They say it better...
Mike Littwin and Vince Carroll weigh in on U.S. Rep. Jared Polis' glee at the Rocky going under and his apology "to anyone who was offended." (Hey, isn't that a righty tactic - and for those of you who are good with it, well, we're good with it too!)
Meanwhile, David Bennahum, the president and CEO of Center for Independent Media, which operates Colorado Confidential (now Colorado Independent) called today to say that the center decided to give back Polis' money once he announced he was entering the primary. That happened in May 2007, according to this post at the political news site. The event i described yesterday occurred in August 2007. i have great respect for David Bennahum, and believe it's possible he didn't realize what was going on in Colorado. But the ME of Colorado Confidential told me when repressing a negative post on Polis that she'd discussed it with Bennahum and others in the D.C. headquarters.
Again, the point here, made far better by Littwin and Carroll, is that Polis, a congressman (my congressman, in fact), would prefer a media that tells only his side of the story.
And that's not journalism, folks.
Meanwhile, David Bennahum, the president and CEO of Center for Independent Media, which operates Colorado Confidential (now Colorado Independent) called today to say that the center decided to give back Polis' money once he announced he was entering the primary. That happened in May 2007, according to this post at the political news site. The event i described yesterday occurred in August 2007. i have great respect for David Bennahum, and believe it's possible he didn't realize what was going on in Colorado. But the ME of Colorado Confidential told me when repressing a negative post on Polis that she'd discussed it with Bennahum and others in the D.C. headquarters.
Again, the point here, made far better by Littwin and Carroll, is that Polis, a congressman (my congressman, in fact), would prefer a media that tells only his side of the story.
And that's not journalism, folks.
Labels: Jared Polis, Rocky Mountain News
posted by fish at 7:25 AM
5 Comments:
I am not sure what you mean when you say I prefer media that I control. I do not control any media and without checking notes with Mr. Bennehum, my memory is similar that when I started running for Congress I stopped supporting his organization.
Media should be free to criticize anyone, and I would be very scared for the future of our nation if media only told my side of the story.
Jared Polis
Rep. Polis,
the only place on this page in which the word control is used is in a post from Nov. 12. i did not say you prefer media that you control.
In August 2007, i was specifically told not to do a post for Colorado Confidential that was considered negative for your campaign because you were a funder and had sent people from the Web site as well as your staff blogger (a friend of others on the site) to Yearly Kos the weekend before. It's highly possible that David had no knowledge of this, even tho i was told he agreed with that decision. That was what i was told and others were told the same.
And it is clear to me that you prefer media with which you agree, otherwise, you wouldn't have been dancing on the Rocky's grave with the rest of the gleeful netroots.
Your exact quote was that I "would prefer a media that tells only his side of the story."
And no, I do not. The more diverse voices in media the better, which is why the end of the Rocky is such a blow to our region. The loss of the Rocky is a lot more than just the loss of over 200 jobs, some of whom I count among my friends.
If what you say is true regarding Colorado Confidential, it calls into question their journalistic integrity. I have not heard such a charge before, and as I mentioned did not support them after I became a candidate.
Jared Polis
Rep. Polis,
if i were your media adviser, i would recommend you halt this conversation with me lest i begin posting old e-mail conversations.
it was discussed that you were providing the funding for several folks from that Web site to attend Yearly Kos. it's my understanding that money was either rejected or returned - after this issue blew up in August 2007. and you announced your candidacy in May 2007.
My openess and accessibility are an important part of my commitment to public service. And yes, it sometimes frustrates our communications person. I don't have any "media advisors" but agree that they would probably just try to block access to me.
I make sure that any constituents who want it have my cell phone number (I try to avoid posting it online, but if you email me I will get it to you).
I remember the incident regarding Raf well. He was a bit overly enthusiastic in his first week and posted some things that went overboard, and he did the right thing and resigned. I continue to admire and respect him, both for his service to our nation as well his ongoing blogging and progressive activism.
I did support progressive media for many years. When I was in the private sector that was part of how I gave back. If you would like to continue this discussion, pls email me or msg me on facebook. Keep up the great work!
Jared Polis
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