Calling the Star Tribune to account:  obvious bias in the headlines in Sunday’s paper

Dear Ms. Barnes:

I was appalled to open the Star Tribune Sunday morning and read the biased headline about the shutdown:  “Will the embattled governor stick to his principles or seek compromise”?

The reality is that the governor has compromised several times.  He was elected on a platform to tax the wealthy to help balance the budget.  His original plan to tax the higher incomes started with an extra $139 on families whose net income was over $250,000.  He has backed down several times and now his plan is only to tax those whose income was over $1 million.

The Republican legislators have NOT backed down on their “No new taxes” stand.

So…why does the Star Tribune, in a Sunday edition (with the largest circulation), on the front page, effectively put the blame for “not compromising” on the governor?????

This is an example of the worst kind of biased, shabby journalism.  At such a serious time for our state, when the elderly, the blind, disabled, the poor who depend on government in a civilized society to help them and are being cut off from some services, why does the Strib so distort the main issue?

It is no wonder that millions of us rely primarily on the internet for more objective reporting and information.

I can look up the facts your paper will not provide.  The 2011 Minnesota Tax Incidence Study showed that the effective tax rate for Minnesotans in the $50,000 range was 12.3% while it was only 10.3% for those in the top range.  (page 55).  So the Republicans have shut down the state rather than bring the wealthiest tax rates in line with the rest of us, information not available in any recent Star Tribune, or certainly not on the front page.

I can go to the internet, to a London paper─not the Strib─to find out that the pay gap in the U.S.is worse than in many poor countries and that the rich CAN easily afford a slight tax increase.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2005550/Americas-pay-gap-Inequality-rich-poor-worse-revolutionary-Egypt.html

Unfortunately, I don’t get the information that counters the Republican myths from the front page of the Star Tribune.  Occasional pieces in the editorial pages will give some counter views but the tax rates for different income groups in Minnesota is not opinion: It should be part of the facts given to viewers on the front page.

It is profoundly disappointing that Minnesota’s main paper is so clearly biased towards the Republican agenda and no wonder that millions of us rely on the internet for our news.

Sincerely,
Terry Burke
WAMM Member