KSWO owner & station manager each gave contributions to Drew Edmondson in 2006 - on Valentine's Day.
Lawton television station
KSWO's slogan
"you can count on us" is proudly displayed at the top of the station's website. An
Oklahoma Political News Service investigation reveals that you may not be able to
"count on" KSWO - or any other Oklahoma media outlet - for unbiased coverage concerning Attorney General Drew Edmondson and the ongoing "Poultrygate" scandal.
We have been chronicling the amazing spectacle of a
major scandal occurring right underneath the Oklahoma press' noses and their seemingly
ambivalence towards uncovering the truth. A search of the KSWO website search engine revealed one entry for "Drew Edmondson" - a puff piece dated January 17th of Edmondson investigating complaints of price gouging after the recent ice storms. We even typed in
"Poultry Lawsuit" with zero results and
"Poultry" brought back Thanksgiving recipes. Recent campaign reports for the Attorney General show
contributions from the station's owner Bill Drewry and the station manager Larry Patton. Mr. Patton even uses KSWO's P. O. Box as his "address for the contributor."
We do note that Messrs. Drewry and Patton have every right to engage themselves in our political system through financial participation, we only question the propriety of a news organization - which is supposedly unbiased and neutral -having its management contributing to political campaigns? It begs the question; will journalists be more reluctant to report a story if they know their superiors have contributed financially to the subject of an unflattering report?
The Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics says that journalists should
"avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived," "remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility," and
"shun secondary employment, political involvement, public office and service in community organizations if they compromise journalistic integrity."
The Attorney General's two opponents needed the contribution a lot more than he did. Edmondson out raised his nearest opponent James Dunn nearly three to one and garnered almost two thirds of the vote this past November. (61.19% to 38.81%)
Tomorrow: How many other Oklahoma media executives or reporters have contributed to Drew Edmondson's campaigns?
Labels: AG, Drew Edmondson, Poultry Lawsuit, Press Bias
Posted at 2/19/2007 08:32:00 PM
