Another Inaccurate, Misleading, Garbage PNJ Headline: Par for the Course

"Mike Kohler Looks to Restore Trust in District 2 Commissioner's Seat" is how PNJ's misleading headline above should have read.....

Yesterday's electronic PNJ put out a story about soon-to-be sworn in County Commissioner-Elect Mike Kohler.  And once a reader was able to get by the BS headline--the story was well-written. (and don't worry, the PNJ are saving this piece, along with the garbage headline, for their Sunday edition....the only day they have any readership of their hard copy product to speak of.....

 But the headline they used and will be using tomorrow is garbage.  No, it is worse than that, it is BS, misleading Garbage.

 "Mike Kohler Looks to Restore Trust in Escambia County"

 After reading that headline, I expected to see yet another inaccurate, hatchet piece article running down the current commissioners--  because--to read that headline one would assume the county is in shambles and broken--and Kohler like a white-knight is coming in for a rescue job.  (In fairness, some do believe Escambia's Governance is a wreck:  The PNJ, a former PNJ cartoonist, a couple of downtown types, a downtown stockbroker, and about 12 people on one Facebook chat site.)

 Most normal human citizens don't share this dystopian and skewed view of reality, though. 

 Looking at the election, where the only incumbent Escambia County commissioner on the ballot won in a landslide, and looking at the recent survey the Studer group put out showing year-over year improvement in the public's perception of the county commission and the county's overall trajectory--what the PNJ and some foil-hat haters think about the commissioners and the county does not line up with what the average citizen believes.

I get a lot of email, phone calls, and feedback directly from constituents all day, every day. They don't hold back, either. Rarely do I get a complaint about the 401a, lack of a strategic plan, or the idea of consolidation or creating a "charter county" with a "strong elected administrator."  I never get complaints about firing former administrator Janice Gilley.  Nope-those are the issues of the PNJ and a handful of downtowners.  Normal folks are concerned with their own issues--traffic, over-development, and to a lesser degree--stormwater issues.  What I don't hear is ordinary folks upset about the PNJ's faux issues of anger above.   Never.

 Knowing all this and seeing the headline I was prepared for the worst.

 But the article did not attack the commissioners, at least not overtly anyway.  It was primarily a piece about the incoming commissioner and some of his priorities and goals once getting into office.  And the article is framed around his challenge in doing that due to his predecessor's horrible record and tumultuous, scandal-ridden tenure and departure under clouds of suspicion, ongoing litigation, and multiple ethics violations.

from the article:

"Kohler said for the first few months in office, he would focus on restoring trust in the District 2 office. “I really want to try to build a decent relationship with the other commissioners so that hopefully they'll work with me to get some stuff done in District 2," Kohler said. "I know the people in District 2 really feel like they've been underserved..Kohler said he hopes he is not "held hostage" by the actions of his predecessor, who he pointed out did not support him during his election campaign.  I'm hoping I can make some amends and just go in and prove to them that I'm not an enemy," Kohler said."

So, I asked Jim Little about the misleading headline.  I told him the headline should have been something like "Kohler to attempt to restore trust in D2 Commission seat" which he disagreed about.  He doubled down on the headline he used.  "I see your point, but I think the article conveys he is looking to restore trust in the D2 seat but also trust in the county for the residents of D2.  So, I think the headline fits the story" he stated.

 Another inaccurate, misleading garbage PNJ Headline--it's par for the course because they want strife, conflict, angst, and controversy.  They feast on it, and a headline like that magnifies a "position" that is not held by a majority of area citizens.  No matter, the PNJdoesn't care.  They will create it or attempt to manifest dysfunction in order to sell ads and papers--because they do not care about this community and the people that live here.  It's all about making a buck, meeting sales goals, and a desperate attempt to stay relevant.  It is disgusting and dishonorable, but legal, the way this paper plies its trade.  And they risk setting up the soon to be commissioner for a tougher start than needed by publishing this article this way.  They don't care though.  They want strife and division on this board, they are counting on it.  They leverage it to sell papers and ads.

If they (the PNJ) were offered a community guaranteed to be free of crime or any issues with locally elected leaders that served the citizens and functioned at a high level --but this scenario required them to go out of business---they would cast that perfect community aside for the ability to continue doing what they do---fostering discontent with fake, garbage "news", misleading headlines, unfair and inaccurate "editorials" and cartoons ONLY on their perceived philosophical rivals and those who their advertising patron(s) disfavor.

 No wonder the PNJ are shrinking; they're slowly going out of business, quietly and incrementally.  But it is coming.  They did (and continue to do) it to themselves.   This headline is another example of why.