LA Times Owner Tells Fox News He's Looking 'For People Like Scott Jennings' to 'Balance' His Paper

[Mr. Sparkle]

Fox News anchor Trace Gallagher spoke with the owner of the LA Times on Thursday night, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, about the future of the paper following his refusal to endorse in the presidential race and replacing his editorial board. “Sir, it is great to have you on the show. It really is. And William is, as he was telling us, I think he’s right. He makes a fair point when he says because the Los Angeles Times on the — on the headline, this is on the front page, one of the things reads, ‘Trump’s big rally doubles down on hatred.’ That’s the news, it’s not the op-ed,” Gallagher began, asking: And I’m wondering when you say you want this paper to be fair and balanced, do you plan to just fix the editorial section or are you planning to go over and redo the entire paper?

“I think the latter. I think exactly — I think one of my concerns is you as a journalist would understand that’s news versus opinion. And we’ve conflated news and opinion. So, the first thing I want to do is ensure that we explicitly say this is news. And if it’s news, it should just be the facts period. And if it’s an opinion, that’s maybe an opinion of the news and that’s what I call now a voice,” Soon-Shiong replied, adding, “And so, we want voices from all sides to be heard.”

“And we want the news to be just the facts,” Soon-Shiong said as Gallagher agreed. “When you talk about the editorial board because when you tweeted it, seemed like you were going to get rid of the entire editorial board. They have all left. Is that the plan to redo the entire editorial board or just fill in the people that have left?” Gallagher asked. “Again, I think it’s important for us to differentiate the editorial board is responsible for these opinions on these voices. So, right now, we don’t have an editorial board if we are truly honest about ourselves that are balanced. And so, I’ve gotten beaten up about fair and balance. So, I’m looking for people like Scott Jennings. Scott Jennings who is on CNN and he’s one out of six usually in the — in the room where we need to have all voices, the right, the left, and the moderate, the center,” Soon-Shiong said, adding:

And I think it’s important because the editors are responsible of stories that are told and stories that are not told. Editors have these nuances of the word hatred versus could the president-elect make a real impact. And we need views from both sides. And my goal is not to change that entire editorial board for that — for that perspective.

https://www.mediaite.com/tv/la-times-owner-tells-fox-news-hes-looking-for-people-like-scott-jennings-to-balance-his-paper/

[stopdiggin]

1. this is boilerplate

I can't speak to earlier statements (or tweets) - but what we have here is really standard stuff from the head of a newspaper. Facts are facts, reporting is reporting (and should include some degree of verifying and attribution?) - and when it comes to 'opinion' we think it best served by presenting a range ...

Could have had the same conversation (and perspectives) with most newspaper heads in the 70s, 80s, and 90s.

Now whether things actually play out that way .... And is that really what is going on with the Times ... Perhaps a different story. But purely as for words spoken here ...

[Blue_Tires]

2. Ironically his daughter is a far-left activist

And daddy has pulled a lot of strings to protect her...

And don't forget this guy runs some cutting edge medical technology company so he's already in bed with Melon Husk and looking to cash in with TFG

[Ndp5]

3. Headline called it like it was

There is going to be pressure now to sugar-coat things so as not to offend the delicate sensibilities of a narcissist and his reactionary foot soldiers. See Orwell’s “Politics and the English Language” on political language and euphemism.

That rally was objectively full of speakers who said hateful things — toward Trump’s political opponents, toward Latinos, toward women and toward immigrants more broadly.

“Her and her pimp handlers will destroy our country.”

“In fact, she is the devil, whoever screamed that out.”

“She's just so impressive as the first Samoan, Malaysian, low-IQ former California prosecutor ever to be elected…”

“There's literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now… It's called Puerto Rico.”

“These Latinos, they love making babies… There's no pulling out. They don't do that. They come inside, just like they did to our country."

“America is for Americans and Americans only.”

So they can say and do whatever they want, but you’re not allowed to call their speech what it is or counter it in any way, because they’re snowflakes.

And Patrick Soon-Shiong, who is friends with Elon Musk, is actively trying to create an environment where the only people who have real freedom of speech are the Trump administration and their bot army.

“If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed.”

— Benjamin Franklin