An urgan legend invades Sports section…

Sports editor Chuck Scott is ready. He knows if Santa were to leave a stocking for the Sports department on Christmas morning, it probably would include a very large lump of coal. And it would be well-deserved.

The reason for the lump? A story Thursday on Page 2 in Gallery, a daily feature compiled from news services, carried a bogus story. It came from www.hoosiergazette.com, but instead of citing the fledgling Web site or the writer, the credit below the headline said it came from “Union-Tribune News Services.” It did not.

The bogus story …

Lack of investigation…

Lack of investigation

By Bernardo Ajzenberg

December 14, 2003

Besides having an extraordinarily explosive potential for politics, a return to the so-called Santo Andr case (involving the kidnap and assassination of Celso Daniel, mayor of that city outside So Paulo) poses an important question for journalism.

It harkens back to the case of P.C. Farias, campaign treasurer and close aide to former President Fernando Collor de Mello (who resigned under threat of removal in 1992).

As you remember, P.C. was found dead in a house in 1996. The official conclusion: He was murdered …

Ruling on broadcast ads affects papers, too…

On Wednesday the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, also known as McCain-Feingold.

Although it mostly pertains to restrictions on campaign donations by large groups, there’s an aspect of McCain-Feingold that controls the media.

The law prohibits companies, organizations and unions from purchasing political TV and radio advertisements 30 days before a primary, and 60 days before federal elections.

Why is it important for newspaper readers to take note? This may have an effect on the number of political advertisements you see in The Star. It also may have wider, future …

Plenty of candidates, limited space…

In the weeks leading to the primary election in March, some candidates will receive more coverage in The San Diego Union-Tribune than others. There’s no question that attempts will be made to keep coverage evenhanded. However, evenhanded does not translate to equal.

That means that not all candidates will get the same amount of space in the newspaper. And to be fair to readers, they shouldn’t, said Union-Tribune politics editor Michael Smolens. The newspaper owes it to readers to allocate its limited space to the candidates who have a chance to win. They are …

So near, so far away…

So near, so far away

By Bernardo Ajzenberg

December 7, 2003

President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva is making a sensitive trip to Arab nations. Newspapers reopened the dispute with new revelations about Operation Anaconda (a corruption scandal involving law enforcement and judges). With the formal accusation against a businessman, the Santo Andr case (the kidnap and murder of Mayor Celso Daniel) enters a new phase.

Despite these topics during the week, with undeniable general interest, what grabbed my attention most in Folha was two letters published Thursday in the Letters to the …