Michael Hiltzik’s 30 Day Review

Following up on our story, “Non-Business as Usual in the LA Times ‘Business’ Section,” Independent Sources conducted a review of Michael Hiltzik’s columns published over the past 30 days in the Los Angeles Times Business section.Our analysis shows that over 50% of Hiltzik’s columns do not contain material sufficiently related to business topics to belong in the Business section. If there were “truth in labeling” requirements in column placement, the LAT would have a serious problem on its hands.

June 16th: The Cost of Buffing Governor’s Self-Image
Is Arnold Schwarzenegger the most expensive governor in California history?

Independent Sources Assessment: Political rant. Does not belong in business section.

June 13th:  Optimism as NASA Chief Charts New Course
“We’ve gone from what I would say is the worst morale we’ve had in the 23 years I’ve been here, to some of the best,” the NASA engineer told Michael Griffin, “and the trajectory is still up.

Independent Sources Assessment: Aerospace industry is important to this region, so the column is relevant.

June 9th: Cox’s Past Ties to Con Man Raise Questions
In the halls of Congress, Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach), who has just been nominated to be the nation’s top securities regulator, stands out for his intelligence.

Independent Sources Assessment: Whoops, wrong section. Should have been anywhere from Front Page to Opinion, but certainly not the Business section. Does Hiltzik really think this story was under-represented in the paper?

June 6th: Democrats Are Seeking Reshuffle in Tax Game

The state’s Democrats have launched a game of fiscal chicken with Gov. Schwarzenegger, proposing a budget that includes hikes in the top tax rates charged to California’s wealthiest residents.

Independent Sources Assessment: No relationship to business. Could have been California section or Opinion.

June 2nd: Hoping Canines Will Lap It Up
Herself the owner of a border collie mix, a volunteer at a canine rescue organization and a regular participant in a dog play group, Susan Goldberg told me, “I’m the epitome of my own demographic.”

Independent Sources Assessment: Not sure what this even was. More of a meandering Steve Lopez-like monologue than a business column.

May 30th: Whipping Up Lather Over the Burger Ad
Nature provides us with many tools for gauging the passage of time, such as crocuses to herald the arrival of spring and the harvest moon to proclaim the autumnal equinox.

Independent Sources Assessment: Wow. Related to business and topical as well.

May 26th: Touting Initiatives, Eschewing Principles
As I half-snoozed through a Dodger broadcast the other night, my attention was suddenly arrested by a commercial for one of those quick-cash services, featuring the prominent former gubernatorial candidate Gary Coleman.

Independent Sources Assessment: Anti-Schwarzenegger hatchet-job that belonged either in the editorials or a wastebasket.

May 23rd: Adobe Aims to Be Even More Portable
Bruce Chizen was holding his company’s future in the palm of his hand. It was a Nokia cellphone with a 3-inch-by-2-inch color display, running a series of music videos and other snippets of digital entertainment material.

Independent Sources Assessment: A well-written story on a relevant business topic.

May 19th: Now Is a Bad Time for Private Accounts
One almost feels sorry for President Bush. Just as he’s trying to make his “ownership society” look like something even Franklin Roosevelt would endorse, an event comes along that makes it look more like something Cal Worthington would hawk on late-night TV. 

Independent Sources Assessment: Compares President Bush to Cal Worthington. It would be a stretch to call this business section material.

May 16th: Stem Cell Agency on Errant Fast Track
There probably wasn’t much reason to hope that California’s new embryonic stem cell institute, the offspring of perhaps the most misleading initiative campaign of 2004, would be a model of circumspection and openness as it geared up to spend $6 billion of taxpayers’ money. 

Independent Sources Assessment: This column is all about the politics of of stem cell research but we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt because the issue does have the possibility of being big business in the region.

This entry was posted on Monday, June 20th, 2005 at 8:21 am by Insider and is filed under LA Times' Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.