I accuse the Anchorage Daily News of neglecting to address the very serious problems in Alaska of violence against women, and, especially, of violence against Alaska Native women, in a meaningful way.The ADN has run many, many stories, editorials and other articles addressing this set of problems that put our state right up there with third world countries. They have sent their best reporters to cover important events, and have won awards for their great work.
But not only have they failed overall in that area, they have failed to seriously question why so many crimes against women are unsolved. Again, they've written articles about it here and there. However, there haven't been efforts to develop a comprehensive dialogue on solutions.
I don't know why. The newspaper won a Pulitzer Prize for its series, People in Peril. That was a while ago. Since then, hundreds and hundreds of violent acts against women in our state have been under-reported or neglected by the paper.
This issue sort of finally blew up in my brain over the weekend.
Last week, as the story of the background on why the May 2000 passage of Alaska House Bill 270 had to happen emerged, the ADN tiptoed around it. Now, it appears they've left it to others to cover. Corporate culture at work? I don't know. And while reporters and bloggers seem to know exactly why Walt Monegan was fired, the ADN is pushing one bright, shiny object to the front of the stage after another.
As I wrote last week, when HB 270 was passed in 2000, the ADN wrote an editorial praising the bill's passage, they - I'm beginning to think intentionally - neglected to point out why the bill had to be crafted.
And now, this week, bloggers and reporters from outside of Alaska are doing the digging the ADN didn't do eight years ago.
How many women in Alaska have been raped since 2000, Pat Dougherty and Matt Zencey? Would you like Shannyn Moore, Linda Kellen and Writing Raven to set up a meeting between your editorial board and these people?
I'd be happy to help.
And how many women have been raped since the Governor you could have helped be evaluated more truthfully, for her nutty stance on how rape victims should be treated, wasn't, I repeat, wasn't covered.
By you.
When almost 2,000 people, mostly enraged, engaged and knowledgeable women, showed up on Saturday outside the Loussac Library, your paper totally failed to connect the dots that brought these courageous people to that intersection.
Well, welcome to a more important intersection, Alaska mainstream media.
While you and a large part of Alaska media underplayed the historical nature of this protest, the rest of the world, through the internet, and outside reporters, was able to see the truth.
Within minutes.
While you and the rest of Alaska's daily media neglected to cover the only forum since Palin's nomination that allowed dozens of people from our state access to express their views to over a million radio listeners Outside, you deemed it a non-story, as far as I can tell.
I can't go on. I've got to go outside and puke, Pat and Matt.
Think of those women,
images - Pat Dougherty & Matt Zencey