ME-SEN: Collins Office, Maine Paper Silent On Conflict-of-Interest Allegations
The liberal blogs have been abuzz with accusations against a major Maine newspaper, the Bangor Daily News, charging it with a conflict of interest in its coverage and editorial opinions on the Maine Senate race, which is shaping up as one of the highest-profile races in the nation, with intense interest from the Netroots.
The allegations seem to have a great deal of merit, as it turns out. They turn on the fact that the paper's executive editor, Mark Woodward, is married to Bridget Woodward, a staffer for Collins in the Senator's Bangor district office. In other words, if Collins were to lose the election, the wife of the executive editor of a major newspaper in Collins' home state would be out of a job — which would cause some serious inconvenience for that household.
So what does the paper's executive editor and the Collins staffer have to say about this arrangement? Absolutely nothing. We've repeatedly tried to contact Mark Woodward at the Daily News office, and Bridget Woodward at the Bangor district office, hoping to hear their side of the story. Thus far, not one of our calls has been returned.
The conflict-of-interest accusations came to light after the Daily News published an editorial backing up Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), who has denounced Democratic Congressman Tom Allen's campaign for sending a tracker with a video camera to follow her around campaigning, specifically at a recent parade. From the paper's editorial:
Tracking is the campaign practice of filming an opponent to the greatest extent possible, making amply certain the opponent is aware of the filming. Nominally, tracking is used to gather information, but in reality, a camera stuck in the face of the opponent is a weapon to intimidate, harass and provoke that person into doing something foolish. Once accomplished, as fast as you can say "macaca," the embarrassing film clip is sent, oh, everywhere in the universe.
Now that we know that the paper's executive editor is married to a Collins staffer, it definitely sounds like there's a huge conflict of interest in the paper denouncing both tracking by the Allen campaign in particular and the modern practice of tracking in general. Even worse is the paper's assertion that any gaffe captured on video is really provoked by the opponent. (One wonders what S.R. Sidarth, the famous Jim Webb volunteer in 2006, would have to say about that.)
Given the unsightliness of this arrangement, it's perhaps not surprising that none of the interested parties are willing to talk about it. If anything changes, we'll let you know.
Comments (40)
ohiomeister wrote on August 29, 2007 1:02 PM:I'm sure there are more instances of conflict.
Here is an editorial promoting some good gov't legislation:
http://bangordailynews.com/news/t/viewpoints.aspx?articleid=153050&zoneid=34
"To combat these problems, the legislation, co-authored by Sen. Susan Collins, would require that the government hire and train more people to oversee and manage government contracts. A corps of experienced contract specialists would be ready and available to handle emergency situations."
Here is an editorial promoting do-nothing Iraq legislation favorable to WINOs like Sen. Collins:
http://bangordailynews.com/news/t/viewpoints.aspx?articleid=153380&zoneid=34
Greg wrote on August 29, 2007 1:12 PM:this is great stuff, ohio. thanks. we'll probably follow up...
ohiomeister wrote on August 29, 2007 1:13 PM:Wow, the Kos links are a gold mine!
Here are two huge pieces of info:
1. The Bangor Daily News apparently sunk Collins' Dem candidate in the closing days of the 1996 election by pushing a bogus story about a consultant working for her opponent who later sued her for libel (would be very interesting to talk to him and to find out what happened with the suit).
http://www.jeanhay.com/COLUMNS/FOURTH.HTM
2. Mark Woodward, Executive Editor of the Bangor Daily News, is COLLINS' FORMER PRESS SECRETARY!
Same source as above: "When I wrote that report in the summer of 1997, Woodward was Collins' press secretary in Washington. He left that position a few months later to take the top job at the BDN. Woodward's wife now works in Senator Collins' office."
Senate 2008 Guru wrote on August 29, 2007 1:18 PM:That's NOT the end of the story.
Not only is the executive editor of the Bangor Daily News, Mark Woodward, married to a current Susan Collins staffer, but executive editor Mark Woodward is himself a former Collins press secretary!
Collins' former press secretary is now the one making editorial decisions about news stories impacting Collins' re-election bid without so much as a mention in the newspaper!
ohiomeister wrote on August 29, 2007 1:25 PM:Also, Mark Woodward oversees News, not Editorials. (This could cut either way, but it might mean that you should review their news stories on Collins, not just their editorials.)
http://company.bangordailynews.com/newsroom/newsroom-staff-list
This article lists Woodward as her Communications director.
http://www.umfk.maine.edu/valleyvision/release/default.cfm?release=99063
You should check out all the posts from the Kos diarists from Maine and the local Maine blogs, as they are apparently also digging into these stories.
ohiomeister wrote on August 29, 2007 1:26 PM:Jean Hay Bright ran against Sen. Snowe (R-ME) in 2006, btw (and didn't do very well, IIRC).
Mr.Murder wrote on August 29, 2007 1:35 PM:Respectfully contact the Bangor paper advertisers. Let them know about the conflict and ask for their opinion on the matter.
You might actually get a reply...
Davis X. Machina wrote on August 29, 2007 1:58 PM:So long as Maine's other major daily, the Portland Press Herald, is captive to the Blethen family's fixation with the estate tax, don't expect the BDN's major in-state competitor to do much digging. Collins is a reliable vote against the estate tax.
Chrisrowe wrote on August 29, 2007 2:00 PM:Interesting... I go to college in Maine and I always thought that their political coverage was a bit off. No one really likes Susan Collins that much around me.
mkolb wrote on August 29, 2007 2:13 PM:Isn't Sen Collins targeted by the Republicans as being too moderate?
If that's the case, I'll not jump too fast on this bandwagon. I'd rather give the benefit of the doubt to the Woodwards for the time being and hope that they are both honorable professionals.
Who exactly pointed this tidbit out to the Daily News? The Rove-repubs have played this kind of game so often that I'd suspect them first.
rob wrote on August 29, 2007 2:41 PM:Amen. Collins is about the most moderate pol you can get elected in ME. Look at her voting record and compare it to most Republicans.
JIm wrote on August 29, 2007 2:48 PM:Collins is about the most moderate pol you can get elected in ME
Rob, are you high? Collins might be the most moderate Republican/i> you could elect, but not the most moderate politician. Michaud? Allen? Most of the state congress?
Calvin wrote on August 29, 2007 2:49 PM:Collins has no Republican primary challenger. She's not being "targeted" by the Republicans for anything except reelection.
Mikecan1978 wrote on August 29, 2007 2:55 PM:That same Newspaper Executive editor was Susan Collins Communication director until 1999.
Not only is the wife working for her but the husband use to work for her as well.
Artsy wrote on August 29, 2007 3:01 PM:Susan Collins hates our freedoms.
jri wrote on August 29, 2007 3:04 PM:bluenc.com is chasing a remarkably similar COI story in NC: http://bluenc.com/i-hate-secrets
David Houghton wrote on August 29, 2007 3:10 PM:It isn't just these two papers that have a rightward slant. I was up in Maine a couple of weeks ago and I noticed similar politics in the Down East Costal Press. As I recall, two issues caught my attention: the Collins tracker story and an uninformative and spun anti-universal health care article. I believe the latter was an editorial praising some pharmacy chain (Walmart?) for giving away free drugs. The claim was this was evidence that the free market would always beat the government as a provider of services. It gives a different meaning to "free market". I guess it's a Laffer Curve thing.
bob wrote on August 29, 2007 3:13 PM:mkolb and rob sound trolly.
Collins is with Mitch McConnell and the rest of the Senate GOP leadership on all the votes that matter, including on Iraq. She pretends to be moderate b/c she would NOT get re-elected as a conservative in Maine (a Northeast state that has voted Dem in recent Presidential elections).
Like former Sen. Lincoln Chafee in RI, the GOP is perfectly happy with Collins, as they know the alternative is a Dem Senator. Like Southern Dems, Northeastern Republican Senators are an endangered species.
The Dems could pick up 4 Senate seats if they take back Maine and New Hampshire.
lutton wrote on August 29, 2007 3:20 PM:not the first, won't be the last:
Alan Greenspan & Andrea Mitchel
US Rep (and former Philly mayorla candidate) Chacka Fattah and local Philly NBC10 news anchor Renee Chanault-Fattah are two examples.
b23 wrote on August 29, 2007 3:48 PM:Bangor Daily is hugely influential up here (I live 10 miles from Bangor). Their support of Kerry in 04 really tipped the scales in rural northern Maine counties, especially after they endorsed Bush in 00.
All the more reason to get some sunlight on this - the casual BDN reader will view them as "nonpartisan" after the Kerry endorsement, and they had the power to hand the rural counties to Collins. I think with enough pressure they will be fully discredited through 08, and they should be. I wrote my LTE - I hope the hundreds of active Democrats up this way do the same.
John Forbes wrote on August 29, 2007 4:12 PM:Two points.
First, this blog is doing what they do best, pointing out the inconsistencies of the business interests that own and operate the media channels in this country that pretend to be impartial.
Second, what good is a "moderate" Republican, other than to give cover to economic conservatives who claim to have a progressive social side. Rhode Island voters finally figured this out about Lincoln Chaffee. It is important that all Republicans be faced with the starkest possible choices. If you favor progressive social policies, you need to vote for the Democrat.
Patrick wrote on August 29, 2007 4:53 PM:Am I missing something, editorial pages are SUPPOSED to be biased. Newspapers are SUPPOSED to be biased. Why is this a shocker to anyone?!
Traditionally major cities have had two newspapers, one for the democractic slant and one for the republican slant. Granted in this day and age there's been a lot of consolidation but if you weren't aware that newspapers are SUPPOSED to be biased then shame on you, not on the editors.
Zippy in ME wrote on August 29, 2007 5:09 PM:This isn't the first time a BDN columnist has carried water for Collins.
During her first run for Senate against Democrat Joe Brennan in 1996, BDN columnist John Day emailed Collins campaign manager Bob Tyrer for oppo research points to use against Brennan in an upcoming column. If I remember correctly, Day told Tyrer that they had to find some way to keep Brennan out of the Senate, or words to that effect. Unfortunately, Day hit the wrong button and sent the note to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which forwarded it to Brennan, who accused Day of collusion. The BDN editor said no ethical breach had been committed.
During that same campaign, however, Day also accused Democratic campaign consultant Robert Norris of improperly investigating Collins and accused him of past improprieties. Norris sued the BDN and eventually forced a settlement in which the BDN took the unprecedented step of pulling some of Day's columns off the Lexis database, and paying Norris some cash.
So yeah, there's a history of this sort of thing at the BDN.
I'm certainly not a Collins supporter, but is this really a conflict? It's certainly not an ideal arrangement, and it does raise questions about fair coverage, but the editor's wife has every right to pursue whatever line of work she wants to -- political or otherwise -- apart from her husband.
mkolb wrote on August 29, 2007 5:31 PM:No troll here, just an independent thinker.
I particularly follow the women in Congress and I can say that she frequently votes the correct way (my way) on bills I think are important.
I disagree with John's saying that "if you favor progressive social policies, you need to vote for the Democrat". I think you need to carefully weigh the positions of each candidate. As a quick example, if a race were between Sen Collins and Sen Bob Casey, I would vote for Collins because of her generaly pro-choice votes.
I believe it's important to have more than one voice in order to hear different viewpoints. I do not think one-party government is a good idea. I've lived through ten presidents now and have seen that every time one party has control, the whole system suffers - not as badly as with this group, but badly nonetheless.
It's important to look at what candidates actually believe in and not to just vote party labels. The latter is part of how we got into our current mess.
narrow gauge wrote on August 29, 2007 5:31 PM:stephanopoulos
tom wrote on August 29, 2007 6:16 PM:I think the real point is that the bigwig at BDN has some portion of his family income derived from Collins.That point should be disclosed so readers can make a better decision as to the weight they give to the paper's coverage of the Senator.Is it a direct conflict of interest?Seemingly.At any rates consumers of this paper should be informed of the facts at the very least.
SocraticGadfly wrote on August 29, 2007 6:18 PM:Ohiomeister, et al:
As a newspaper editor, I know that Mark Woodward, in conjunction with the paper's managing editor, could have plenty of influence on news coverage.
1. Reporting assignments
2. What wire news about Collins gets in or stays out of the paper
3. What press releases from Collins' staff, i.e., his wife, get printed.
4. What placement those press releases get.
5. Where on paper local bylined or AP stories about Collins get run.
6. Headlines for stories about Collins (you can subtly do a hell of a lot of editorializing in a headline).
7. Placement and size of Collins photos.
And, of course, all this applies in reverse to stories about Allen.
libra wrote on August 29, 2007 7:07 PM:If having a tracker is such a nasty idea -- the only reason, according to the article, being to trip up the candidate -- does that mean that Collins does not have one? I find it hard to believe. Certainly, Macaca Allen had a team of trackers, same as Webb did -- I saw them myself, when Webb showed up for a wee rally here in town. The difference was that Webb behaved himself and wasn't offensive to them.
Drama Queen wrote on August 29, 2007 9:52 PM:Same sitch in North Carolina with a small online local rag that touts Patrick McHenry. No mention of their business partnerships.
And the rhetoric is nauseating.
McHenry’s answer was swift, decisive and garnered a thunderous round of applause from the audience.mainefem wrote on August 29, 2007 10:26 PM:
I posted the aforementioned info on Mark Woodward & Jean Hay Bright's inside scoop @ Big Orange; as well as @TMB, folks.
The netroots treated Jean's like shit, BTW--shoulda been payin' attention, as we're stuck w/Snowe until 2012 (no, she's hardly "moderate", either).
However, she has time to coast along; and shrub & Co. will be long gone by then.
Ironically, dontcha think it's odd that no _BDN_ reporter attended the U/Maine Iraq forum last night in Orono (5 mi. away)???
Collins was AWOL, too--and @least WABI sent a TV reporter, who stayed for a little over an hour & filmed a bit.
mainefem wrote on August 29, 2007 10:27 PM:I posted the aforementioned info on Mark Woodward & Jean Hay Bright's inside scoop @ Big Orange; as well as @TMB, folks.
The netroots treated Jean's like shit, BTW--shoulda been payin' attention, as we're stuck w/Snowe until 2012 (no, she's hardly "moderate", either).
However, she has time to coast along; and shrub & Co. will be long gone by then.
Ironically, dontcha think it's odd that no _BDN_ reporter attended the U/Maine Iraq forum last night in Orono (5 mi. away)???
Collins was AWOL, too--and @least WABI sent a TV reporter, who stayed for a little over an hour & filmed a bit.
Jeremy wrote on August 29, 2007 11:10 PM:Patrick wrote on August 29, 2007 4:53 PM:
Am I missing something, editorial pages are SUPPOSED to be biased. Newspapers are SUPPOSED to be biased. Why is this a shocker to anyone?!
------
Yes, you are missing something.
Of course editorials are opinion, but when there's reason to believe that opinion is compromised by a personal conflict of interest, that must be disclosed to readers. (You might even call that the distinction between "opinion" and "bias".)
Otherwise, it's called a Press Release.
Or bribery.
For example: When I attended Bates College in Lewiston, Maine ('93-'97) I worked on Tom Allen's campaign.
See how easy that was? Now you're paying more attention to whether my reasoning makes sense, and not taking any of my claims for granted since my "opinion" could have a potential for "bias".
Although I must say, in reaction to what others have written, Mainers always struck me as very independent-minded politically. I have plenty of faith they'll chose the right leadership, regardless of party.
Jonathan wrote on August 30, 2007 11:52 AM:Wow. I suspected that Collins was a typical Republican corrupt sleazebag, but I guess there's corroborrating evidence...
Too bad this probably won't get much play in Maine.
J
ohiomeister wrote on August 30, 2007 1:15 PM:mkolb, you are either not that well informed or else you are not helping my assessment of you as a troll.
The votes that mattered the most on choice (presumably why you compared Bob Casey with Susan Collins) were the votes to confirm Roberts and Alito.
Guess what? Both Snowe and Collins voted to confirm them, and now the Supreme Court can chip away at the Roe and Casey decisions.
http://www.senatemajority.com/a_failure_of_imagination
JNagarya wrote on August 30, 2007 4:31 PM:"Patrick wrote on August 29, 2007 4:53 PM:
"Am I missing something, editorial pages are SUPPOSED to be biased. Newspapers are SUPPOSED to be biased. Why is this a shocker to anyone?!
"Traditionally major cities have had two newspapers, one for the democractic slant and one for the republican slant. Granted in this day and age there's been a lot of consolidation but if you weren't aware that newspapers are SUPPOSED to be biased then shame on you, not on the editors."
Editorials are a given as to bias. But not the news. There was a time when there was a bright red line between the editorial section, and the news, for that very reason. Both were to be kept separate. That's the concern with the sale of the Wall Street Journal to Murdoch: though its editorial page has long been an outlet for the extreme right wing loony bin, the news section was always one of the best in the country because unbiased.
It is the erasure of that line which allows FOX to claim to be news, when in fact it is all editorial, and only extreme right wing political propaganda.
The thing I really like about this piece is the variation on "up or down, it's good news for the Republicans."
Here's the sentence:
Tracking is the campaign practice of filming an opponent to the greatest extent possible, making amply certain the opponent is aware of the filming.
You see, because, when you let them know you are there, you put additional pressure on them to say something out of character (huh?!?). If the person being filmed was unaware of the action, of course "the dirty Democratic operatives would be skulking around in the shadows waiting for a mistake," because, you know, it really doesn't matter what you do or how you do it: "GOP good...Democrats bad," is the only point they ever care to make.
mainefem wrote on September 1, 2007 12:30 PM:Latest drivel from _BDN's_ Todd
Benoit.
Pass the Pepto, pls.
Latest drivel from _BDN's_ Todd
Benoit.
Pass the Pepto, pls.
. In other words, if Collins were to lose the election, the wife of the executive editor of a major newspaper in Collins' home state would be out of a job — which would cause some serious inconvenience for that household.
Considering she is scheduled to retire in the coming months, that is an assnine statement.
The conflict-of-interest accusations came to light after the Daily News published an editorial backing up Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), who has denounced Democratic Congressman Tom Allen's campaign....
Would that be Tim Allen's cousin? You know Tim, he's the editor in charge of political coverage at the paper.
Nice research, guys.
