Source: https://tumeke.blogspot.com/2011/05/open-letter-to-nz-herald-regarding.html
Dear NZ Herald,
Hi.
How you doing?
Now
I know in the past I’ve been a bit of a bitch about the NZ Herald.
I’ve teased you about your conservative bias,
bullshit Journalism
and the impression that Steven Joyce sub edits the entire newspaper for a very long time now,
but being the largest daily newspaper in this country,
you are all we have.
You’ve been gracious enough in the past to print some of my letters
and what you do sets the journalistic benchmark for the rest of the country,
so I sincerely hope you listen to what I have to say,
consider it
and get back to us.
I’d like to question the appointment of the far right masquerading as right lite blogger
David Farrar as your weekly columnist on politics.
David Farrar is the unofficial mouth-piece of the National Party on-line
and is a pollster for the bloody Government.
Farrar has nothing more to add than massaged message points he’s focus group tested on the National Party Research Unit !
That you want people with opinions is fantastic,
and I applaud the widening of the political debate to include bloggers who are increasingly making their influence felt,
but to hand a column over to the Government’s number one propagandist
without any balance whatsoever
is just not acceptable
from the largest daily Newspaper in the country.
I don’t question your right to pick whom you like,
that is a right any free press has,
but the utter imbalance by selecting the Government’s number one propagandist
to review the political week leaps outside any boundaries of balance.
May I humbly suggest that you at the very least put a left wing blogger alongside David’s weekly comments
so that there is
balance
because allowing the current situation to stand,
allowing the number one propagandist for the Government
to write a weekly column without any counter opinion
is more Fox news
than NZ Herald.
There is a plethora of left wing bloggers who could write a week in politics column,
the brilliant Idiot-savant at No Right Turn,
the genius of Russell Brown over at Public Address and let’s not forget the liberal lion of the council of socialist Ents,
Chris Trotter.
If it is an issue of cost,
I am certain someone like David Farrar who takes such effort at painting himself
as moderate and reasonable
will gladly accept only half of what you are paying him
to share it
with a left blogger for the sake of a balanced debate.
This election is going to be the most ideological we’ve had in over a decade,
to simply allow a right wing Government pollster to write your week on politics
betrays
any journalistic balance whatsoever.
I know that is a position the NZ Herald wouldn’t wish to support
and so I call on
them,
for the sake of balance to appoint a left wing blogger
to review the political week alongside David Farrar.
Yours sincerely,
Martyn Bradbury