Dylan Ferrandis Wreck

Monday, September 07, 2012

The Seattle City Council is attempting to pass a motion calling for the closing of the Seattle Times "chicken" on the condition that they are not to print the following headline: "The Seattle Times and the State AG's Report on Chickens" because according to the editorial board of The Times, they are so gross, they should be buried as a reminder of the publication's ties to the chicken industry. The Seattle Times released an editorial which argues, almost completely accurately, that any reporting on the industry needs to keep that hidden.

Pulitzer Prize award winning journalist Robert Fife, who penned the stunning article and the accompanying editorial at the Seattle Times, didn't write this article, it was edited by Ben Templesmith, author of a more recent cover story ("Seattle Times Charges With Ties to One of Largest Chicken Pits in America") which concludes that like most poultry producers the relationship between The Times and the industry is "strained".

The report conducted by the State Attorney General concludes that The Seattle Times and the National Poultry Association created a fake chicken industry when they chose to publish a story about problems at a Chick-fil-A restaurant in the Seattle area. The reporting concluded that The Times had misled the public about the extent of the problem.

The Seattle Times and the State Attorney General concluded that the
media coverage was misleading. The Times had presented a false portrayal of Chick-fil-A and the industry. The Times had represented Chick-fil-A as helping to develop business and
as creating job opportunities without providing the opportunities to attract consumers.

The State Attorney General concluded it was Chick-Fil-A's failure to incorporate properly into its food operation that caused the problem at its restaurant near Lake Washington. Chick-fil-A fails to consider the company's mission in providing wholesome and well-priced food, whether its serves the needs of its customers or not.

The last paragraph of the report explains this point.
The coverage also concluded that The Times lied to the public about the nature of The Chick-fil-A's ownership
through its political sources and
through its executive vice president of corporate
affiliations.
This year, over the objections of the Washington Ethics
Commission, three newspapers in the state will continue operating unless the legislature puts an end to the practice.