The latest: Ernie just called to say he got off the phone with FOX TV Ch. 10’s news room. Apparently KPHO called all the local television news services and asked that they not send any camera trucks to cover the 4 p.m. debate, in exchange for making the debate footage available for these outlets.

The newsroom guy at FOX said they would comply as a courtesy to their competitor.

Wow! And the media claims to be relevant. Instead they are direct participants in a Freedom of Speech gagging ... a media blackout on protesting.

Those with cameras and video cameras, you might want to bring them to record the protest for the web and YouTube respectively. The media is no longer the message. The Internet is.

Of course, you could ask the newsrooms, politely, for an explanation of why they are not covering the protest yourself:

FOX KNST TV - 10 Phoenix

(602) 257-1234

KNXV-TV ABC – 15 Phoenix

(602) 273-1500 / 685-6397

KPNX-TV NBC – 12 Phoenix

(602) 257-1212 / -6630 / 261-6111

KTVK-TV – 3 Phoenix (BELO, independent)

(602) 207-3333

And perhaps more effectively, since this issue of excluding Richard Mack in the debates has become a lead Tucson Citizen editorial issue, perhaps those of you in Tucson could call your affiliates and ask them to contact their Phoenix sister stations to get footage of the protest outside of KPHO for coverage in Tucson.

KVOA-TV NBC Tucson

(520) 792-2270 / 624-2477 / 880-1444

KMSB-TV FOX Tucson

news@fox11az.com

(520) 770-1123

KGUN-TV ABC Tucson

(520) 722-5486

KOLD-TV CBS Tucson

(520) 744-1313 / 744-NEWS

Have fun.