I got wet to
bring you this issue, several times in fact. I'm not
complaining. I really like the rainy season, which for one thing
softens up the ground so that I can plant my garden. It's one
way that I survive Panama's economic crisis. The saril, okra
and tomatoes are in. The green beans, guandu, cucumbers and
seeds yet to be selected are coming soon. I also dried mangoes
and bottled ginger beer.
Might you guess that I spent a fair part of
the past two weeks in the Interior? That is the case. I got a
glimpse of Cocle province and its public transportation system, got wet and still
appreciated the scenery in El Valle --- though I didn't see any golden frogs --- and in general took a little time out
to appreciate the flowers.
But what kind of a journalist does that
make me, when the rest of the press corps was out covering the
Miss Universe pageant? I caught some of the preliminaries
on TV while in the Interior, my favorite boxing show having
been pre-empted. I watched the finals on the TV in the office
back in the city, having earlier caught the protest march and
afterwards I observed some of the celebrations on the streets
of the capital. I commented on it for an Irish radio network. I
didn't go down to Amador to take pictures of the lovely young
Dominican dancer who won, but if you want to see her you can
always visit the Trump Organization's official Miss Universe website.
But still,
I can't say that the pageant deserved all of the hooplah,
whether from the local press, the protesters bidding for a few
seconds on international TV (which I don't think they got) or a
government desperate for something successful to claim. I do
hope that a lot of the people who saw a bit of Panama during
the pageant will decide to come here for a visit, and if enough
do so, the Moscoso administration will be able to say that its
investment in the pageant was wise.
The problem
with the press feeding frenzy was that important stories were
ignored, and I spent my time covering some of these. For
example, I was the only reporter present when the Venezuelan government presented its side of the ongoing
controversy, and I think that readers of this newspaper will be
better informed than those who rely exclusively on media that
get all of their information from the opposition as the
struggle between Hugo Chávez and his detractors unfolds.
(And are you going to accuse me of being one-sided? Check out
our archives and you may notice that Chávez's critics
have also made their case herein.)
For another
example, I was the only journalist on hand for a serious
scientific discussion about the disappearance of our mountain
frogs, the golden variety of which is a tourist attraction that
brings money to the Panamanian economy.
In the last
issue I covered presidential candidate Guillermo Endara, and
over the past several days I did my best to do the same with
his opponent Martín Torrijos. At about the time that the next
issue appears the Arnulfista Party will have its candidate, and
with almost a year to go before the voting you can look forward
to a lot more stories about the candidates.
We have a bunch
of interesting stuff from the contributors this time. It could
have been in the Travel section, but an awful tale that our frequent contributor Willy Carrera
reports is found in the News pages. In addition to my
coverage of one perspective on Venezuela's crisis, we take a
look at the growing turmoil that another neighbor, Ecuador, is experiencing. Roxanna Cain is back in the
Travel pages with another sympathetic look at Colon.
In our Opinion
pages the discussion ranges from Coiba to leftist street protests and criticism thereof to international trade to Bruce Harris's remembrance of a fallen Marine to
different takes on the Middle East roadmap by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and
Rabbi Michael Lerner.
Our Letters section touches many subjects, and includes
things by people who like and dislike my work. And meanwhile,
journalism in general is facing some crises, one of which is
getting a lot of attention in the international media. Let me
weigh in, briefly. Over the years I have often been annoyed by
the way that the major players in the corporate media treat
freedom of the press as exclusive company property, and by the
disdain that they show for the little independents. But I also
read the New York Times and watch CNN, and I find nothing to
celebrate in the Gray Lady's recent embarassment. Some big egos
may have come crashing down, but with them fell some great
talents. If the actions of one particular unethical creep are
used to argue that black journalists shouldn't be given a
chance I think that would be tragic.
I'm also
offended by the way that Rupert Murdoch's Fox network has
gloated over the story, and by all the editors who played up
our fraudulent ex-colleague's boast that he fooled some of the
best minds in journalism. Yes, we all get hoodwinked from time
to time, and we all make mistakes, even if on a certain level
nobody can admit it without losing his or her job. (This kind
of business culture, in my opinion, promotes dishonesty rather
than excellence.) When it is found that half of a reporter's
stories are made up, then that person is, like someone in a high
position who habitually lies, an unreliable source. I really do
believe that such persons ought to be ignored.
I have also been
watching a political drama unfold on the BBC as the British
argue over whether their country went to war for a lie, and
noticing that Americans who have even more reason for concern
mostly do not seem to consider this issue important. But that's
another story for another edition.
One final note.
Our crisis here at The Panama News continues, but so does the
newspaper. I thank those of you who have lent a hand, and those
of you who will.
