LET TERS
BY RENÉE BUCH A N A N
time, they receive the benefits of a well
paying job that includes the best medicine
taxpayers can pay for, in the form of single
payer healthcare! It’s criminal.
Robin Bloomgarden
Eugene
Measuring
Media Bias
ANOTHER VOTE FOR
LEIGHTON
Renée Buchanan (RBuchanan.research@gmail.com) is an independent researcher who lives in Eugene.
(Talk given by a local speaker)
Sant Baljit Singh
S pirituality
Sant Mat
The path of inner Light and Sound
The goal of Sant Mat is to enable the soul to return and merge into its source;
the purpose of human life described by mystics of all traditions.
Admission Free
www.santmat.net
6
March 16, 2017 • eugeneweekly.com
M
1-877-MEDITATE
K
L S
HIL CHO
SU
Unitarian Universalist
Church
1685 W. 13th Ave.
Oregon has an important opportunity
to lead in the transition from a polluting
economy using fossil fuels to a clean en-
ergy economy using renewable energy. By
acting on this endeavor in a timely manner
many new jobs will be created in the solar
industry.
In Oregon, the quickest method to make
this transition a reality is to put a price on
climate pollution then invest the proceeds
into clean energy jobs focused in economi-
cally distressed local communities The
proposed Clean Energy Jobs Bill under
M
ER
PROG
consideration in the Oregon Legislature
can accomplish this. It will create a cap for
Oregon’s largest polluters of greenhouse
gases to meet the 2050 reduction targets.
The risks to delaying the action needed
to curb greenhouse gases are well known.
Lower snowpack results in less water in
the summer months for agriculture and
recreation. Heat waves, more intense forest
fires, rising water temperatures are increas-
ing. We need to act now.
On Thursday, March 23, there is a rally
in Salem to support this bill. Please contact
your state senators and ask them to pass the
Clean Energy Jobs Bill. For more informa-
tion contact james@olcv.org.
Cary D. Thompson
Eugene
CRITICAL THINKING
As a fellow human being, I need the
same requirements (i.e. food, shelter,
clean water and safety). I am not left or
right, as I make the effort to decipher
through the press and media to make an
intelligent, objective and non-partisan
search and arrive at a well-researched
conclusion.
Extreme posturing from either side
just heightens the divide and politicized
issues, which need to be dealt with for
the welfare of all citizens. If you are on
one side or the other, listening to partisan
rhetoric and sound bites, then you are part
of the problem.
We all have the responsibility to
extrapolate the truth from various media
and print outlets. Please don’t label me as
one way or another, because I make my
own decisions based on multiple sources
of media.
People who espouse partisan dialogue
in media often have their own agenda, and
it is every citizen’s responsibility to look at
all sides impartially and to arrive at their
own opinion for the good of everybody —
not just one side or the other.
Jon Tipple
Florence
LETTERS POLICY: We welcome letters on all topics and
will print as many as space allows, with priority given
to timely local issues. Please limit length to 200 words
and include your address and phone number for our files.
Email to letters@eugeneweekly.com, fax to 484-4044 or
mail to 1251 Lincoln, Eugene 97401.
Oak Hill Summer Programs
~2017~
OL
Eugene
Mon., March 20 th - 7 pm
CLEAN ENERGY JOBS IN
OREGON LEGISLATURE
SUPER Summer I- June 26-July 14
SUPER Summer II- Aug 14- Aug 25
S
O
ne way the news media demonstrate bias is by what they report
and what they leave out.
Another is the negative or positive content of articles that
do make it to print. A vital role of the media is to be a watch-
dog and a check on power, but not enough attention is given to
monitoring the fairness of our local media’s narrative.
I reviewed and indexed news articles about schools published in The Regis-
ter-Guard from November 1, 2015, to October 31, 2016. I discovered a strong
bias toward the South Eugene High School area. (No sports articles or com-
munity events announcements were included in my count.)
An unbiased media would give roughly equal coverage to the schools with-
in its circulation area and would give equivalent time to both negative and
positive stories. This, however, was not the case.
In the Springfield-Eugene metropolitan area, we have eight comprehensive
public and private high schools, but 28 percent of the news articles in the
RG center exclusively on South Eugene High School and its feeder schools.
Specifically, 25 percent of the stories focused on South Eugene high, Roos-
evelt middle and Camas Ridge elementary schools, which together serve about
2,500 students — just 7 percent of the 36,500 students in our community.
Additionally, the stories about schools in South Eugene were predominant-
ly positive. For every negative article printed about the South Eugene schools,
3.5 positive stories were published. Contrast that with Sheldon High School
and its region, where for every positive story, 3.5 negative articles were pub-
lished.
The ripples of this South Eugene-centric bias are felt throughout our com-
munity and may affect beliefs about the quality of education available at dif-
ferent schools. Because people in the community read a disproportionate num-
ber of stories that are overwhelmingly complimentary about South Eugene
schools, they may be led to believe those schools are better. This perception
can be detrimental to all schools and can foster inaccurate ideas about school
opportunities and student body characteristics.
Trying to discern whether the media are initiating, perpetuating or merely
reflecting bias in our community is challenging. Change will happen, though,
only when media recognize their biases and work to correct for them. In this
case, the RG may want to keep its own tally on its stories about schools, their
students and teachers, and whether those stories convey a positive or negative
image. We media consumers also have a responsibility to question whether the
stories published represent an adequate sample of the whole story.
AM
AN EXAMINATION OF THE REGISTER-GUARD’S
SCHOOL COVERAGE
Eugene’s 4J District Board of Educa-
tion has a vacant seat to fill in the May 16
election. We have the right person for the
position: Dr. Mary Leighton.
This dynamic, involved woman has im-
mersed herself in education for 45 years;
she holds a doctorate in education and has
done research in educational best practices.
Mary has taught almost every grade level,
from preschool to college, from a public
charter school (director at Network Charter
in Eugene for eight years) to a tribal school
on a Navajo reservation.
Mary sees the financial challenges fac-
ing our Oregon schools, and she wants to
collaborate with the board and the com-
munity to find creative ways to move for-
ward. She currently teaches a UO course
(sponsored by Lane Workforce Partner-
ship, Lane Education Service District,
Eugene Chamber of Commerce and City
Club of Eugene) that partners local busi-
nesses and teachers with a goal of further-
ing career opportunities for high school
students.
Mary is a “hands-on” person, with
highly creative ideas — and the time and
energy to carry them through. Remember
Dr. Mary Leighton when you cast your
vote for 4J School Board!
Roz Stein
Eugene
OA
VIEWPOINT
R
Challenging classes and activities for gifted students
Grades K-7th
Oak Hill School Campus
Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) July 23- Aug 5
A residential academic experience for gifted students
Something
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everyone!
located at the University of Oregon
Grades 6-11th
Summer on the Hill June 26-Aug 25
Learning and recreational opportunities for all youth
Grades K-11th
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