Thread: No Bailout for Newspapers!

Members of Congress:

I have just read the news that Congress is considering forcibly taking more taxes from me, my fellow Americans, and generations of our descendants to prop up some of the failing biased newspapers in America.

You need to cease and desist any effort to prop up these failing businesses. While there are still many great newspapers and real journalists in our nation, many newspapers are failing for a reason that transcends the bad economy and the influence of the Internet.

Americans are bombarded daily with editorials, and unfortunately content masquerading as news, that is highly biased towards an unpopular political view point. Many of these papers and reporters are offering a highly inferior product. That is why I no longer give these papers my money and why millions of Americans have dropped their community support for these publications.

No issue illustrates this point more than illegal immigration, where large numbers of newspapers eagerly exclude accurate information, while loading up their pages with content that is designed to influence and provoke emotional responses from readers.

And to think that Congress is pushing the FCC to regulate and crack down on free speech on the Internet and talk radio, while preparing to make special allowances for newspapers. I want each member of Congress to know how absolutely disgusted the public is that you are even discussing this bailout for the failing newspapers.

The crocodile tears of lawmakers for the important role investigative journalism is supposed to play in our republic are laughable.

A Federal bailout of newspapers, or granting them nonprofit status, would in fact make those publications completely dependent on continued political patronage from Washington, DC. This formalized union of power between incumbent lawmakers and the papers would just be official recognition.

How can there be true freedom of the press when the press becomes dependent on special status grants or tax monies to survive?

Any bailout for newspapers would create a union between the state and media that has no place in a free society like America, where such authoritarian measures have been opposed historically.

We already have a huge problem with the truth getting out to Americans and if Congress props up the failing papers, this problem will get worse.

There is a new media rising in America from the union between talk radio, Internet publications, and newspapers that actually write content the public wants to buy or support with their monies. The new media is faster, more comprehensive in scope, and allows greater input and feedback from the public despite some rough edges.

Many of America's newspapers are like dinosaurs breathing their last gasps of comet dust and their failure to adapt to the new information environment is the reason for their fall.

Many of these papers and their supporting wire services like Reuters and Associated Press have seen their control of information content and flow broken and bypassed by the Internet.

Let these papers survive or fail based on their merits or lack of merits. If the communities they serve have elected to drop their financial support for the papers, then let them fail.

For many Americans, the closure of some of these publications would be a reason to rejoice and bring hope that new businesses will arise and ascend to meet the information needs for Americans.

If you vote for any bailout or assistance for these papers, you can expect your political opponents in the next election to bring that point up anytime a local paper that has become a ward of the state writes about your campaigns.

All remaining shreds of credibility or public confidence these newspapers and reporters have will go out the door the day any new legislation putting them on financial life support is signed into law.

Special assistance from Congress would make these newspapers practically a new wing of the Federal government!

We need these newspapers aligned with the American public, instead of Washington insiders. Any move by Congress to bailout failing newspapers will clearly be perceived as an attempt to buy influence. Who in their right mind would expect newspapers or reporters to hold incumbent lawmakers accountable, when doing so could cost them their jobs or business?

This latest effort by some members of Congress is just the latest example of why a recent Rasmussen poll indicated that over 75% of Americans do not feel those in Washington represent "We The People" of the United States of America.

Members of Congress need to focus on representing the true majority of your constituents, instead of buying off newspapers for favorable treatment.

We call on Americans from coast to coast to contact their congressional representatives to demand that any efforts to bailout failing newspapers ends immediately.

William Gheen
President, Americans for Legal Immigration PAC
www.alipac.us

Let us people decide.

If the paper goes belly-up, then it sucked anyway!

Let others try to give us the whole news not just the positive Dem and Obama news!

You're right William, why should I be forced to aid in the bailout of a newspaper that doesn't agree with my ideology? The thought of one red cent of mine going to bail out the McClatchy Group or the New York Times sickens me to no end. NO MORE BAILOUTS!

added to homepage

http://www.alipac.us/article4201.html

Let the bankers, corporations, lobbyists, and politicians spend their own monies to prop up their own propaganda machines, and then when they give away free copies I will use mine for garden mulch.

So far in BO's first 100 days, he has taken control of the auto industry, the health industry, and perhaps now the failing newspaper industry! This is not only illegal but immoral. As I've said before, this is exactly the way that Hitler gained control of Germany. Even Hitler had more knowledge about the "hows and wherefore" of how his government was run. BO does not have a clue and no one is correcting him. Practically everything he has done is either unconstitutional or illegal. I am still not convinced that he is even a legal president, since he has not as yet produced a LEGAL birth certificate. The money he has spent, just for his own fun, flying around the country is criminal. Add the photo shoot over New York City and if it were not so harmful it might be funny! It comes to over $1,320,000 of my money and yours! I have called, emailed, and faxed my congressmen, and a number of out of state congess people, as well as the so-called president. I am very close to giving up because one way or the other this government does as it dern well pleases! When you add the Bail-Out-Bills, which totals more than has been spent by ALL presidents from Washington through Bush, you are looking at the worst train wreck in history! The congress and BO and his cabinet are ignoring the whole thing! I used to be scared to death, now I am just plain angry!

This is one more attempt by the liberal biased media and the Obama administration to control votes using taxpayer dollars. Acorn, increased government, censorship doctrine, union payoffs, amnesty for illegals are just some on the many examples of ways in which our government tries to gain control over the masses. If America subscribes to a one party rule democracy will cease to exist and dictatorship is right around the corner. It is already closer than we know. We can not allow this to happen. What I saw when I saw Obama shaking hands with Chavez and bowing to the Saudi prince was envy. I believe Obama envies the power these dictators hold over their countries. Will we be next? Its up to you and we better fight while we still can. Tomorrow may be too late!

Howdy and welcome to skipper0, and Eddost,

The good news is that I have noticed more new posters here at ALIPAC! Thats great. That means too me that more and more people are paying attention to Wonder Boy and his cohorts. People are starting to get anxious with their government. As the commies poke their heads above the foxholes, crawl out into the open from under their rocks, come up through the manholes, and out of the closets, they become visible.