Help me understand
So. Rodney MacDonald, almighty premier of Nova Scotia, has a new deal with the federal government with respect to offshore revenues.
Well, let's just read that ov........what's that? It's not written down anywhere?
MacDonald said today that he is satisfied the federal government will live up to it's promise and implement the deal exactly as it was negotiated. Can anyone say Atlantic Accord?
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Thursday, October 11, 2007
The snow job
The media is inherently skeptical of politicians. As we are going through J-school or a broadcasting college, we are told that politicians will use us to try and advance their own causes. That’s inherent. We know that all those news releases that come from departments of government aren’t just to keep some PR person in a job, but to try to get the media to bite on them. Any advertising (as it can be mis-construed) is better than none, right?
Some journalists do not hide their biases. That’s fine too. Anyone who watches the news can most likely interpret the CTV has a liberal bias, while the CBC is more conservative. The National Post- Conservative. The Globe and Mail and Toronto Star- Liberal. All fine. However, the general public have to understand those biases, so as not to think these columnists are approaching these stories from a purely factual or unbiased point of view. And most of the time they’ll pull no punches about who they support and who they despise.
The overriding problem is we in the media give the general public too much credit. Not everyone follows the political process like we are paid to do. That’s why questions about the offshore deal between our political masters has left such a bad taste in my mouth. For lack of a better term, we’re being snowed.
A number of questions really have to be asked here....
1. The Prime Minster and his Finance Minister said months ago there would be no side deals with any province. Isn’t that what this is?
2. The Minister of Defence (Nova Scotia MP Peter MacKay) said during an interview that the province would have to decide on one deal or the other and would not be permitted to opt in and out of whatever deal suited them best. The deal signed yesterday allows the province to do just that. Why?
3. The Premier of Nova Scotia, Rodney MacDonald, is in a minority government situation and needed this deal to try to bolster his government’s record in the province. What did he give up in signing this deal that’s “so good for Nova Scotia?”
These are questions that the general public will not ask. But they’re not stupid, they’re just uninformed. These two governments know the complexity of these deals and know even the astute political observer would be confused by what is happening with respect to the Atlantic Accord.
Don’t let this happen to you. Ask questions about the Atlantic Accord and don’t let Peter MacKay, or Gerald Keddy or the Premier snow you. Ask why they didn’t stick to their guns. Ask why they gave up on several positions in the process of making this deal. This is not the Atlantic Accord. Don’t let anyone tell you it is. Expect more out your politicians. They sure aren’t expecting anything out of you, other than to believe what they tell you and vote for them in the next election.
The media is inherently skeptical of politicians. As we are going through J-school or a broadcasting college, we are told that politicians will use us to try and advance their own causes. That’s inherent. We know that all those news releases that come from departments of government aren’t just to keep some PR person in a job, but to try to get the media to bite on them. Any advertising (as it can be mis-construed) is better than none, right?
Some journalists do not hide their biases. That’s fine too. Anyone who watches the news can most likely interpret the CTV has a liberal bias, while the CBC is more conservative. The National Post- Conservative. The Globe and Mail and Toronto Star- Liberal. All fine. However, the general public have to understand those biases, so as not to think these columnists are approaching these stories from a purely factual or unbiased point of view. And most of the time they’ll pull no punches about who they support and who they despise.
The overriding problem is we in the media give the general public too much credit. Not everyone follows the political process like we are paid to do. That’s why questions about the offshore deal between our political masters has left such a bad taste in my mouth. For lack of a better term, we’re being snowed.
A number of questions really have to be asked here....
1. The Prime Minster and his Finance Minister said months ago there would be no side deals with any province. Isn’t that what this is?
2. The Minister of Defence (Nova Scotia MP Peter MacKay) said during an interview that the province would have to decide on one deal or the other and would not be permitted to opt in and out of whatever deal suited them best. The deal signed yesterday allows the province to do just that. Why?
3. The Premier of Nova Scotia, Rodney MacDonald, is in a minority government situation and needed this deal to try to bolster his government’s record in the province. What did he give up in signing this deal that’s “so good for Nova Scotia?”
These are questions that the general public will not ask. But they’re not stupid, they’re just uninformed. These two governments know the complexity of these deals and know even the astute political observer would be confused by what is happening with respect to the Atlantic Accord.
Don’t let this happen to you. Ask questions about the Atlantic Accord and don’t let Peter MacKay, or Gerald Keddy or the Premier snow you. Ask why they didn’t stick to their guns. Ask why they gave up on several positions in the process of making this deal. This is not the Atlantic Accord. Don’t let anyone tell you it is. Expect more out your politicians. They sure aren’t expecting anything out of you, other than to believe what they tell you and vote for them in the next election.
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