Marine One lands in Asbury Partisan Press parking lot

by: Juan Melli

Fri Mar 28, 2008 at 04:23:16 PM EDT

Bush's first visit to Monmouth county since he's been president started and ended at the Asbury Park Press -- the only major daily paper in the state to endorse his reelection campaign in 2004.

So the APP provided logistical staffing for the president's visit to New Jersey. I'm sure this won't affect their stellar record of objective journalism.

Abelow Slams Asbury Park Press

by: Juan Melli

Mon Nov 26, 2007 at 04:23:23 PM EST

This time, the Asbury Park Press featured a doctored photo of Governor Corzine on the front page of their Sunday paper. Corzine's Chief of Staff Bradley Abelow responded in an open letter:

Discussion and debate are critical in the formation of public policy, and often the information to fuel that debate comes from fair and objective offerings from the free press. That being said, I feel that many readers of the Asbury Park Press share my view that you did the readers - and your own reporters - a tremendous disservice with the accompanying fictionalized image in Sunday's story, "Hocking the Highways."

While working with photo editing software may be a useful tool for assembling gag photos or correcting minor imperfections, using it to manipulate the Governor - any governor - into a sinister character is not what we would expect from a responsible media organization.

Asbury Park Press: The editorial wing of the NJ GOP

by: Juan Melli

Sun Nov 04, 2007 at 01:14:53 PM EST

It seems they left an asterisk off the title of their latest shill piece, "We're voting for change", because they bury their real intent just a few paragraphs down that they're really only talking about Democratic incumbents:

The idea of throwing all the rascals out and supporting only the challengers is tempting. But there are some highly capable Shore-area incumbents, particularly among state Republican lawmakers.

And their admitted logic behind the endorsements? It's the same reason any partisan supports their party's candidate - blind power and control (emphasis mine):

Unless Republicans can gain control there - or at least come closer to parity - the prospects for change are grim. That's why we have backed all but one Republican candidate in the legislative races.

They've done away with judging candidates on the merits, as respectable and objective editorial boards do, and fallen back on pure partisanship:

While most eyes will be on the Senate race Tuesday night, it is important that voters fill as many Assembly seats with Republicans as possible.

It would be one thing if the editorial board couched its lean in the language of ideology, substituting every use of the word 'Republican' with the words 'conservative,' or 'fiscal conservative,' or even 'maverick.' But when a newspaper's editorial board so blatantly engages in partisan politics, offering blanket endorsements to candidates based on little more than which letter appears next to their names, it is an outrage. It makes a sham of the long democratic tradition of independent newspaper endorsements. Shame on the Asbury Park Press.