Dupont vs DuPont

As the Maven loves to say "but if you were from around here, you'd know that". 

Once again, the Maven must assume the writers of this 21Alive news article, all three of them, must not be from Fort Wayne, as they would know that the East/West road in northern Allen County is Dupont Road, not to be confused with DuPont, a large chemical company based in Dover Delaware. 

A rookie mistake, but, if you were from around here, you'd know that. 

Savannah? Savana? Don't Ask WOWO

This won't take long. The kids in the WOWO Newsroom seem to be more worried about their hair and makeup (for the never, ever been done before simulcast on NBC33 in the morning) than they are concerned about a few slight details in one little-bitty news story. Little details like misspelling the name of the complex and not mentioning where in the hell the place is.....
The Fort Wayne Apartment guide lists Savannah Springs as being located on Goeglein Road. Why WOWO News leaves this out of their story can only be attributed to an untimely dumbass attack.  

One has to remember that this really isn't news....it's merely chewing gum for the mind. 

It's Not Just A Spelling Error....

As plain as the nose on the Maven's face. "Filedhouse", should be "Fieldhouse". While this appears to be a simple spelling error, it's actually a symptom of a greater evil. 

That evil the Maven speaks of is 21Alive, and their colleagues in other media, really just don't care about how they, or their product, are perceived. Further, these "journalists" demonstrate a total disregard for the intelligence of their readers/viewers. It's the journalistic equivalent of walking around with one's fly open, and not giving a damn. 

With the pending sale of the 21Alive signals in the market to Quincy Newspapers, one has to wonder just how much more readers/viewers will suffer when all operations move to the Quincy hub/headquarters in Illinois. 

Warped News at Warp Speed

The Maven abhors laziness. A spelling error happens. Choosing the incorrect word, happens. But when those errors are allowed to stand and not corrected, well, that's a sign of laziness. 

How does this happen? Usually job performance issues like this are allowed to continue because either management does not care or management does, indeed, care and is protecting the individual. The Maven will not delve into further speculation, other than thinking it has something to do with lip gloss. 

Oh, and another thing. The word "police" has two syllables, and should not be confused with the single syllable word "fleece". 

You are welcome. 

Who Else Uses The Media?

In our last installment, the Maven illustrated how Fort Wayne Community Schools used a simple media announcement to spin their message of needing millions more taxpayer dollars. In typical Fort Wayne media fashion, media did not challenge the spin. FWCS is never challenged by the local media. It's just not done. 

Now, another example of how Fort Wayne's lapdog media is further used and abused. 

A WANE TV news story carries a threat from the City of Fort Wayne to the owners of cars trapped on city streets and covered with giant mounds of snow. Basically the City is threatening fines and towing charges if the delinquent cars are not moved. 

If the media was doing their jobs, they might ask how many cars had been towed, how many tickets had been written and how many streets had been cleared. But, no, our media does not ask questions for fear of angering those powerful people who run this town. 

In a way, using the media to convey an empty threat to citizens in hopes they will move their snow-covered cars, is a stroke of genius. And our media, watchdogs for the common man, just grab their ankles, bend over and do their duty. 

Not Letting A Good Crisis Go To Waste

Studying the Media also includes examining how others use the Media to their advantage. 
Something as simple as a power failure that causes the early dismissal of school kids can be exploited to further one's public relations goals. 
Fort Wayne Community Schools spokesperson Krista Stockman deserves credit for spinning an early dismissal announcement into another cry for more capital improvement money for Fort Wayne's ailing school infrastructure. 

The highlighted line is a stroke of PR genius, constantly reminding the voters of FWCS's need for more money. And, of course, the media simply repeats what they are told, and never questions FWCS. It's a cozy relationship to say the least. 

A Conversation About Conservation?

An interesting story about Canada geese. An easy read until the the News Sentinel writer calls Ducks Unlimited a "conversation" group as opposed to it's real mission of being a "conservation" group. 

OK, an easy mistake to make if one does not know about Ducks Unlimited's purpose and history.
But then, the writer confuses "than" with "then" and all credibility of the article is lost. From this point forward, the reader is left with the impression that the News Sentinel is just going through the motions.....waiting for the day when print journalism will die a quiet death. Some say that day has already come and gone. 

WOWO: Police Are Using Purses As Weapons

If WOWO News said it, it must be true. No gun, no taser, police "pursed" a suspect. Honest. 

21Alive, That's Not The Bad Guy

Michael David Elliot is back behind bars. That's the good news. The bad news is how local media botched the breaking news story. 

A local blogger was actually the first to break to the story, citing a release from the Noble County Sheriff's office that Elliot, a convicted murderer who escaped a Michigan penitentiary late Sunday, was in custody after being captured in the LaPorte area. It would be another 10 minutes before any local established media broke the story, and that was the kids at WOWO Radio. After the news hit Twitter and Facebook, local TV stations were prodded into action.

Most established media got it right, others, like WPTA 21Alive dropped the ball, by running a picture of a man (not Elliot) with the tag "Escaped Inmate Captured". Minor detail, eh?  The guy on the left might have a differing opinion.