Why does it take until the Sunday edition following the election for the Tribune to feature an in-house editorial that is thoughtful, coherent and actually makes a point about something other than sports?
The staffer chosen for this auspicious task is Dave Davis, who it might be noted is the newspaper’s Internet columnist and normally has almost nothing to say about politics. Davis’s thoughts are appreciated, but ultimately they’re less important than the fact that he is the one chosen to air them, while the Tribune’s various editors are once again silent.
Chris Morris presumably remains preoccupied with his daughter’s volleyball tournament in Indianapolis, itself inexplicably the subject of a rare Morris-written lead editorial this week … that’d be the week of the most important election in a generation, etc., etc.
Today, as Davis discusses the aftermath of this vital election, Amany Ali contributes yet another stream of consciousness column, this time concerning the softening of her far too hard character after the death of a friend’s dog. Her column asks, “Is there hope for me?” I respond with another question: “As a person, or as a journalist?”
This follows previous pieces that scolded downtown movershakers for spreading rumors about her love life, expressed dismay over seeing the high price of gas posted high above stop ‘n’ robs, and offered common sense precautions for colds and flu.
One of my favorites was a column lamenting the lack of redevelopment activity in downtown. Who better than a newspaper reporter to ask the questions that might lead to the answer? For instance, Ali might devote time to researching why building owners find it in their interest to let their buildings rot rather than invest in them. But this would imply doing a newspaper reporter’s work, which it would seem is institutionally prohibited at the Tribune unless the topic is sports or a local fluff issue so innocuous that the newspaper’s few remaining subscribers won’t notice.
