Diversity, ownership by the LDS Church and depth of coverage were discussed Thursday at the Hinckley Institute of Politics as community members told the Deseret News how it could improve.
The "credibility roundtable" was one of more than 60 nationwide, sponsored in part by Associated Press managing editors. The Deseret News decided not to reschedule the event in light of Tuesday's terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., because, as moderator Ted Wilson, director of the institute, said, "There's no better time to talk about accuracy and credibility."
Ownership of the newspaper by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints colors the public's perception, the panelists agreed. Wilson, a former Salt Lake mayor, said while he was in office people thought he took orders from the LDS Church. Former Gov. Norm Bangerter said he faced the same view of church involvement when he was in office. That doesn't change the fact, he said, that "the church has a newspaper because they want to have a church newspaper." And he added that "those perceptions will linger."
"You can do everything possible to disclaim affiliation in editorial content," said Farmington Mayor Greg Bell, who also chairs Envision Utah. "I don't think an identity crisis can get the newspaper anywhere. People in the community are going to believe what they believe. It's the U. and the Y."
"It's hard for me as a reader to put that (ownership) aside," said Julie Zimmerman, owner of Design Vinyl, who said it must affect how a story is written, though "often stories bend over backwards to stay away from it."
Panelists didn't agree on whether that changes the perception of the newspaper's accuracy. "Every paper has its owner," said Laura Lee Pedersen, principal of Welby Elementary School. "The paper does a fine job of covering both sides of many issues. Not all, but most."
Betty Sawyer, director of Project Success in Ogden, disagreed. "My perception is the majority of the information has a bent toward the values, etc., of the LDS Church, particularly in local stories. Take voluntarism. You'd think someone (those who are LDS) has a corner on it . . . and that's not the case."
A story's subject changes how she views ownership influence, said Sandy Packard, Provo School Board. If a story is about a conflict between the LDS Church and others, she said she "might see what others say." In a story about an LDS missionary's death, for instance, "I think it's the best source." With "most stories," she said she doesn't see any influence.
"Newspapers all have owners and therefore potential biases. With other newspapers, (what that bias is) is lot less clear to me."
People representing ethnic minorities, both on the panel and in the audience, said they want to see more diversity in everyday coverage. Often stories about happenings in ethnic communities lack depth, context and color, they said. Sawyer noted she seldom relates to the stories. She called on the newspaper to "open avenues to recruit, train, mentor, coach, shadow or whatever it takes to get that diversity of opinion."
Attorney Mike Martinez, an advocate for the Hispanic community who writes a column for the Deseret News, praised the newspaper for its local coverage but wants reporters to take a more investigative approach to issues. And he theorized that reporters see themselves so much as "neutral observers" that they are "not participants in life events most of us go through."
While Packard praised "intelligent writing" and nonsensational coverage, "I don't feel issues are incisively addressed. I'm inclined to believe (the articles) but don't think they're telling the whole story."
Bell also wants to see more in-depth coverage, particularly behind the scenes in politics. He praised the newspaper for maintaining the line between editorializing and reporting, but said the decision on what gets covered mystifies him. "I'm not an accurate predictor of what would be newsworthy."
Pedersen's newspaper wish list includes more of both liberal and conservative voices on the editorial pages.
Bangerter cautioned readers not to expect newspapers to do their thinking for them. "We have a free press and we need a free press — even if they're wrong," he said. But he added that "they cannot and will not replace an informed public."
E-MAIL: lois@desnews.com