Why the Media Stayed Quiet as Houston Integrated its Lunch Counters. HoustonChronicle.com ($$$)
It's an interesting read that mainly outlines the Chronicle's ties to the city's leadership and institutions and their historical proclivity to report along official lines. Not quite Pravda, but not quite an independent watchdog either.
Snyder goes on to outline the role of newspapers in cities and ultimately gets around to asking the question "Could this happen today?"
Based on what we're seeing reported surrounding the incidents that led to the unfortunate shooting of four police officers and the deaths of two suspects and their dog, I think we're starting to see that the answer is "yes, it could".
To whit:
Wounded Houston Officers Present opportunity for Unity, no division with HPD. HoustonChronicle.com ($$$)
So, it was understandable but regrettable when Houston Police Officers’ Union President Joe Gamaldi suggested the officers’ shooting was grounds for some type of vendetta.“We are sick and tired of having targets on our back,” Gamaldi said. “We are sick and tired of dirt bags trying to take our lives when all we’re trying to do is protect this community and our families. Enough is enough. If you’re the ones out there spreading the rhetoric that police officers are the enemy, well just know we’ve all got your number now. We’re going to be keeping track on all of y’all, and we’re going to make sure to hold you accountable every time you stir the pot on our police officers.”Gamaldi started his career as a cop in New York 14 years ago, so he doesn’t need to be lectured about the job.
They then go on to say this:
What this city needs now is solidarity in support of the good guys trying to keep us safe.
Not that it's going to matter, but let me preface all of this by saying that I have a healthy respect for the job the police do each day. I always try to treat them with respect, I always encourage them to "stay safe" when I meat them and generally I believe that a large majority of police officers, Sheriff's Deputies, Constables and Highway Patrol officers go into work each and every day with the intent of upholding their motto to "Protect and Serve". I really believe this. I also believe that the officers in this raid were doing what they thought was correct and that they felt they were targeting the head of a heroin ring. I believe that. If Joe Gamaldi thinks that my questioning some of the facts coming out of this case there's nothing I can do about that. Criticism is NOT targeting, I don't care what some spokespeople, or the Chron Editorial Board chooses to say.
The problem here is that it's not entirely clear the officers had the correct people, or the right house. This is not anti-police rhetoric, it's not putting a "target" on the backs of HPD, it's a logical question to ask based on the facts that are coming out in this case.
First off, after the raid no black tar heroin was found in a house that was reportedly the center of a black tar heroin ring That's odd.
Also, the official account of the event states that the couple's Pit Bull immediately "lunged" at the first officer entering the house, forcing him to shoot. If you own a dog you realize that this type of behavior is out of character for any dog. The first canine reaction would have been to sit back on his haunches and bark, not to lunge.
So we have a "no-knock" warrant, with a police busting down the door and immediately shooting the family pet, in an alleged heroin den where no heroin was found. What the police did find was some guns (obviously) some marijuana and an as-yet unidentified white powder, which sounds more consistent with drug use than drug sales.
Where are the scales? Why haven't we been told about cash found in the house?
There are a lot of things in the official account that are not adding up.
Granted, it's true that at this point we have not been given all of the facts, as police might be shielding some things from public consumption as the investigation is ongoing, but it's also true that the police MIGHT have been going into the wrong house.
At this point there are too many questions to just say that the cops were 100% correct on all of their decisions in this raid. There's too much unknown to cast the two dead as 100% in the wrong.
I'm truly sorry that the four officers got shot and the fifth injured his knee. I do have respect for the police but I'm also not naive enough to believe that they always get everything correct.
Cops are people, and subject to making errors. If someone busted down my door, and shot my dog, I would probably fight back too, especially since I have no reason for them to be there. I'm sure that some will read this and say "He's just bashing the cops" but that's not true. Nor am I saying they were wrong and attacked a bunch of innocents minding their own business. Were the suspects drug dealers? We don't know. Does this mean the suspects were good people? No, it doesn't.
The fact is WE JUST DON'T KNOW YET.
But the Chron Ed Board knows, and they've gone to lecturing on behalf of their institutional sources, which is their default position, as it has always been and as it will always be until the newspaper does the right thing and shutters the Editorial Board and then redirecting the resources toward Watchdog Journalism.
Could the same thing happen today in the pages of the Houston Chronicle as happened in the past?
You bet your ass it could.
