… BUT ALSO THE TRUTHS THE PAPER’S EDITORIAL WRITERS NEVER TOLD

Bill Pearl of LBReport.com breaks down, sentence by sentence, an editorial by the Press-Telegram that — depending on what you think of Long Beach’s once-great daily in these, its clearly diminished days — was either a pack of despicably calculated lies or a pathetic inability to comprehend simple government proceedings.

With a chart, which juxtaposes the P-T’s false statements alongside the facts, Pearl’s online journal recaps a week of frightening coverage by the newspaper.

It started last Sunday (Jan. 20) when the Press-Telegram printed an editorial that — astoundingly – began by pleading AGAINST a public airing and discussion of a crucial and expansive local issue: the question of whether or not the nearly broke City of Long Beach deserves and ought to seek a greater percentage of the very rich Port of Long Beach’s profits. The editorial began with this sentence: ”Here’s a plan that deserves a quick demise.” Worse, the piece then went on to completely mislead the public about the plan.

The P-T got its wish: the measure was killed by a 6-3 vote of the Long Beach City Council. But it was even better — or worse — than that. The measure, itself, was never actually voted upon.

The 6-3 vote was against sending the measure to a committee for examination, discussion and a public consideration of its pros and cons. About the best that could be said about the council majority — Bonnie Lowenthal, Suja Lowenthal, Gary DeLong, Patrick O’Donnell, Dee Andrews and Val Lerch – is that they put their mouths where their muzzles were. Throughout Schipske’s long Power Point presentation, public comment and questions from ultimate dissenters Tonia Reyes Uranga and Rae Gabelich, the Silent Majority never uttered a word. They just voted no.

The P-T lauded this behavior in a subsequent editorial on January 23 that was titled, “A rational port vote: Kudos to six council members who defeated Schipske proposals.” Again, the text of the editorial completely mischaracterized — or sadly misunderstood – Schipske’s proposals and what the council actually voted upon.

The strangest, closest-to-funny part of it all is that the P-T criticized Schipske’s proposals as simply her attempt to get on the front page. Of course, it was the P-T that made the decision to put her there.

Tags: bonnie lowenthal, Dave Wielenga, Dee Andrews, gary delong, Gerrie Schipske, lbreport.com, Long Beach City Council, patrick o'donnell, Port of Long Beach, press telegram, rae gabelich, suja lowenthal, The District Weekly, Tonia Reyes Uranga, val lerch