When The Shopper Stops, They Just Keep Going

Last week, we pointed out the Shopper got one right. If you are around me long enough. You will hear me repeat an old saying that I heard along time ago. I normally say it at least once every couple of days. The saying is "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in awhile."

Well, last week evidently, the Shopper was the blind squirrel that happened to find the real aspect of journalism. As Larry Van Guilder, a shopper editorial writer allowed Mike Lowe to respond and included Lowe's reaction to his editorial column in the total column. I am sure Brian's Blog exposing the errors of the Shoppers ways with Moxley Carmichael probably had something to do with it.

This week, Larry Van Guilder is retracting something that he printed last week. It appears that last week he quoted an inaccurate statement made by Cathy Quist, aspiring General Sessions Court Judge about a private citizen and her employment status with a private company. However, Van Guilder did not obtain a retraction from Quist. So, maybe the lawyers can just lawyer up and get Quist to apologize and correct her inaccurate statement.

Here is the Larry Van Guilder snippet.

‘Not the boss’

Last week we quoted Circuit Court Clerk Cathy Quist who called the wife of Brian Barnard “an executive for Cigna.” Barnard, of course, is Knox County’s benefits manager who served on the committee which selected Cigna to service the county’s self-insured health plan. (Although Barnard abstained from the actual vote.)

He wrote to say that his wife, Judy, is “in fact, a salaried middle manager with Cigna, a ‘business project senior specialist.’ She is neither an executive nor an officer,” he said.

OK.

BTW, I think Larry Van Guilder is a pretty good guy. I think he just gets steered in the wrong direction on writing his editorials by the "tabloid bully girl" and the "tabloid bully editor girl". They don't tell him it is necessary to call to verify inaccurate statement(s) made by an individual with special interest(s).

A phone call to Cigna, would have verified what the ladies position within Cigna is and her husband would not have had to contact Van Guilder and then Van Guilder would not have had to correct an inaccurate report of an inaccurate statement.

Had Van Guilder looked at his notes from the September 17, 2007 County Commission Committee meeting or researched Brian's Blog for this post. He would have seen that the ladies husband had already made a public statement as to what his wife's position was at Cigna.

Lazy reporters, You can't live with them. You can't run a tabloid without them.

Cathy Quist, has informed the main stream media back a month or so ago (in an interview) that she doesn't read blogs. It is so too bad that she doesn't, because had she read our report on September 17, 2007, she would not have made an inaccurate statement about a private citizen and her work status.

Local Blog Forum Bans Brian Hornback. Brian Is Pleased!

This evening, R. Neal has blocked me from posting over at his local blog forum. This is the first time he has ever done that, I unsubscribed the first time I left. I am in good company though. First, #9 who I have never met and then Walker Johnson. What do the three of us have in common? We are Conservative by nature. #9, I don't think is a Republican but is Conservative. Walker is Republican and Conservative. Walker's column got pulled over at the E.W. Scripps tabloid because he wouldn't mislead the reporting of a local television stations rating numbers to fit what Sandra and Betty wanted the ratings to be.

In addition, I discovered tonight who the poster Catfish is and that has unnerved Catfish, Sandra and Betty and they squeezed R.Neal to ban me before I outed him. Catfish, time will reveal your identity maybe not at the local blog forum.

Brian's Blog has more readers than the local blog forum. The difference is their members and lurkers are refreshing a couple of hundred times a day. That makes their numbers look larger than they really are.

KnoxViews is upset that Brian's Blog exposed Sharon Cawood. They are upset because we ensure that our information is accurate and they do not. Again, I have my name on this blog and R.Neal won't even show his face. He is All anonymous, All the time. Kind of cowardly, if you ask me.

I have always been told you can know a person by the enemies they keep. I know that I am living on the right side when Sandra, Betty, Chad and others are on one side and I am on the right side. I have never resorted to such personal attacks, like Sandra did at Halls Republican Club targeting a competitor of hers. (Sandra told a former elected official and Publisher of the competitive paper to go do something to himself)

E.W. Scripps is Discriminatory in Selection of Interns

UPDATE III: A Brian's Blog source confirmed early this morning that the Editor has informed the powers that be that she will accept applications from South Doyle High School. An email to the Publisher was sent this morning seeking clarification and attempting to see if Farragut would be included as well. No response from the Publisher on Farragut nearly 8 hours after the request.

It is anticipated that E.W. Scripps will notify Farragut High School at 12:01 p.m. on Friday after all students have left for the summer and then the Editor will say they attempted to get applications and no one applied.

Is the action of opening up the appplication process for South Doyle and not Farragut within 3 hours of the Publisher's official response an act of insubordination by the Editor?

By the way, the argument that Farragut and South Doyle are not in the distribution area is weak as all E.W. Scripps publications are online and accessed by the students in Farragut and South Doyle.

UPDATE II: The response from the E.W. Scripps Publisher is far more professional than from the Editor. He has a tough job managing the Editor. However his explanation for his Editor's actions are that the publication is not distributed in the Farragut area.

So, Brian's Blog is encouraging Home School and Private School students from the Farragut area to apply who will then file reports to Brian's Blog every Wednesday on the activities of internship program.

UPDATE: Brian's Blog has emailed two questions to Bruce Hartmann, E.W. Scripps Publisher and to the Editor of the weekly publication. The initial response that I have received from the Editor is "Tell Arms he forgot South-Doyle. -- s." So, I have asked the questions again.

Check out The E.W. Scripps Company Statement of Policy on Ethics and Professional Conduct. Pay particular attention to the Equal Employment Policy section.

Original Post: The E.W. Scripps weekly newspaper publication has an ad in this weeks edition. Here is the text that is interesting.

Seeking applications from rising sophomores and juniors from:
Austin-East Magnet High – 2
Bearden High – 2
Carter High – 2
Central High – 2
Fulton High – 2
Gibbs High – 2
Halls High – 2
Karns High – 2
Powell High – 2
Union County High – 2
West High – 2
Alternative, home school, private school – 2

What is so interesting? You ask. It list 11 of Knox County's 12 High Schools, it list an out of county High School and even an opportunity for Alternative, home school, or private school interns. Who does it leave out? Who does it discriminate against? Farragut High School students.

Now why would E.W. Scripps Company allow one of its subsidiaries to discriminate? I am not sure that E.W. Scripps Company is aware that they have individuals within their operational management that is willfully, knowingly, arrogantly discriminating against students that attend one particular school within its geography.

There are some valid reasons for not allowing students from Farragut to apply for a summer internship at the E.W. Scripps weekly newspaper publication.

1) It would double the IQ of the entire group.
2) Management has an anti - Farragut bias. (Don't take our word for it read their comments on a local blog forum)

3) Management realizes they could not answer questions that would asked by two interns from Farragut.
4) Farragut students are already interning at reputable newspapers of record.

5) The "offices" (Knox County's last two phone booths) are not big enough for two more interns, this summer.

This list will continue to grow. Feel free to submit your reasons why a subsidiary of E.W. Scripps is discriminatory against the kids of Farragut.

Tabloid Hit Piece on the County Mayor Refuted

Did you see the hit piece that the tabloid tried to put on the County Mayor on April 30, 2007.

Brian's Blog has recently reviewed the information presented by the tabloid reporter Larry Van Guider and here are the facts.

In the story it was reported that "Figures in the chart cover the period from June 30, 2004, until April 24, 2007" This would cover Fiscal Years 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006. Certainly the reporter and tabloid wants you to believe that the County Mayor spent $523,857.00 tax payer dollars this year. That is not true. Individually, over four fiscal years the amount is $130,964.25

Now where did this money go?

Knox County Schools and Educational entities received $127,065.00 over 4 fiscal years is $31,766.25 per year. This is the equivalent of one beginning teacher position. However, it was spread out over the entire County and returned multiple dollars in results.

Youth Recreation Organizations received $84,350.00 over 4 fiscal years is $21,087.50 per year. Certainly promotion of a healthy lifestyle filled with exercise and interaction with your peers is part of a Great American Community.

The Boys and Girls Club received $5,900.00 over 4 fiscal years is $1,475.00 per year. Certainly the Boys and Girls Clubs have produced many great citizens in our community and have kept young men and women from getting into mischief and these dollars are beneficial for a greater community.

Boy Scout Troops received $2,400.00 over 4 fiscal years is $600.00 per year. Certainly, the Boy Scouts organization teaches our young men how to survive in this world, how to live as a responsible citizen and be productive team members within a group of your peers and within your family.

Certainly this hit piece in retrospect begs to question what problems does the tabloid have with Schools and Educational Entities, Youth Recreational Organizations, the Boys and Girls Club and the Boy Scouts of America?

This money is money well spent.

As for the remaining dollars that went to organizations like United Way, Child and Family, Disabled American Veterans it amounted to approximately $76,035 a year over the 4 fiscal years. Spread throughout Knox County it amounts to about $4,002 per Commission district.

This is your tax dollars coming back to serve you. It could fund another government bureaucrat with benefits instead it comes back to directly serve you within your community/neighborhood. This is government that is responsive to your needs and serves you.

It begs to question. What would the tabloid and its writer Larry Van Guider want to use your tax dollars for? A hand out for the tabloid newspaper in North Knox County?

No other media in Knoxville has touched this story because the casual observer can see that this is nothing more than an attempted tabloid hit.