What The Register-Guard Didn’t Tell Oregonians

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Here is a cautionary tale about small-town newspapers, journalistic ethics, ethics and how the press regulates itself, since courts, police and politicians are — wisely — barred from doing so in about 99% of all cases.

Once upon a time …

There was a politician from Eugene named Vicki Walker.

Now, I’ve chronicled her sleazy backdoor tactics in L’Affaire Goldschmidt, her attempt to commit suicide by taking an “overdose” of LSD, her continual bragging about having had sex with her relatives (as ‘victim’ of course, but bragging nonetheless), her personal vendettas against FRIENDS of Goldschmidt, like former Oregon congressman Les AuCoin, etc. etc. in a two-part series in AVA Oregon, and at this point in the election, it’s well worth a read: Do you REALLY want this woman as Oregon’s Secretary of State? (Oh, and HERE, too.)

But that’s NOT the issue here, and I want to clearly divorce this column from that load of dirty laundry. The question here is: WHY is the Eugene Register-Guard’s editorial page director, and, yes, the R-G staff hiding Vicki Walker’s connection to the R-G?

You think I jest?

Let this be admitted in evidence as “Exhibit A”:

Vicki Walker has always been up front about her husband’s employment at the Eugene Register-Guard. From her current campaign webpage:

Your Friend and Neighbor
Vicki is married to Steven Walker who works at The Register-Guard as a computer programmer.

And, other newspapers around the state mention it. When the Portland Tribune was calling her Erin Brockovich (and secretly collaborating in her destruction of former Oregon Governor and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Neil Goldschmidt’s public life with Portland Trib reporters, feeding Willamette Week their Pulitzer Prize-winning peeping-tom story), THEY noted the connection (Note the date):

Senator turns up heat on ex-guv
Observers see ‘Erin Brockovich’ in fight against Goldschmidt
By Jim Redden
The Portland Tribune, Jan 20, 2004

The first time state Sen. Vicki Walker met Neil Goldschmidt, the encounter did not go well.

“I told him to go to hell,” Walker says about the Jan. 9 meeting arranged by Senate President Peter Courtney in his state Capitol office.*

… Walker is a classic citizen legislator. She is married to Steven Walker, a production worker at the Eugene Register-Guard newspaper. (Emphasis added)

[* She explains the whole reporter interconnection and enmity HERE... And I said “Not when I’ve been pissed on.”]

OK. It isn’t a secret.

But when I mentioned the ethical lapse in the R-G not mentioning it in the inaugural issue of AVA Oregon! I received the following email from the editorial director of the Eugene Register-Guard, Jackman Wilson. I quoted the letter in toto in issue number 3:

AVA OREGON!
Vol 1 No. 3
November 18, 2004

A Correction
by Hart Williams

Jackman Wilson is an acquaintance, and seems a decent and honorable man, in his capacity as director of the REGISTER-GUARD’s editorial page. So, when he emailed me regarding an error in my “Democrats” article, I felt obligated to correct my mistake.

Wilson wrote:

To: Hart Williams
Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 2004 8:46 AM
Subject: Re: Vicki Walker and the R-G

Dear Mr. Williams,

I was glad to see your byline in the inaugural issue of the Oregon AVA. I noted your reference to a state senator who the R-G has supported editorially, and whose spouse works at the R-G.

You’re probably referring to Vicki Walker, whose husband, Steve, works here. We’ve noted this fact in endorsement editorials. What’s more, the last time she faced a real opponent — Jeff Miller — we urged voters to toss Walker out and “trade up.” She’s still mad at us about that.

None of this is worth worrying about, but I thought you’d want to have the facts for future reference.

Best regards,
Jackman Wilson
Editorial page editor
The Register-Guard [more]

Now, I had checked the Eugene Library microfilm of every issue of the Eugene Register-Guard with any endorsement of Vicki Walker, and never found any mention of the so-called mention. Still, I gave Wilson the benefit of the doubt in the article:

One might, at first blush, consider this a mere oversight, but the fact that her husband is named at least twice, by name, without adding his R-G connection in articles relating to the various races cannot reasonably be construed as anything better than slovenly journalism, and at worst, a conscious oversight. I did not make either charge in my statement. But, as a matter of fact, and a matter of record, I am afraid that I have to stand by my original story.

I will gladly make the enhancement (NOT correction, please note) that Walker was not ALWAYS endorsed by the R-G, but two out of three (she never faced a primary opponent, so no endorsements were made) could safely be construed as “time and time again,” so I was entirely accurate, if not perfectly clear. Still, the focus of my article was not on the reprehensible state of local political coverage — that is a subject for another day.

If Mr. Wilson would like to correct me, or point out WHERE the R-G made the disclaimer he states it did, I will, again, be perfectly happy to correct my error. I hope that the R-G will do the same.

No correction was forthcoming.

And note: I do not accept any condemnation for publishing the official communications from an official editor at the Register-Guard, correcting me iN HIS OFFICIAL capacity, on an article written for general circulation, and containing no request for privacy.

I try to be scrupulous in the extreme between public and private communications. But, when in doubt, I weight the scales in the direction of the public’s right to know, which is the BEDROCK of journalism. And of journalistic ethics, note.

AVA OREGON! went off to Speedy Alkaseltzerland to commune with Mr. Zip and Reddy Kilowatt, and another election cycle came around in 2006. I noted the omission yet again:

On Oct 17, 2006, at 6:40 AM, Hart Williams wrote:

Dear Jack:

You might recall this article from AVA Oregon! last election year. I will
note that the Sunday endorsement in the Walker/Torrey race kept the
non-disclosure “streak” alive. But … the issue was dropped again. Why?

Bests,

Hart Williams

And I included the AVA Oregon! article with his letter, as a reminder. This was his reply:

From: Jack Wilson “jwilson@guardnet.com”
Subject: Re: Full Disclosure
Date: Tue, 17 Oct 2006 08:45:35 -0700
To: “Hart Williams” “webmaster@hartwilliams.com”

Dear Mr. Williams,

Thanks for you note about Vicki Walker, and for the work you’ve been doing on the role of Howard Rich in this year’s elections.

I guess I have a hard time persuading myself that Walker’s husband’s employment is relevant. He has no role in making editorial or news decisions. She doesn’t talk about him or his work in interviews or in campaign materials, nor does his employment have any apparent connection to the causes she champions in the Legislature. Maybe it would be different if we were supporting her, but for the past two cycles we have not. Even then, the relevance would be questionable. So if in an endorsement editorial I have space for a paragraph or a sentence that can be used to discuss Walker or her husband, I’ve tended to favor the former.

Best regards, Jack W.

Jackman Wilson
Editorial page editor
The Register-Guard
P.O. Box 10188
Eugene, Or. 97440
(541) 338-2316
jwilson@guardnet.com

I let it go. But I remained unconvinced. Except, come election time 2006, HERE is the photo that they ran with the MAIN election story that night:

Click for R-G original page

And here is the CAPTION:

Democratic Sen. Vicki Walker and her husband, Steven Walker, celebrate returns on Tuesday showing her in the lead over Republican challenger Jim Torrey.

Are you KIDDING me? Nobody knows that “Steven” works at the R-G? Not the photog? Not the art director? Not the editor who picked it for the front page? Bullshit.

Pshaw and bullshit brethren and sistern. Follywooble and gabbledydance. Horse feathers and air biscuits, chilluns, we all been HAD.

The argument that it doesn’t matter because the R-G didn’t endorse her doesn’t hold water nowadays. From April 27:

Secretary of state: Walker
She’s fearless, and independent by nature

Published: April 27, 2008 12:00AM

For a time, 22 percent of the Democrats in the Oregon Senate were running for secretary of state. One senator quit the race, so now it’s down to 17 percent, but still — with three experienced legislators seeking their party’s nomination for the No. 2 job in state government, Democrats have a tough call to make. All three can point to records of achievement, all three have a deep understanding of the position they’re seeking, and all three say many of the same things when asked what they would do if elected. How to choose?

It helps to bear in mind that the secretary of state must be scrupulously fair to all Oregonians, not only in fact but in appearance. The faintest whiff of partisanship will call into question the integrity of the office and its many important functions — notably including the conduct of elections. All three leading candidates are strong Democrats, but one has most visibly demonstrated a willingness to stand against her party when she felt her principles and the state’s interests demanded it. That’s Vicki Walker of Eugene…

But, yet again, no mention of Walker’s connection to the Register-Guard.

Why, you’d think they were HIDING something,* wouldn’t you?

[* I mean, it's funny that a politician in America, ANY politician, can admit to taking massive amounts of LSD and drugs in college, even trying to kill herself by "overdosing" on LSD and no one raise any questions about their judgment. About their qualification to hold high office? I mean, I seem to recall 22 years of continuous "War on Drugs" but this major ex-stoner has NEVER been challenged on it? It's funny that she would act in secret by conspiring with Portland Tribune reporters to destroy a man over a 24-year-old affair with a baby-sitter that continued into baby-sitter's majority, then out HERSELF when it looked like they were catching up to her secret role in the immolation (after making months of speeches pretending innocence), then openly pursue vendettas against Goldschmidt's wife, his former State Police bodyguard, his friends, and even the current governor for having been friends with Goldschmidt -- a sort of Reverend Wright vendetta in reverse, holding them responsible for Goldschmidt's sexual troubles. But no one would question the Madam DeFarge vindictiveness of her actions? Strange that NOBODY would utter a peep. Just as strange as the R-G hiding its connection to Walker, come to think of it.]

You see, Caesar’s wife has to be above the APPEARANCE of impropriety. And it’s odd that both Walkerand the R-G take the same stance: who would DARE question their credibility??!?

Walker:

A Prominent Democrat Speaks Out on
Accountability and Neil Goldschmidt
An Interview with State Senator
Vicki Walker, D-Eugene
Interviewed by Jim Pasero, BrainstormNW

Walker: I don’t like being in this position—the position of having a public dispute with a prominent Democrat. Neil has put himself there. He made this SAIF issue about him, personally. That puts me in a very awkward position. I’m not going to sit back and take his accusations or insinuations that I am motivated to investigate SAIF because I got a meager* campaign contribution from Liberty Northwest.

[* Meager = $2750 according to her buddy Jim Redden at the Portland Tribune. Note the DATE of the story -- HW]

Register-Guard:

Maybe it would be different if we were supporting her, but for the past two cycles we have not. Even then, the relevance would be questionable. So if in an endorsement editorial I have space for a paragraph or a sentence that can be used to discuss Walker or her husband, I’ve tended to favor the former.

Which is, again, bullshit.

How bloody tough do you think it would be to add “It should be noted that Ms. Walker’s husband, Steven, is employed by the Register-Guard”? There: full disclosure; Caesar’s wife stands above the appearance of impropriety. But no, like Walker, the angry HOW DARE YOU QUESTION MY INTEGRITY EVEN IF IT LOOKS LIKE I’M DOING SOMETHING WRONG!?!

Nine words: Ms. Walker’s husband, Steven, is a Register-Guard employee.

Why are those nine words so difficult to write? What’s the PROBLEM?

The rationalizations?

Yeah, a sentence is TOO precious. And besides, we didn’t endorse her. And, even if we DID endorse her, it wouldn’t be important. Much less effort would have gone into including the full disclosure than in defending the reasons WHY full disclosure is a RIDICULOUS concept. ABSURD! Do you begin to understand how fundamentally crazy this refusal to disclose that Senator Walker’s husband is an R-G employee is?

Get a grip, both of you. Honesty is a habit, as is deception. And, even if you didn’t act improperly, the question and the vehemence of your denials strongly suggest that you DID. So WHY give that impression is there ISN’T hanky-panky going on? Why not eschew the appearance of monkey-business?

(Unless there IS monkey business and hanky panky, of course.)

For thirty five years and more, I have fought WITH my pen for simple honesty and justice. Please don’t tell me that cover-ups and silence are that. Because they aren’t, and nothing that you can say will make me believe that they are. Both Walker and the R-G got trapped in lies, and attempted to brazen it out. They seem to have succeeded.

But they’re still lies.

Now, politicians can be disciplined legally or electorally. A newspaper must police itself. Yes, it can be affected by a loss of circulation, but that’s rarely ever worked. No: credibility demands a scrupulous honesty, and neither the Register-Guard’s editorial staff nor Senator Walker ought be booking themselves as featured speakers in “Ethics” seminars in the near future.

Consider the R-G’s pointless (if they are’innocent’) duplicity:

They feature her husband on their front page. But refuse to reveal his connection to the R-G, even though it would only enhance their credibility, and is considered, in journalism, to be at least minimum professional standards. Even after several reminders and challenges.

Consider: The Walker family picks up at least about half of its money from the Register-Guard (and probably a goodly chunk of eventual retirement benefits), and, conceivably, the R-G could actually threaten the Walker family if the issue were important enough. And you know what? I have no guarantee or expectation that it ISN’T true.

There is nothing to suggest that the R-G are not all thugs, criminals and weasels … except their public devotion to integruty and full disclosure. And this coverup (yes, coverup, because Wilson knew in 2006 and 2008 that it was an issue and CHOSE not to mention the R-G connection) is NOT full disclosure.

The R-G exists ONLY if it is credible, and saying that its unimportant for the R-G to fail to disclose an intimate and meaningful connection of a state representative and then a state senator, a candidate for governor and now a candidate for Secretary of State IS a meaningful breach of ethics, it is a lapse in judgment and cannot, after all my pestering, be an accidental “lapse.”

It seems such a minor thing, but to continue the error and DEFEND the error over a decade? Something smells very foul in the state of Denmark, cliché literary reference-philes.

The Register-Guard, I think you’ll have to agree is INTENTIONALLY suppressing their connection to Senator Vicki Corleone Walker, and that stinks to high heaven.

But to read the glowing text, you’d think that bluebirds flew out of her ass, dispensing the milk of human kindness by the carton.

(The Register Guard’s TOTAL explanation of the ugliness of the l’Affaire Goldschmidt? “and later played a role in exposing his sexual abuse of a minor.” (from the endorsement of April 27).

As the Register-Guard stands, intentionally keeping a minor but increasingly suspicious truth from you.

Intentionally on purpose.

So: What else isn’t the Register-Guard telling us about this election?

It’s pretty well proven that they’re suppressing some stuff, now, so the question is only: how MUCH stuff are they suppressing. And WHY?

To quote Bruce Anderson, formerly and once again of the Anderson Valley Advertiser:

Peace to the cottages!
War on the palaces!

Not the other way ’round, R-G.

Courage.

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