Shame

If Jeff Bezos was prepared to outlay $250 million for The Washington Post, you begin to wonder what price for Tasmania's three venerable newspapers? On honesty, integrity and credibility alone I'd expect no less than two bags of Doritos and a bottle of Coke Zero Lime.

While we've long been harangued with the plight of newspapers and their depression like operating environment, the weight of the excuse has become tiresome. Important facts in stories are continually viewed as dust to be swept under the nearest Persian. Pride in your efforts? No need. In two years time the jerk on the local news sausage maker will be fitting themselves out as a social media expert or whispering in the ear of your local MP on a daily basis. Alternatively, they'll still be in the same chook pen, churning out the same garbage, while bemoaning the state of the media on twitter each day. You go, girl!

Hating the Rupert ethos, while still trudging into work for him? The equivalent of being tea-bagged by the old coot every day. And at 82 that's one hell of a ball bag to be swallowing.

The sermon could continue, but actually looking at the stink laid down over the past two days will illuminate more than my big mouth talking. The Mercury's housing bugle fired up yesterday, informing us Tasmanian housing "sales had soared to a three year high", when snaking back to already depressed 2010 levels was the reality. And while the big focus was on sales and particularly the Hobart numbers, price was served only as a statewide increase. Why would the Hobart newspaper happily quote the Hobart sales figures, then move on to only quote an increasing statewide median?

Maybe it was because the Hobart median fell 3.5% for the quarter ending June and fell 6.1% for the year ending June. Mercury journalist Emma Hope, doing herself proud.

On the North-West, the cut in interest rates was the trouser tightening story of today. The Advocate's Aryelle Sargent went out for a Vox pop and whaddya know? She just happened to run into a local real estate agent.

Not disclosed at all and Jenayah Arnold of Ray White thought it was great for the real estate industry. Even better she had the opportunity to tell us how great it was for the real estate industry, as nothing more than a impartial member of the public striding down a Burnie street on a chilly RBA Tuesday.

Finally, at The Examiner, where Matt Maloney didn't even bother with the pretense of giving a shit. The talent for his story? He wheeled out young Maddy, the property manager's assistant at Harcourts who'd bought her house a few years back and finally just figured out she was happy to be paying lower interest rate. Matt then peppered the story with booming Launceston suburbs over the past quarter. Awesome numbers where an extra eight sales makes for a 50% bump. Even so, it's a step up for The Examiner, especially after years of cheerleading for this bloke.

To pinch a phrase from Mr Turner, when credibility leaves the building, little of value remains.

They deserve what's coming and when the time arrives I won't even up my offer from Coke Zero Lime to Vanilla.


BTW stay tuned for an uninspiring relaunch where I may start posting more than once a year again.