GIVE THE MEDIA CREDIT FOR REVEALING TO US, WHAT GOES ON IN THE BACK ROOMS OF GOVERNMENT

Natures Paintbrush paints a beautiful scene this morning!

 

Most of our region received heavy frost last night leaving some beautiful designs on the windshield of my car!   A well-skilled artist would be hard pressed to reproduce such a beautiful etching as created by the frost. (Photo By Fred Schulz)

A historic barn stands strong nestled in a valley along the Reay Road off the Gravenhurst Parkway on a beautiful Fall October afternoon.   The afternoon sun highlights the weathering on both the roof and barn boards. (Photo By Fred Schulz)

THE EARLY NEWSPAPERS IN MUSKOKA - AND THE PUBLISHERS WHO STIRRED THINGS UP - PART TWO

NEWSPAPERS THAT WERE INGRAINED IN COMMUNITY CULTURE, SOCIETY AND POLITICS

NOTE: WOULD THE PRESENT SENATE CRISIS IN CANADA, HAVE OCCURRED, (AND THEN BE MADE PUBLIC), WITHOUT THE INVESTIGATIVE WORK OF THE MEDIA? WHAT ABOUT THE SPENDING SCANDAL, IN THIS PROVINCE, REGARDING THE GAS FIRED GENERATING PLANTS? SOMETIMES WE TAKE THE MEDIA FOR GRANTED.....AND EVEN GET MAD AT THEM, ON OCCASION, FOR GOING TOO FAR.  DO YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THESE GOVERNMENTAL SITUATIONS OR NOT? FOR ME, I WANT TO KNOW AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. I DEPEND ON THE OLD AND DEAR RULES OF "FREEDOM OF THE PRESS."


     (IF YOU MISSED PART ONE, YOU CAN ARCHIVE BACK TO YESTERDAY'S BLOG)

     YES, IT'S TRUE. IF I HAD A COUPLE OF MILLION BUCKS TO INVEST, I'D OPEN UP A LOCAL NEWSPAPER, AND IT WOULD BE RUN AS I REMEMBER THE PROFESSION, BACK IN THE 1980'S, WHEN I WAS EMPLOYED BY THE BRACEBRIDGE HERALD-GAZETTE. AND BY GOLLY, I'D MAKE A PLAY TO SCOOP UP SOME OF THE OLD GANG, TO GIVE IT ANOTHER SHOT IN THIS NEW CENTURY. WHAT DO YOU THINK CHRIS? VAL? LILLIAN? (THREE EXCEPTIONALLY TALENTED FOLKS IN NEWPAPER LAYOUT AND GRAPHIC ARTS). PITTY A GOODLY NUMBER OF MY NEWS CRONIES ARE NOW DECEASED, BUT THERE ARE STILL A FEW WRITERS OUT THERE, WHO I WORKED WITH, WHO COULD BE BRIBED WITH BIG PAY CHEQUES. A FEW OF US MAY NEED HEARING HORNS, AND CANES, BUT MAKE UP FOR LOSS OF BODILY FUNCTION, WITH OLD FASHIONED SPUNK. JUST LIKE WHAT THE HANSON BROTHERS, IN THE MOVIE "SLAPSHOT", TALKED ABOUT, WITH THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS, NEEDING TO GO BACK TO PLAY "THAT OLD TIME HOCKEY." WELL SIR, I THINK THERE'S AN APPETITE IN MUSKOKA FOR AN "OLD TIME NEWSPAPER." NOW ABOUT THAT BURNING ISSUE OF "SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS"......WHICH BY THE WAY, WOULD STILL MAKE IT A SHOESTRING BUDGET, AND A BIG GAMBLE, FACING OFF AGAINST MEDIA POWERHOUSES.
     WHEN I JOINED THE STAFF OF MUSKOKA PUBLICATIONS, IT WAS MADE CLEAR TO ME, THAT ONE OF MY MOST IMPORTANT REPORTING DUTIES, NON NEGOTIABLE, WAS TO FOLLOW OUR MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT ON THEIR RIDING VISITATIONS. THIS BY THE WAY, COULD INVOLVE SOME SERIOUS MILEAGE CLAIMS, AS THIS IS ONE HONKING BIG REGION. IN THOSE DAYS, I SPENT A LOT OF TIME WITH MUSKOKA M.P.P. FRANK MILLER, AND M.P.P. STAN DARLING. BY AND LARGE, THESE COMPANIONING WEEKENDS, WERE TO COVER SPECIAL EVENTS, WHERE THE ELECTED OFFICIALS WOULD BE EXPECTED TO ATTEND; RANGING IN NATURE FROM BUSINESS RIBBON CUTTINGS OF ALL-SORTS, TO MILESTONE ANNIVERSARIES AND BIRTHDAYS. THEY WERE IN ATTENDANCE TO PRESENT RESPECTIVE GOVERNMENT PLAQUES TO SUBJECT CONSTITUENTS. A REPORTER WAS THERE BECAUSE IT WAS A "PHOTO OP.," AS THEY CALL IT TODAY. I WOULD GET THEIR INTINEARY FOR THE RIDING, LATE IN THE WEEK, AND IF IT WAS MY WEEKEND ON-DUTY, IT WAS POTENTIAL, THAT I'D MEET UP WITH ONE OR BOTH MEMBERS, TWO OR THREE TIMES ON THE SAME WEEKEND. WE GOT TO BE PRETTY GOOD FRIENDS, AND EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, I'D GET A CHANCE TO SQUEEZE-IN A FEW POLITICAL QUESTIONS, REGARDING AN ISSUE IN THE REGION, AND THEY WERE BOTH VERY GOOD ABOUT OFFERING SOME NEWS QUOTES, FOR THE NEXT ISSUE OF EITHER "THE BEACON," SERVING WEST MUSKOKA, OR "THE HERALD-GAZETTE," A SISTER PUBLICATION IN BRACEBRIDGE.
     THE NEXT BIG COVERAGE TASK, WAS TO ATTEND MEETINGS OF MUSKOKA'S MUNICIPAL COUNCILS, IN OUR CIRCULATION AREA. THIS MEANT HAVING TO DRIVE TO PORT SEVERN TWICE A MONTH, TO COVER THE TOWNSHIP OF GEORGIAN BAY MEETINGS; AND THEN THE SAME SCENE, IN PORT CARLING, WHEN THERE WERE MONDAY MEETINGS OF THE TOWNSHIP OF MUSKOKA LAKES. TAXES WERE THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE TO WATCH OUT FOR, AND IT WAS AT A TIME, IN THE LATE 1970'S, WHEN COTTAGERS WERE GETTING POLITICALLY MOTIVATED, AS LAKEFRONT PROPERTIES WERE BEING HIT WITH HUGE TAXATION INCREASES FOR LOT FRONTAGES, BUT STILL HAVING LIMITED MUNICIPAL SERVICES. THE REAL BULK OF NEWS IN MY NEWSPAPER YEARS, CAME FROM THESE REGULAR COUNCIL MEETINGS, AND EVEN IN THE WEEKS WHEN MEETINGS WEREN'T HELD, REPORTERS BADGERED COUNCILLORS ABOUT UNFINISHED BUSINESS, AND SOME CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES SET TO HIT THE TABLE IN THE WEEK TO COME. IT WAS INDEED RATHER BORING COVERAGE, BUT REPORTERS HAVE A WAY OF COPING WITH CALM SPELLS IN THE ACTION. LOU SPECHT, OF THE BRACEBRIDGE EXAMINER, BILL COLE, OF THE GRAVENHURST NEWS, AND SOMETIMES, GAR LEWIS OF CKCO TELEVISION, SAT AT THE BACK TABLE, COFFEE KINDLY PROVIDED IN THE DOWNSTAIRS LOUNGE, AND WE PASSED NOTES BACK AND FORTH THROUGH THE MEETINGS, AND CARRIED ON OUR SOCIAL GET-TOGETHER WITH TELL-TALE LOOKS, BACK AND FORTH, SHOWING SURPRISE, HORROR, COMPASSION, OUTRAGE, PASSIVE INTEREST, OR SIGNS OF FALLING ASLEEP......ALL VIA FACIAL EXPRESSIONS. IT WAS OUR COPING MECHANISM, TO KEEP EACH OTHER AWAKE DURING THE ROUTINE BUSINESS OF COUNCIL. I LOVED THOSE GUYS. AND THEY WOULD EVEN CORRECT MY NOTES, IF THEY SPOTTED SOMETHING WRONG....POSSIBLY A NEWLY INTRODUCED BYLAW OR MOTION I MISUNDERSTOOD. WE WERE COMPETITORS, AND WE WERE BEING PAID TO ONE-UP THE RIVAL PAPER. BUT WE WERE ALL IN THIS REPORTING THING TOGETHER, AND THERE WAS AN UNSPOKEN TRUST BETWEEN US, TO NEVER BETRAY ONE ANOTHER.....AND THROUGH QUITE A FEW YEARS, WE NEVER DID. IT DOESN'T MEAN WE RAN THE SAME STORY, WORD FOR WORD, BECAUSE OF THIS FRIENDLY RELATIONSHIP; BUT WE FOUND CREATIVE WAYS, BASED ON HONED EXPERIENCE, TO PURSUE STORIES AND RESEARCH AFTER THE MEETINGS, BY CONTACTING COUNCILLORS FOR INTERVIEWS, TO FOLLOW HUNCHES, AND TIPS FROM OUR RESPECTIVE DEEP THROATS, WHO WERE ONLY TOO HAPPY TO SNITCH ON THEIR MUNICIPAL BOSSES. THAT'S ONE THING I'VE NEVER LOST AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. MY SOURCES, AND GOD BLESS THEM.
     JUST SO Y0U KNOW, WHEN WE WOULD COVER A COUNCIL MEETING, ON AN AVERAGE MONDAY, TWICE A MONTH, WE WOULD END UP AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE MEETING, WITH A MITT FULL OF NOTES AND QUOTES, ABOUT THE PROCEEDINGS. WHEN WE GOT BACK TO THE OFFICE, (I WORKED A LOT FROM HOME), WE WOULD DO THE BASIC STORY OF WHAT HAPPENED AT THE MEETING, REGARDING A SPECIFIC AGENDA ITEM, AND THEN WE'D START DEVELOPING THE STORY-LINE INTO A BALANCED NEWS ARTICLE; FIRST BY GOING AFTER COUNTER-POINT WHENEVER THERE WAS ONE. WE DIDN'T LIKE RUNNING STORIES WITHOUT CONTRARY COMMENTS, FOR EXAMPLE, FROM THOSE COUNCILLORS WHO DIDN'T SUPPORT A BYLAW OR MOTION, OR THE GENERAL OPINION OF COUNCIL ON A COMMUNITY ISSUE....SUCH AS WHETHER TO SUPPORT IN PRINCIPLE, A RESORT PROPOSAL OR NEW SUBDIVISION. WE WANTED TO SHOW OUR READERS THAT COUNTERPOINT WAS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTANDING THE ISSUE AT HAND. THE ONLY NEWS PARALLEL I READ ABOUT TODAY, IS WHAT HAS BEEN OCCURRING IN BALA WITH THE HYDRO PROJECT AT THE FALLS. THERE WERE A LOT OF CONTENTIOUS STORIES LIKE THIS, IN MY NEWSPAPER TENURE, AND IT WAS NECESSARY TO OUR PUBLISHERS, THAT THESE CONFLICTING ISSUES AND PARTIES BE IDENTIFIED, SO THAT OUR READERS WOULD FEEL SATISFIED, WE HAD COVERED ALL THE ANGLES. IT BECAME, OVER TIME, A REQUIREMENT FOR EACH OF US, TO DO BETTER AT COVERING THESE DIFFICULT AND EMOTIONAL ISSUES IN OUR REGION, SUCH THAT EVEN ON SIMPLE REPORTING ASSIGNMENTS, WE'D LOOK FOR OTHER AVENUES TO EXPLORE, TO BROADEN THE VALUE OF THE STORY IN THE FIRST PLACE.
     THE PROBLEM TODAY, AND IT'S A BIG ONE, IS THAT THE LOCAL MEDIA IS NOT COVERING OUR MUNICIPAL COUNCIL, OR THE BOARD OF EDUCATION WITH THE SAME DUE DILLIGENCE, TO FERRET OUT NEWS STORIES. AS FAR AS TRANSPARENCY ISSUES GO....., THE COMMUNITY PRESS WAS IN PLACE, TO ENFORCE TRANSPARENCY ISSUES, AND REVEAL THE INNER ACTIVITIES OF OUR COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES. BUT WHEN COUNCILLORS KNEW THAT THE REPORTERS COVERING THEIR COUNCIL CONDUCT, AND BUSINESS AFFAIRS, WERE HIGHLY SKILLED SLEUTHS, BELIEVE ME, WE WERE AFFORDED MUCH GREATER RESPECT, AND GENERALLY, GIVEN INTERVIEW TIME WHENEVER WE MADE THE REQUEST. WHAT WE THEN PRESENTED, WERE STORIES THAT HAD TO PASS HEAVY SCRUTINY, FROM NOT ONLY THOSE INTERVIEWED AND IMMEDIATELY INVOLVED, BUT THE READERSHIP OVERALL. IF WE SCREWED UP, IT COULD MEAN LEGAL ACTION AGAINST THE NEWSPAPER, AND OURSELVES, AND THE LOSS OF THE JOB WE LOVED. WE DIDN'T TAKE RISKS, AND WHEN WE HAD A CONTROVERSIAL STORY, THE PUBLISHER WAS WORRIED ABOUT, IT WAS SHIPPED OFF TO OUR LAWYER FOR APPROVAL OR SUGGESTION. MAKE NO MISTAKE, WE RAN A TOUGH NEWS DEPARTMENT, AS DID OUR COMPETITION, AT THE BRACEBRIDGE EXAMINER, AND IT WAS JUST WHAT LOCAL POLITICS REQUIRED, TO MAKE THEM APPRECIATE THE FULL MONTY OF TRANSPARENCY.....AS WE INSISTED UPON, WITH THIS FREEDOM OF THE PRESS ATTITUDE.
     GRAVENHURST COUNCIL HAS NOT HAD THE KIND OF MEDIA SCRUTINY IT REQUIRES, TO BE AT ALL RESPONSIVE TO TRANSPARENCY ISSUES THE PUBLIC RAISES.  THEY EXERCISE SELECTIVE TRANSPARENCY, BUT THE REALITY IS.....IF YOU DON'T HAVE A REPORTER FROM THE LOCAL MEDIA, IN YOUR FACE, DEMANDING ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS ABOUT COUNCIL BUSINESS, THEN IT'S PERFECTLY UNDERSTANDABLE, THAT STATUS QUO REIGNS UNCHALLENGED. FOR EXAMPLE, IT IS LIKELY WHY THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A COUNTERPOINT OFFERED, ABOUT THE MAJOR CHANGES THAT HAVE OCCURRED AT THE GRAVENHURST OPERA HOUSE, IN THE PAST SIX MONTHS....OR FINDING JUST ONE OPPOSITION POINT OF VIEW, PUBLISHED IN ANY NEWS ARTICLE REGARDING THE FUTURE BIA AREA EXPANSION, WHICH WILL BE HUGE AND CONTROVERSIAL, BECAUSE IT COMES WITH A TAXATION ATTACHMENT.....THE PRICE OF MEMBERSHIP. I DON'T INTEND TO GET POLITICAL, BECAUSE I SWORE OFF THIS FIVE TIMES IN THE PAST YEAR, BUT THE ISSUES AREN'T SOFT NEWS.....BUT THAT'S HOW THEY APPEAR IN THE LOCAL MEDIA. YET I'M PRETTY SURE, THE MEDIA KNOWS THERE IS A TEMPEST IN A TEAPOT, BUT DON'T APPEAR TO BE IN ANY HURRY TO EXPLOIT IT. WHAT ABOUT THE READERSHIP THAT WANTS TO KNOW ALL THE POOP GOING ON IN THEIR TOWN? HOW DO THEY FIND OUT THE NEWS BEHIND THE NEWS THESE DAYS? MAYBE A TIME IS COMING, WHEN A NEW MEDIA OUTLET WILL RISE, TO CHALLENGE THE PRESENT STATUS QUO, AND ONCE AGAIN, PUT SOME EMPHASIS ON WATCH-DOGGING FOR THE BENEFIT OF CONSTITUENTS; WITH A PUBLISHER WILLING TO TAKE A CHANCE ON A SUBSCRIPTION BASE, LIKE THE GOOD OLD DAYS.

ANOTHER GLIMPSE AT THESE HISTORIC NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS

     "LET US GLANCE FOR A MOMENT, AT ALL THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THESE TWO EDITORS," WRITES CAPTAIN LEVI FRASER, IN HIS BOOK, "HISTORY OF MUSKOKA," CIRCA THE 1940'S.
     "GEORGE (G.H.O.) THOMAS CAME TO BRACEBRIDGE WHEN ABOUT TWENTY YEARS OF AGE, TO FILL A VACANCY ON THE TEACHING STAFF (SCHOOL) FOR SIX MONTHS. THE COUNTRY LOOKED SO FORBIDDING TO HIM THAT HE WONDERED IF HE COULD ENDURE THAT LONG. BEFORE THE SIX MONTHS HAD EXPIRED, HE BECAME ENGAGED AS PRINCIPAL FOR THE FOLLOWING YEAR, 1885, A POSITION HE HELD FOR MANY YEARS DURING WHICH TIME HE BECAME ENGAGED IN THE JEWELRY BUSINESS, MARRIED AND OF HIS THREE SONS, ONE IS AN OPTOMETRIST (PHILIP), THE OTHER TWO STUDIED LAW, AND NOW ARE PARTNERS IN A LAW PRACTICE (DOUGLAS AND REDMOND). THE OLDEST (REDMOND) IS ALSO A MAGISTRATE AND EDITOR OF THE BRACEBRIDGE GAZETTE. D.E. BASTEDO CAME FROM BAYSVILLE TO BRACEBRIDGE, ON FOOT, IN 1870, WITH HIS MEAGRE BELONGINGS TIED IN A COLORED HANDKERCHIEF, ACCEPTED THE POSITION OF 'PRINTER'S DEVIL,' ON THE NORTHERN ADVOCATE, AND LATER WAS ON THE FREE GRANT GAZETTE. HE MARRIED AND RAISED A FAMILY OF FIVE BOYS, AND SEVERAL GIRLS; OF THE BOYS THREE ARE LAWYERS, ONE A HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER AND ONE A DOCTOR (DR. A.F. BASTEDO OF BRACEBRIDGE). THESE ARE NOT ONLY MUSKOKA PIONEER FAMILIES, WHO HAVE TURNED OUT PROFESSIONAL MEN. THE BACK TOWNSHIPS AS WELL AS THE TOWNS, HAVE PRODUCED THEIR QUOTA. I ONLY MENTION THESE TWO FAMILIES, BECAUSE THEY ARE CONNECTED WITH THE PRESS, OUR PRESENT SUBJECT."
     CAPTAIN FRASER ADDS, "THE GRAVENHURST BANNER WAS THE LAST MUSKOKA PAPER, TO BEGIN PUBLICATION. IT MADE ITS APPEARANCE IN THE 1880'S. THE BANNER WAS THE FIRST NEWSPAPER THAT I EVER READ, AS AT THAT TIME, I WAS JUST LEARNING TO READ. IN MY CHILDISH IGNORANCE, I THOUGHT THAT A NEWSPAPERMAN MUST BE A WONDERFULLY WISE MAN. I WONDERED HOW HE COULD KNOW ALL THE THINGS THAT APPEARED EVERY WEEK IN THE BANNER. I ANXIOUSLY LOOKED FORWARD TO ITS ARRIVAL EVERY WEEK. IN THE EARLY DAYS THE BANNER WAS ABOUT THE ONLY PAPER THAT CAME TO OUR SETTLEMENT. LIKE ALL OTHER DISTRICT PAPERS, IT WAS A GREAT BOOSTER OF MUSKOKA. ITS WEEKLY BUDGET OF NEWS, TOLD OF NEW SETTLER ARRIVALS, OF NEW ROADS BEING BUILT AND OF THE EVER-INCREASING LAKE TRADE. SUCH NEWS HAD THE EFFECT OF MAKING OUR PEOPLE BELIEVE THAT THEY WERE LIVING IN A FAVORED LAND. NOTHING STIMULATES CIVIC PRIDE LIKE GOOD NEWSPAPER LEADERSHIP AND SUPPORT. ALTHOUGH MANY OF OUR PEOPLE FOUND THE GOING TOUGH ENOUGH, THEY RESENTED ANYTHING THAT CAST A REFLECTION ON THE COMMUNITY. AN INCIDENT OCCURRED IN THE MID 1880'S, WHEN AN ELDERLY CLERGYMAN, WHO HAD CALLED TO ONE OF THE TOWN CHURCHES, (AND WHO EVIDENTLY HAD COME FROM A MORE ADVANCED COMMUNITY), MADE A REPORT, THAT APPEARED IN THE PRESS (NOT IN THE BANNER), DEPICTING MUSKOKA AS A POVERTY-STRICKEN DISTRICT. FEW INCIDENTS IN THOSE DAYS CAUSED SUCH WIDESPREAD INDIGNATION, AS DID THIS REPORT; THE RESULT BEING THAT THE REVEREND GENTLEMAN'S STAY IN GRAVENHURST WAS OF SHORT DURATION.
     "THE BANNER WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN 1882 BY W.R. TUDHOPE, LATER IT WAS TAKEN OVER IN TURN BY A. FAWCETT OF UFFINGTON, THE GRANT FAMILY, G.H.O. THOMAS, DALTON CAMPBELL, MR. REYNOLDS, AND FINALLY BY ALF AND R.T. DASS, OF WHOM ALF IS STILL THE PUBLISHER (CIRCA 1942). IN THE EARLY PART OF THE 20TH CENTURY, ANOTHER GRAVENHURST PAPER, THE HERALD, FOUNDED BY DR. BEATTIE NESBITT, RAN FOR AWHILE, AND WAS THEN ABSORBED BY THE BANNER."
     CAPTAIN FRASER ASTUTELY OBSERVES, THAT, "AS AN UNBIASED OBSERVER, WITH NO AXE TO GRIND, I WOULD SAY THAT THE PRESS OF MUSKOKA DESERVES THE COMMENDATION OF THE WHOLE DISTRICT, FOR THE PART IT HAS PLAYED IN PROMOTING THE VARIED AND NUMEROUS INTERESTS OF THIS FAIR LAND OF OURS. TO THE PRESS, I WOULD SAY, 'DO NOT REST ON YOUR OARS FOR THE GOAL HAS NOT BEEN REACHED; MUSKOKA IS NOT YET FULLY DEVELOPED AND THE PRESS CAN BECOME A POWERFUL INSTRUMENT IN STIMULATING INTEREST IN SUCH PROPOSITIONS, AS RE-FORESTATION AND TREE-PLANTING ALONG OUR HIGHWAYS AND THE BANKS OF RIVERS AND STREAMS, TO PRESERVE MOISTURE AND KEEP THE LITTLE BABBLING BROOKS ALIVE AND ACTIVE TO THE DELIGHT OF THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN FROM MANY LANDS. STAY OUT IN FRONT; GIVE US LEADERSHIP AND EARN THE GRATITUDE OF AN INTERESTED PUBLIC; FOR AFTER ALL MUSKOKA IS DESTINED TO BE JUST WHAT WE MAKE OF IT."
     THIS WAS THE PERSPECTIVE OFFERED IN MUSKOKA, BY A MUSKOKAN, DURING YEARS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR. WHY WOULD THE MEDIA EVER BE OF LESSER CONCERN, AS A LEADERSHIP MODEL, EVEN IN THIS, OUR MODERN ERA OF DEVELOPMENT?
     THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING FRED SCHULZ AND I TODAY. IT'S ALWAYS SUCH A PLEASURE WHEN WE MEET UP, TO DISCUSS THIS GREAT REGION OF THE PROVINCE......OUR HOME REGION, OUR HOME TOWNS, HAMLETS AND VILLAGES.
     PLEASE COME FOR A VISIT TOMORROW.