ceremonies at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, and TV stations WGCL, Atlanta, and WCSC, Charleston, S.C. that used a six-sentence CNN story recapping the Korean War.

Generally, most media delight in spotlighting anniversaries, no matter how old.  Just last week print and broadcast outlets ran a story commemorating the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta, a charter agreed by King John of England in 1215.

 

FYI, IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

Looks like financial events in Greece will continue to affect up and down movements on the New York Stock Exchange this week…Whose house is it?  When a heckler interrupted Barack Obama’s gay rights speech at the White House, the president told the transgender woman, “Hey, listen, you’re in my house.”  (It may have slipped the president’s mind, but the White House is known as the People’s House.)…Ho-hum, keep trying.  From the Washington Examiner:  "House Speaker John Boehner said Thursday that the GOP will keep trying to repeal ObamaCare, after a Supreme Court ruling that upheld subsidies to people using the federal insurance exchange and basically left the law intact"…Guess what influenced TPP votes?  In connection with Congress’s action with the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership, The Guardian, London, cited backers of the trade deal “turned on the cash spigot” with donations to U.S. senators between January and March when fast-tracking the TPP was being debated.  It said out of $1,148,971 from corporate TPP supporters, an average of $17,676.48 was donated to each of the 65 “yea” votes, with the average Republican member receiving $19,673.28 while the average Democrat received $9,689.23…Media runs with it, not raising an eyebrow and asking “how calculated” when a White House-released study on climate change comes up with a figure.  As the Washington Post put it: “A global agreement to curb greenhouse gas emissions would prevent nearly 70,000 premature American deaths annually by the end of the century”…Media continued to call inflation tame, even after the Commerce Department noted the personal consumption expenditures index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in May from the prior month, biggest rise in more than two years…El Monte, Calif. police responding to a burglary report chased a man riding a bicycle.  The bicyclist crashed into a bush and ran off as police gave chase on foot and arrested him.  But on returning to their police vehicle --- it was gone, stolen by someone who left it, motor idling, on a freeway onramp…Cheers to The Herald-Dispatch, Huntington, W. Va.  The newspaper welcomed 15 high school students to a four-day workshop last week that included participating in news coverage planning sessions, talking to reporters about various aspects of their jobs, learning about digital media, observing production of a newspaper page and accompanying reporters on assignments.

 

Finger-licking good?

Most front-page stories in the past week were rather glum but Grumpy Editor saw a line on Thursday’s Drudge Report that triggered a rare (these days) belly laugh:

Indiana cops arrest man spotted licking a toad…

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Trump stirs up GOP field with Washington-action talk

 

Donald Trump certainly kicked up some dust among many media members when he tossed his hat into the crowded ring of Republicans seeking the presidential nomination with his tough, straight talk that resonated with many voters who seek action from Washington and are tired of the wussies there, observed Grumpy Editor.

Grabbing much attention the day after Trump’s announcement --- 45 minutes without a teleprompter --- at his New York skyscraper Trump Tower, was the New York Daily News which illustrated the real estate magnate with a bulbous red nose on its cover.”

In a departure describing the scene of such a serious announcement, the Daily News came up with:  “The real estate magnate made a less-than-imperial entrance, emerging on the main floor of the building and then descending an escalator with his wife, Melania, who wore a strapless white dress.”

The newspaper’s story went on to say Trump “insulted Mexican immigrants, derided foreign countries and lambasted President Obama and other American leaders as ‘losers.’”

(Later, when asked about the Daily News’ “clown” cover, Trump said the Daily News is “going out of business” and needs such outlandish cover stories to hypo sales.) 

In mentioning immigrants, Trump was referring to illegals, a word that the Daily News, and other news outlets, failed to use. 

Trump also cited “it’s people from countries other than Mexico also. We have drug dealers coming across, we have rapists, we have killers, we have murderers. I mean it’s common sense, what do you think they’re going to send us their best people, their finest people? The answer is no.” 

He also declared his ability to fortify the U.S. southern border, pointing out "nobody builds walls better than me, believe me." 

“Our country is in serious trouble,” he emphasized.  “We don’t have victories anymore,” then added, “we are going to make our country great again.” 

Media didn’t hear it, of course.  But Trump’s gung-ho talk brought cheers from many Americans, coast-to-coast, who agreed. 

In holding up a financial statement, the never-shy real estate developer declared, “I’m really rich.”  He cited $9.2 billion in assets and a net worth of $8.7 billion.  

That brought a key financial news outlet to mention "rich" figures that "couldn’t be independently confirmed.”  (A task fact-checkers would be hard pressed to establish within minutes --- or hours.)

Trump later told Associated Press writer Jonathan Lemire, "I know the speech went well.  I meant everything I said and I think a lot of it resonated with different groups of people."

Lemire said, “Trump is currently polling well enough to land a spot in one of the early Republican debates, potentially pushing a more politically established candidate off the stage. His well-honed TV skills could lead to a buzzworthy performance that keeps him in the media spotlight.” 

FYI, IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…  

While search for two killer convicts on the loose from an upper New York state prison continued to grab print/air time, not much has been reported by key media on 121 convicted criminals (illegal immigrants) --- remaining in the U.S. despite receiving deportation orders between 2010 and 2014 --- who face murder charges.  The Daily Signal carried the report…Disclosure that hedge fund Jana Partners acquired a 7.2 percent stake in ConAgra Foods sent stock of the packaged foods giant (Slim Jim jerky, Hunt’s tomato sauce and Chef Boyardee) up 10.86 percent or $4.25 a share to $43.37 on Friday…United Airlines faced a major PR problem with 176 passengers on a flight from Chicago to London.  It took two days.  A maintenance issue diverted the Boeing 767-300 to Goose Bay, Canada.  Rather than promptly dispatching another aircraft as a replacement, United Continental Holdings placed the passengers, without access to their luggage, overnight in an unheated military barracks.  The following night, a replacement 767-300 flew the grumbling passengers to Newark then on to London, arriving the following afternoon…While basketball, hockey, soccer and football grab chunks of print space, somewhat ignored was the Baltimore Orioles, in a game with the Philadelphia Phillies, smashing a team record eight home runs, in a 19 to 3 win last Tuesday…In other baseball news, a nifty headline in The Wall Street Journal in connection with the FBI probing charges that the St. Louis Cardinals illegally accessed Houston Astros’ player information database:  FBI Is Looking Into Foul Play…Embattled TV news anchor Brian Williams was assigned by NBC News to cable as MSNBC daytime breaking news anchor starting in mid-August…In the “this just in” category:  Media just love anniversaries with scant interest.  This time, CBS News came up with commemorating the 800^th anniversary of the Magna Carta --- a charter agreed by King John of England on June 15, 1215…Meteorological buddies.  Pope Francis and President Barack Obama both agree on climate change.  The Argentine-born pontiff, 78, on Thursday demanded swift action “to save the planet from environmental ruin”…In connection with Apple, Inc.’s news app announcement earlier this month, the company said its “Apple News team is looking for passionate, knowledgeable editors to help identify and deliver the best in breaking national, global, and local news”…Another 2015 newspaper position has veteran news folks scratching heads:  The director of audience engagement title at the Los Angeles Times went last week to Alexandra Manzano, formerly with the Portland Oregonian. 

 

Now, which car was that?

Within eight minutes during yesterday’s Oakland Athletics/Los Angeles Angels game on Fox Sports were commercials or on-screen plugs for Hyundai, Lexus, Audi, Jeep and CarMax.

ABC News fumbles on ‘climate’ predictions made in 2008

 

ABC News this week is mum about way-off-base predictions the network made seven years ago on “climate change” that included New York City engulfed by water from a rising sea and gasoline going over $9 a gallon, noted Grumpy Editor

The look back at the “Good Morning America” June 12, 2008 special, uncovered by Scott Whitlock at NewsBusters, also included predictions of Miami being wiped out by a “storm of the century,” an abandoned Las Vegas and a reduction of Earth’s population.

The network, added Whitlock, “promoted the special by hyperventilating, ‘Are we living in the last century of our civilization?’”

Climate change continues much in the news.  Just last Monday, Bloomberg’s Louise Downing pointed out, “As talks aimed at slowing global warming drag on, researchers are pushing new ideas that some are calling last-ditch attempts to avert the worst effects of climate change.”

Some of the far-out proposals, she mentioned, included using charcoal to lock carbon dioxide into soil, scattering carbon-absorbing gemstones, blocking the sun’s rays with airborne particles and seeding oceans with carbon-absorbing iron.

(It should be pointed out that global average land and sea temperatures, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, were up about 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit --- in 135 years.)

 

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“Tame” inflation starting to growl?  U.S. producer prices in May recorded their biggest increase since September, 2012, up 0.5 percent…Another late Friday development from the Obama administration, hoping it missed attention of editors:  Six Yemen Guantanamo Bay detainees were moved to Oman --- another step by President Barack Obama who has vowed to shuttter Guantanamo before he leaves office in early 2017…Tired of "recycled" coverage of the two escaped killers from an upstate New York prison?  Now in its 10^th day, media --- in many cases ---- continued to treat the search as the lead story over the weekend, focusing on areas close to the 3,000-inmate prison where the pair escaped on June 5 (although the two are probably in Mexico by now)…Editors love hurricanes/tropical storms even when they are far from U.S. shores.  So even when tropical storm Carlos was 70 miles southwest of Acapulco, Mexico (its position late Sunday), it still grabbed air time/newspaper space…Lester Holt, who has been filling in for Brian Williams on NBC Nightly News, reportedly was seeking an annual salary that matched Williams: $10 million…The Pentagon’s equal opportunity policy will protect gays and lesbians in uniform for the first time, said Defense Secretary Ash Carter…Linked to that, the Williams Institute, a UCLA Law School think tank that concentrates on issues regarding sexual orientation, estimated there are 15,000 transgender troops serving in the military…No media person asked why it took investigators one month to determine that the Amtrak engineer involved in the deadly May 12 derailment in Philadelphia did not use his cell phone while operating the train…Time Inc. said it plans to outsource at least 18 jobs to overseas countries…McDonald’s Corp. hired former Obama administration press secretary Robert Gibbs as global communications chief and executive vice president…Franklin Graham, son of televangelist Billy Graham, said he is moving Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s funds (which could total more than $100 million) out of Wells Fargo accounts in response to the bank’s TV spot featuring a lesbian couple…The Moberly (Mo.) Monitor-Index next month will sideline carriers of the daily newspaper, with about 4,700 subscribers, and rely on the U.S. Postal Service for delivery.  The newspaper is in the GateHouse Media family that owns 78 daily and 235 weekly newspapers in the U.S.  With the delivery change, the Monitor-Index will switch from afternoon to morning newspaper…Meanwhile, the Albuquerque Journal is phasing out coin-operated newspaper racks to focus on home delivery, in-store sales and digital subscriptions…So much for young entrepreneurs.  Two sisters, 7 and 8, in Overton, Texas, planning to raise $105 for a Father’s Day present via lemonade stand sales, were shut down by police in an hour --- after already collecting more than $25 --- because they lacked a permit.

 

How bad is the low-water situation in drought-hit California?

It's so bad that Gov. Jerry Brown bragged at a news conference that he did NOT shower that morning.

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Amazon ranks Seattle as most-read city in the U.S.

 

Amazon.com, in its fifth annual list, ranked its hometown Seattle as the most well-read city in the U.S., followed by Portland, Ore., but the big surprise was No. 3 --- gambling mecca Las Vegas, noted Grumpy Editor.

The tally was determined by compiling book, magazine and newspaper sales data in print and Kindle format, in the year ended in April, on a per capita basis in cities with more than 500,000 residents.

The compilation found Seattle not only purchased the most books overall but also bought the most Kindle books, magazines and newspapers.

Other Amazon findings:

Las Vegas readers, when not at the gaming tables or slot machines, purchased the most romance titles.

Three California cities --- San Francisco, San Diego and San Jose --- made the top 20 list.

Amazon's top 20 most well-read cities:

 

1. Seattle, Wash.											11. Charlotte, N.C.
2. Portland, Ore.											12. Baltimore, Md.
3. Las Vegas, Nev.											13. San Diego, Calif.
4. Tucson, Ariz.											14. Houston, Texas
5. Washington, D.C.											15. Indianapolis, Ind.
6. Austin, Texas											16. San Jose, Calif.
7. San Francisco, Calif.											17. Jacksonville, Fla.
8. Albuquerque, N.M.											18. San Antonio, Texas
9. Denver, Colo.											19. Nashville, Tenn.
10. Louisville, Ky.											20. Chicago, Ill.

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

As word swept through Washington that 4 million federal workers’ sensitive information was hacked (most likely by the Chinese), President Barack Obama was meeting in the White House’s East Room with members of last October’s World Series champions San Francisco Giants and receiving a personalized Giants jersey bearing No. 44…Meanwhile, Los Angeles area residents were gearing up for another fund-raising visit by Obama with resulting messy rush-hour traffic on June 18…The military newspaper Stars and Stripes revealed a serious growing U.S. Navy problem:  degraded or out-of-service equipment on Navy ships have doubled in the past five years, with the condition of many overseas-homeported ships deteriorating faster than those based in the U.S…News that Greece was continuing talks with creditors coupled with expectation of an interest rate hike in the fall along with upbeat news of U.S. job growth triggered selling on Wall St. as the Dow Jones Industrial Average again dropped below 18,000, ending the week at 17,849.46…A Rasmussen Reports poll found 76 percent of Americans (with 58 percent of Democrats) support voter ID laws across the country…The Chicago Tribune cut 10 newsroom positions, part of a cost-saving measure…The Women’s Media Center noted 65 percent of U.S. political stories published during a three-month span last year were written by men…ProPublica said the Red Cross raised nearly half a billion dollars following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti --- and built only six permanent homes…More "bad news" with those mysterious tar balls washing onto Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles and Orange county beaches in Southern California.  They “could now have an effect on mating patterns of the beloved grunion,” revealed the Los Angeles Times --- (on what probably was a slow news day).  The fish, five to six inches long, come ashore at night to spawn on sandy beaches…"Shocking" breaking news: Fox News reported “Ex-Guantanamo Bay prisoners set to marry in Uruguay have not taken out licenses”…Rachel Racusen, who left the White House as associate communications director last November to join MSNBC as vice president of communications, will return to the White House as strategic communications adviser.  Mentioning that triggered Keith Koffler, who writes White House Dossier, to declare mainstream journalism today “is not just overtly biased. It is actually politicized, hiring freshly picked former administration officials to supposedly serve as ‘analysts’ when it’s never really clear the extent they are still working for their former bosses”…The number of foreign-born persons holding U.S. jobs jumped to 25,098,000, a 279,000 gain  in May, tallied the Bureau of Labor Statistics.  (The BLS does not distinguish between legal immigrants, who are permitted to work in the U.S., and illegal aliens, who are not.)

 

So where do you think Las Vegas Review-Journal readers would like to visit:  Los Angeles, New York, Honolulu, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon?

Nope.

A full-page travel feature in Sunday’s edition was devoted to “BIRD-WATCHING AT NATURE LODGE IN ANDES MOUNTAINS” in southern Ecuador, one of many pieces the newspaper (under new ownership) now picked up from The Washington Post.  

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Obama cites rising seas --- as rivers overflow in Texas

 

When President Barack Obama visited the National Hurricane Center in Miami on Thursday, he declared, "When you combine stronger storms with rising seas, that's a recipe for more devastating floods," while 900 miles to the west, days of heavy precipitation devastated areas of Texas stemming from overflowing rain-swollen rivers --- with no link to rising seas, observed Grumpy Editor. 

The president, who so far has bypassed an on-scene look at severely flooded Texas and Oklahoma areas, continued his global warming/climate change warnings. 

A week earlier, in a commencement address at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, Conn., Obama envisioned climate change aggravating poverty and social tensions that can fuel instability and foster terrorist activity and other violence. "Climate change impacts every country on the planet," he told the cadets.

In Miami, with government meteorologists close by, Obama pointed out, "The best climate scientists in the world are telling us that extreme weather events like hurricanes are likely to become more powerful." 

Yet he apparently wasn’t cued in on a day-earlier announcement by government weather forecasters who assured the Atlantic hurricane season --- which runs today to Nov. 30 --- will be less active this year due to cooler seas and a strong El Nino effect. 

The below-normal forecast called for six to 11 tropical storms with three to six reaching hurricane status.

The U.S. coast has not been hit by a major hurricane since 2005.

 

FYI, IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE EDITORS MISSED THESE...

 

Alarm bells delayed.  The “Taliban Five” Guantanamo inmates, swapped a year ago for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, originally slated to roam free today from Qatar, will remain confined there under a weekend agreement that temporarily extends their ban on travel while discussions between Qatar, the United States and Afghanistan continue for a long-term solution.  Bergdahl was charged with desertion in March and could face a life sentence…Round up the newsroom.  In connection with the indictment of Dennis Hastert, a former House speaker, late in the week:  The Washington Post gathered a baseball team-size nine reporters for the story.  That compared with The Los Angeles Times and The Wall Street Journal each assigning three…A Rasmussen Reports survey found 61 percent of likely U.S. voters now do not trust the political news they are getting, a 16-point jump from last October…In closing the acquisition of U-T San Diego, Chicago-based Tribune Publishing Co., restored the newspaper’s former name, San Diego Union-Tribune --- and promptly laid off nearly a third of its 600 employees, most in printing and delivery operations…Over the past decade, weekday newspaper circulation declined 17 percent and ad revenue dropped more than 50 percent, noted the Washington Examiner, adding in 2014 alone, three different media companies decided to spin off more than 100 newspaper properties…The PennySaver, an advertising sheet distributed in Southern California for decades, ceased operations without warning…How headlines differed on same story:  Defense Secretary Ashton Carter warns China on South China Sea island-building (Los Angeles Times).  Ash Carter Talks Tough on China, But It's Just Talk (Bloomberg)…Government squeeze on coal output continues.  Murray Energy Corp., third largest U.S. coal producer, laid off around 1,800 workers, representing about 21 percent of its work force…With weak economic growth and slow consumer spending, the Federal Reserve now is likely to raise benchmark interest rates in September…Memorial Day weekend’s total box office, at an estimated $190 million, was the lowest since 2001.  The film industry regarded Disney’s “Tomorrowland” as a big disappointment.  But things improved over the past weekend with "San Andreas" shaking up the North American take with $53.2 million.  The tally also uncovered 70 percent of ticket buyers were 25 years old or more.  (Which triggers a question:  How was the 25+ number determined?  Did everyone have to show photo ID at the box office, with information fed into a computer?)…Bob Schieffer, with CBS News since 1969, signed off as Face the Nation moderator yesterday after 24 years with the Sunday public affairs program.  He has the distinction of covering all four of Washington’s key assignments:  White House, Pentagon, State Department and Congress.

 

Edgy Washington, D.C. police, who blew up a harmless pressure cooker found in an unattended vehicle parked near the Capitol, got an apology from its owner, a food truck operator, who said the utensil was used for cooking rice.