By Matt Volz
Associated Press
Published: 3/24/06
Excerpt:
Gov. Frank Murkowski wants to enlist the help
of large newspaper chains with state ties to spread the word that the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge can be safely opened to oil and gas
drilling.
Newspapers and broadcasters have a role "to
be advocates for what's good for the communities they represent and the
communities that support them," Murkowski said Thursday. "Just because
they are part of a chain I don't think relieves them of the local
responsibilities they have to represent the local communities in the
state."
The Republican governor is not asking the
chains to slant the news, he said, but to help tell Alaska's story
throughout the country. ...
Bob Steele, senior ethics professor at the
Poynter Institute, a think tank for journalism in St. Petersburg, Fla.,
said Murkowski is not the first politician to try to influence
newspaper owners to buy into his arguments, although others are usually
less overt.
"What's unclear to me is whether he's calling
on the newspapers to take an advocacy role in their editorial positions
or whether he's calling on them to change their news coverage on this
issue," Steele said. "I certainly hope that he's not arguing the news
coverage move into the advocacy of a particular position rather than
independent, fair and accurate coverage on this important public policy
matter."
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