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Ernest Hancock and The Arizona Republic Newspaper
Written by Ernest Hancock Subject: Media: PrintI received a phone call from a young lady that introduced herself as the Arizona Republic reporter that was covering the Secretary of State race for the newspaper. We agreed that she would come by the radio station tomorrow for an interview and then chatted for a while. It was obvious that she knew nothing of the Secretary of State race or anything about the issues. I can understand this since where was she going to get background information on election fraud,… the Arizona Republic?
This weekend there is to be a Candidate Profile of each of the 3 candidates for Secretary of State but it was immediately obvious to me that this wasn’t going to cover any of the important issues with any understanding of what is going on with our elections. I called the Political Editor for the newspaper and informed him that I wouldn’t be cooperating with the newspaper on any coverage of the Secretary of State race. www.FreedomsPhoenix.com and my web page at www.ernesthancock.com have all the information they need on the issues involving our race and anything they need to know about me.
Within 5 minutes I got another call from the reporter confirming that I didn’t want to participate. She informed me that I would still be included in some form. I was calm and clear in expressing how little respect I have for the Arizona Republic and that their coverage of such an important issue as election fraud has left me with absolutely no motivation to help them legitimize themselves with my willing participation. The Arizona Republic has proven to be untrustworthy and is rapidly becoming irrelevant in the election process. The Arizona Republic in particular has become useless to me as a source for useful information. I am the producer of the Charles Goyette Show here in Phoenix at 1100am KFNX and I also publish an online news portal. Both the radio show and the web page are highly regarded and in the opinion of anyone exposed to our work, considered the best at what we strive to accomplish. Our success is due to our ability to research the Internet for information and experts that are trustworthy. An expert is not determined by how many articles are written by/about them or how many times they appear on Fox News (more often than not these are signs of a status quo spin master).
Here in Arizona the Hispanic market makes up at least a 3rd of the population and one of the largest newspapers in Spanish just got bought by Gannett, the owners of the Arizona Republic and the NBC TV affiliate. Libertarians have been cultivating a long term relationship with the Hispanic population here in Arizona so hopefully we have already infected that community with La Filosophia de la Liberdad.
My decision not to make myself available to the Arizona Republic isn’t bitterness, it’s closer to self preservation. I know what is coming and I have no desire to be anywhere near those that will certainly share in the blame for having left their readers totally unprepared. Just a couple of weeks ago the Arizona Republic used 2005 vs. 2004 real estate figures as current data to support the idea that our state economy is doing much better than it really is. I use the media I have influence with to inform the people of the truth and I can not lend legitimacy to an entity I know to be untrustworthy.
Above all things, a media outlet requires credibility to be perceived as legitimate in the eyes of their customers. The Arizona Republic has done such a poor job of informing the people of the truth here in Arizona that I feel the obligation not to lend credibility to their organization with my willing participation. I am also in a unique position of doing everything I can to encourage people not to support a corrupt system by voting in it. I am relying on my other campaign activities, signs, stickers and appearances to share my position with others.
Those that know me know that I regard my friends very highly and am selective with whom I spend time. My friends and family are my motivation for my actions and I choose not to spend anymore of my time this election cycle with an organization I know to be without merit. It’s a principle thing.
Ernest Hancock
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4 Comments in Response to Ernest Hancock and The Arizona Republic Newspaper
You can't expect a reporter to have the same off-the-beaten-path agenda as you, or to even understand it. It's like a foreign language to them - and to 99.9 percent of their readers. Loosen up a bit and use the Repulsive to your advantage. I think what you've all done here to to reiterate the common belief that Libertarians are whackos to be mostly ignored. That accomplishes nothing. - Dary
Nice observations, Ernie. It's a shame you wouldn't be so blatant and forthcoming about the Arizona Republic when they were back-stabbing me a few years ago for doing "in the trenches" exactly what you're trying to do as Secretary of State. Still, your assessment of Phoenix's premiere spin-rag is accurate, and I'd be more than happy to bandwagon this particular issue with you.
I had a similar call from a reporter doing a candidate profile from a paper on the west side. She wanted to know how old I was and if I had falily and what their names and ages were. I asked her wasn't her paper intereted in any of my positions? Nope. They just wanted to run a bio ... as if that should have a bearing on who you vote for. I refused to give her the personal information. She said if she left the information blank my bio would look out of place. I said, "and this would be a bad thing?" You mean it might attract people's attention? End of phone call.
The ONLY use I have for a copy of the Arizona Republic newspaper is to soak up oil in my driveway. Good going Ernie - poke 'em in the eye once for me!