The New York Times Did Hit Pieces on Sheldon Adelson, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, et al.

Always remember the New York Times motto: “All the News That’s Fit to Print.” The New York Times did a hit piece on Sheldon Adelson last Monday, “Adelson’s Era: Do Billions Erode Press Freedom?” The allegation is that Sheldon Adelson, who purchased the Las Vegas Review-Journal six months ago for $140 million, was interfering with the journalistic integrity of the newspaper. Mr. Adelson made his fortune by tearing down the old Sands Hotel and replacing it with The Venetian and Palazzo in Las Vegas and building a new Sands in Macao. Reporters had been investigating his Macao financial dealings when Mr. Adelson acquired the hometown Press-Journal. Mr. Adelson replaced top editors when he assumed ownership. There has also been the resignations or firings of about 12 reporters and editors, with others looking to leave. New owners usually engage in a degree of housecleaning. Mark Sullivan once said: "A newspaper,as reflects its fundamental character, is one of the least permanent institutions ... It can change ownership overnight." The New York Times problem with Sheldon Adelson is not because he is exercising directly, or indirectly, control over his investment. The underlying reason for the hit piece is because Adelson is a large multi-million dollar backer of Republican candidates and will back Donald Trump. It’s political. The Times has not said anything about the hundreds laid off, fired, or bought out since 2008 by the Times. The Times is silent about the November 2015 firing of two assistant editors with 16 and 20 years of experience. It has not discussed the surprise firing of Jill Abramson, the Times Executive Editor, on May 14, 2014. The New York Times is in no position to argue for journalist integrity after its two hit pieces on Senator Marco Rubio, and its hit piece on Donald Trump a week earlier. The June 5 front page article attacked the Rubios for acquiring 17 speeding tickets over 18 years. Only 4 were by the Senator – 4 tickets in 18 years. The other 13 were by his wife. That is front page news on the New York Times during the Presidential Election? Of course, Secretary Clinton had no speeding tickets during this period because she hasn’t driven a car in 20 years. The chauffeur-driven Hillary professes to represent the people. The paper followed up on June 9 with another front page expose on Senator Rubio. This one stated the Senator was ‘bedeviled by financial problems” with student loans and a mortgage. The New York Times in 2008 failed to report on the student loans of the Obamas and Michele Obama’s 2005 $316,962 salary from the University of Chicago Hospital, the Obamas sweetheart housing deal or Hillary Clinton’s $10,000+ cattle futures profits. “All the News That’s Fit to Print” “All the News the New York Times decides is Fit to Print” The article also claimed that the Senator took out a home equity loan and then purchased a $80,000 on a 24’ luxury speedboat. The Senator had actually purchased an offshore fishing boat after receiving a $800,000 book advance. The New York Times quoted a financial expert who turned out to be an Obama donor. Yesterday’s Sunday New York Times approached the tabloids in its front page article positing that the rise of Donald trump and the conservative movement in Europe signals a return to Fascism. The paper did another hit job on Donald Trump on Sunday, May 15 when it attacked his behavior to women. He allegedly crossed the line in his private conversations with women. The women quoted immediately claimed the paper took their remarks out of context and misquoted them. They had praise for Donald Trump. Be that as it may, the younger trump may have hustled women, but unlike President Clinton, he was never accused of rape, an accusation currently ignored by the Times. This Trump article, the June 9 Rubio financial article, and a 2012 Governor Mitt Romney hit piece were written by the same New York Times reporter, Michael Barbaro. The New York Times should go back to real journalism rather than Tabloid Journalism or Yellow Journalism. The Times said not a word about the student debts of the Obamas, or the sweetheart deal they got on their Chicago house, or Michelle’s $316,962 position at the University of Chicago Hospital in 2005. The Times has not said a word about Hillary Clinton’s lack of speeding tickets because the self-proclaimed candidate of the people hasn’t driven a car in over 20 years. Some of the Times' coverage is sloppy. For example, columnist Gail Collinsin a February 13, 2015 column criticized Governor Scott walker of Wisconsin for teacher layoffs in 2010. Governor Walker did not take office until 2011. The publisher and CEO of the New York Times is Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr., commonly referred to as “Pinch” in contrast to his dad known as “Punch.” Pinch is not the smartest publisher in the history of the New York Times. He graduated from Tufts, a good school, after being denied admissions to both Harvard and Columbia, a legacy. The rumors are that his SAT scores were poor. He is presiding over a financially declining newspaper in a declining industry, a difficult challenge. He has to transform the paper in the digital age as traditional circulation and advertising plummets. Google is the future; print is passé. The Wall Street Journal under Rupert Murdock ownership is successfully navigating through the change. Business Week under Bloomberg has been resuscitated. It can be done. But not by Pinch! Instead of broadening the paper’s base, he is shrinking it to the progressive left. It’s no longer “All the News That’s Fit to Print” The New York Times is also no longer “The Newspaper of record.”