[Muncle]

Okay, this is a bit off topic but it follows a thread that has developed. A common complaint often heard in the forum is that The Developer (TD) owns the newspaper, that the newspaper only prints what is good for TD, and that the Daily Sun is the only newspaper, and it not only is a tool of TD but is ultra conservative.

Last one first -- I have the Orlando Sentinel delivered to my home daily. It's available at all postal stations. I also read the St. Pete's Times and occasionally the Ocala SB. And before it went belly up, we all got The Reporter, a publication of the Star Banner. All of these papers are quite liberal in reporting and editorial views. All are quite happy to print anything negative about TV and TD. Not always but frequently the Reporter and the SB were actively antagonistic toward TV.

As TV evolved, evidently TD realized that there was a need for an in-house media group that would focus on people and events in TV. From this need, the company created the radio, television, and newspaper organs. Did it help sell houses that these resources were here? Of course. It was a smart move. Don't know about you, but I was influenced by the existence of the radio station and paper. And we're not the only consumers. WVLG is heard all over this part of the state. Off campus, the Daily Sun is the common daily newspaper for this area. Not only for retirees, but "normal" residents of the area have the paper delivered. If the Star Banner better served this area, it might be the paper of record. It doesn't, so it's not. Same for the Slantinel. It's got a Lake County edition, but doesn't recognize Sumter.

Now if you owned a newspaper, are you going to do a hit piece on your company? Probably not. In a disagreement between your company and somebody else, you'll likely lean toward your company. This can, of course, lead to problems. The paper must be true to its readers. If it fails, it should get out of the business, and its readers should leave it. I have no problem with the paper taking an editorial position in favor of TD. I do have a problem when/if they distort facts. I'm happy to complain to the editor in that case. If I felt that it was endemic, I'd cancel the paper (tho that would be hard with all the local stuff in there not readily available elsewhere.)

Which, of course, brings us to the last common complaint. TD control the only source of local news. What happened to The Reporter? It failed. But then it was a lousy publication that was grossly overpriced at free. If someone would publish a good local newspaper at a reasonable price, I'd jump at it. Probably not to replace the Daily Sun but to supplement it. The area is full of businesses that are in direct competition with a TD owned or associated business. If they are good companies, well run, with a legitimate market, they prosper. If it works for a mortgage company, bank, or golf school, it could work for a newspaper or radio station.