Dear Editor:
This morning I accepted our regular delivery of 10 Putnam County News and Recorder issues to sell in our shop. It is the fourth week in a row that I opened this “newspaper” and found not news, not factual reporting about events in our town, but articles designed to demean, deride and destroy the character of people in our community whose company I enjoy and views I respect. Gordon Stewart, publisher of The Paper, our other local news source, appears to be the primary subject of these attacks, though certainly not the only one.
Elizabeth Ailes, the PCNR’s publisher, has set about to smear Gordon Stewart’s character for what she vaguely claims as attacks on her and her family, though what those alleged attacks are remain a mystery. Mrs. Ailes appears to be fond of calling people liars and any assertion, no matter how small, seems to set off her “mendacity radar” to such an extent that it necessitates public declamation. She has published articles for the past four weeks that claim in great detail that Mr. Stewart had no involvement in writing former President Carter’s “Crisis of Confidence” speech given over 30 years ago. It’s hard for an ordinary person like me to imagine why the authorship of this speech is such an issue for her when any educated person knows that presidential speeches are collaborative efforts by numerous writers and strategists.
How does the authorship of a 34-year-old speech have any current relevance to those of us in Philipstown? What objective is Mrs. Ailes aiming to achieve by continuously calling Mr. Stewart a liar when any superficial research reveals her claims to be spurious at best? One can imagine that she is desperate to undermine her local competitor at any cost. Alternatively, she may have taken petty offense at being given a shared honor with Mr. Stewart by the Chamber of Commerce, thus explaining the false report on last week’s front page about Mr. Tamagna, the Chamber President.
The type of journalism practiced by the PCNR has a poisonous effect on our community. This publication confuses facts with opinion and fosters discord among citizens with differing viewpoints. It sensationalizes every disagreement regarding law and public policy when civil conflict and debate is the method by which effective governance is managed. It casts our public servants in an overly negative light when they struggle with the devilish details on issues that affect our lives now and in the future. In the name of free speech it threatens the free speech of our local population by instilling fear of retribution if one opposes the perspective it represents.
For these reasons, and others too many to list here, we have returned all current PCNR issues and the Area Guide to the publisher. We will no longer sell the PCNR in Go-Go Pops. Greg and I work hard to make our business a happy environment that offers only wholesome and sustainable products. In good conscience we can no longer sell a product we deem to be poisonous to our customers.
Yours sincerely,
Lynn Miller
Proprietor, Go-Go Pops
Lynn, thank you so much for setting the record straight. I admire your courage.
Lynn and Greg, I applaud you standing up for what you believe to be right. You have chosen not to be complicit in supporting a business you do not believe in. I admire the stand you have taken and hope others will follow suit.
Yeah, Lynn. If PCNR cannot report the truth, it’s unwelcome. You have our business.
I tried as long as I could to support anything good I could find in the PCN&R, but they’ve built such a long enemies’ list that we have ended our subscription and are done with the peevish and inaccurate attacks of this paper.
There were many last straws: their over-the-top defamation of Gordon, of course, but also of Betsy Pugh, and I finally couldn’t stomach the ongoing vitriol against the diplomatic, knowledgeable and dedicated Matt Francisco, Kathleen Foley, and Stephanie Hawkins. The PCN&R have been especially critical of public servants whose hard work I appreciate the most.
Thank you for writing this, Lynn. Your bravery is an example to all of us, and we are standing with you. We’ll be bringing our son to Go-Gos for an after school Tuesday cocoa and coffee toast to Lynn and Greg. We invite like-minded supporters to join us.
Go-Go Pops has just created a special new coffee blend called “Oasis of Civility” to reflect what Greg and Lynn aspire to provide. It’s described as “robust and strong, with a sweet finish,” which is just what we need in our community. It’s priced similarly to other coffees, but anyone who chooses to do so is welcome to add a little extra to help support Go-Go Pops. Please stop by to greet Greg and Lynn, try a pound of Oasis of Civility coffee and help spread the word.
Amen, I cancelled that subscription a couple years ago.
Go Go Pops is truly a happy environment. I am always greeted there with smiles and warmth, and will visit even more frequently to show my support.
Lynn, please send a copy of your letter to the PCNR.
The poisonous bile unleashed from week to week by the editor and staff of the PCN&R will not be stopped until all advertising on its pages ceases. That will happen when a large number of citizens of Philipstown commit to boycott any business choosing to advertise with PCN&R. As its readership shrinks, of course, there will be less reason to present. It shouldn’t take much effort, given the growing ranks of those who despise this operation, to dissuade our community businesses from paying for space in this paper. Let the boycott begin!
I stand for free speech in our community and everywhere. However, it is not only freedom to communicate your ideas; it also implies the freedom of others to listen to and read all of those ideas; whether or not they agree is a moot point. I come from a part of the world when at one time not having it (free speech), made me appreciate and recognize its intrinsic value while tasting it freely flowing here in the USA. I say, initiatives to limit or silence dissimilar views and opinions are inexcusable and not part of the DNA of a genuine democratic process, here in Philipstown or anyplace
If, as Ms. Anderson claims, “The PCNR doesn’t print those [letters] that are at odds with its editorial stance,” then that publication is not serving the ideals of Freedom of Speech in our community, and it should not benefit from the privileges this society affords journalists. I too came from a Banana Republic where those owning the media decided whose opinion is worth printing and whose is not. I find that to be a fundamental obstacle to free discourse. If PCNR has indeed omitted printing opposing opinions- even a one, then that is good enough grounds to question them like Lynn is doing.
I just read a very good letter in the PCNR, but I guess you will not be reading the letter because you all canceled your subscriptions.
I have one question to ask: why can’t we all just get along? Life is short and why have all this aggravation. The world just sucks and it trickles down to our local level. I just guess that the meteor is the next best thing for our planet, but that will be here in a very long time. So, let’s just get along. The press should be reporting on the facts and not instigating problems and making people crazy. Just my view on all this chaos in our local hub of the universe.