Topic: Dlyan Owes Explantion
started by: GEOKARJO
Posted by GEOKARJO on Aug. 21 2003,8:38 pm
I can't recall saying anythig of color against ron our any particuliar board member as many of us did not I don't recall calling Dylan anything either, I realize the forum belongs to the paper but what happened to freedom of speach and freedom of the press. Did Ron retain another lawyer forcing boone papers to do this?
Posted by minnow on Aug. 21 2003,8:49 pm
Well, Dylan has proven himself to be disingenuous, so it wouldn't surprise me if he was, in fact, pressured to pull the plug by Gabes point man and attorney who silenced the fairness committee.
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 21 2003,8:57 pm
Sorry, but I'm not following this at all, explain! What does Gabes attorney have to do with Belden or the forum being shut down? Belden isnt involved in anyhting, no one from their side ever posted anything. I dont understand this post, not trying to be a smartass, it just seemed to have started somewhere in the middle of the story.
Posted by Grinning_Dragon on Aug. 21 2003,9:12 pm
Well this is probably what happened.RG-- God D@mn those insulant fools who do they think they are question me and making fun of me
RG's Lawyer -- We could pressure the Editor of the Trib, that his forum is breeding hatred and malcontent, maybe even to the point of sedition (insert Dr Evil laugh) MUAHAHA MUAHAHA MUAHAHAHA
RG -- (In Mr Burns voice) Excellent (while taping fingers together), now we will so who is god..
So apparently they got to him and said that our opinions of anything related, my be considered libel.
pfffst what-ever jack offs. Get bent and DONT TREAD ON ME
Semper Fi
Posted by jimhanson on Aug. 22 2003,11:58 am
This morning, the Tribune Forum site message has changed. "Due to abuses by members, the Forum is offline indefinitely. Sorry."
Posted by Liberal on Aug. 22 2003,12:04 pm
Looks like the Tribune forum is going to be closed for awhile.I wonder what abuses he is talking about? If that was the real reason for turning off the board why didn't he ban the members that were abusing the board instead of shutting down the whole board
Posted by Tiger on Aug. 22 2003,12:05 pm
Give me a break!!! I had to see it for myself, so I did. Is he trying to play some twisted game? Seems to me he's mad because there is somewhere for us to go and he can't be "the boss." acting like a 2 year old if you ask me!! If we all can't get along then nobody gets to play. 
[I]
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 22 2003,12:09 pm
Its not abuse of the board, its abuse of Belden, thats all it was turning into, and rightly so, he asked for it. Take Belden away and you get no problem in the forum. Is there a problem here with the very same people? If nothing else, in the words of Behling, maybe Belden pushed us all into our rage against him, its Beldens fault. Isnt that their own logic? 
Posted by nattiejean27 on Aug. 22 2003,12:24 pm
I really didn't have an opinion either way about Beldan before all this, but I'm starting to now. He should have stayed out of that forum and let things be. He's the one that came in and "stirred the pot". VERY unprofessional and childish way to handle HIS issues - in my opinion. Abuse of "power", seems quite of few people in the public spotlight around here have a hard time controlling themselves.
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 22 2003,12:32 pm
Very good point Nattiejean. No disrespect meant here Minnow, but look at Minnow, he bothered the hell out of Belden, and maybe a few posters, but he reminds me a lot of Bob Knight, listen to what he says, not how he says it. If he calls you an jerk, dont listen to it, but ask yourself why he called you an jerk. LOL. My point is, the forum takes care of its self. The discussion gets heated at times, maybe even out of line, but people speak their mind, get it off their chest and then cool down. The one factor in the Tribune forum that made it nasty latley, was him. He had more people on his ass than Minnow could ever dream of.
Posted by nattiejean27 on Aug. 22 2003,12:53 pm
I also want to add that I still agree with Beldan being able to voice his side of things and participate in a forum like the rest of us. The problem was that he started taking things too personally and after a certain point of his involvement, he started to try and "control" (accomplishing just the opposite) everyone else by censoring anything HE didn't personally agree with. None of the rest of us had the ability, or even the right, to do that to anyone else, so he shouldn't have either. I also don't recall any personal attacks against his character either. It was all directed toward the job he is in and how's he doing it, which is a service to the people of this town. You think he'd be able to handle that kind of criticism professionally considering the position he's in -but obviously not.
Posted by MADDOG on Aug. 22 2003,1:09 pm
Dylan's a coward. Remember it was the thread I started, Ask Dylan, that chased him away from posting. Either that or someone did the ol' "shame on you" deal! Liberal, I'm sure he thought of banning certain people, but he probably knew that wasn't going to SHUT US UP OR CENSURE ANY OF US
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 22 2003,11:02 pm
LMAO @ Maddog. Nattiejean27, in a way I agree with you about Belden posting, but I think to be fair about it, he needed to step outside his role of editor and just post as Dylan. I dont know, its a touchy subject, but there seemed to be a conflict between him posting and his being editor, just cant put my finger on it, but somehow, he made it not work.
Posted by nattiejean27 on Aug. 23 2003,12:49 pm
Yes Hoosier, I do also agree with that though. It just wasn't working for him to post in the forum the way he was. He should have recognized that earlier and stepped back from it, before it got to him this badly.
Posted by Madd Max on Aug. 23 2003,9:10 pm
Due to abuses by members, this forum is offline indefinitely. Sorry That is posted at the Tribune website I for the life of me have trouble figureing out what the abuse was other then the people posting their opinions were telling the truth, which may not be politically correct with the powers that be in this town and county. Maybe we should call it what it really is, censorship pure and simple. At least at this web site we might not all agree on every issue. But we have the freedom to at express our opinions without being Bork’ed. So what is going on here in Freeborn County? When did censorship become politically correct. Did it start with rule 19? If so its got to go.
Posted by shaker on Aug. 23 2003,10:57 pm
You will want to see Dylans column in the Sun. paper---opinion," I don't even know what a web forum is He says, -----BUT I AM SURE THAT WE ARE BETTER OFF WITHOUT IT--- Now this wannabe editor knows what is best for us ---Look at the tribune forum---Due to abuses by members this forum is offline indeftinitely--- If there were abuses by some then Dylan could have pulled the plug on them, BUT NO he chooses to paint everyone with the same brush, this is just a damm excuse to stop people from posting there opinions AND IT REALLY PISSES ME OFF!!!!! Your rite Madd Max,Censorship, pure and simple, I am sure that this so called editor of the tribune has been told to dump there forum because the "litle people" where getting to well informed and asking to many questions. WELL, WE AINT GOING TO FORGET AND WE AINT GOING AWAY.
Posted by Ole1kanobe on Aug. 24 2003,8:22 pm
Yes, it is censorship, and that is why I have decided to start spreading the word about what the Tribune is attempting to do: < Minnesota.com >I think this above link is an excellent place to get the word out.
Posted by Bubba on Aug. 25 2003,1:51 pm
I haven't followed the day to day for some time, but I think it would be nice to have more of an explanation than what Dlyan gave us in Sunday's paper. I could give a rip about Albert L. Tribune oppinions, if they were Dlyan's he should state so!
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 25 2003,2:46 pm
LMAO@ Bubba.
Posted by shaker on Aug. 25 2003,10:02 pm
Bubba, glad to see you posting, as far as a futher explanation from our great editior of the trib. goes, well forget it, there will be none, didn't you see He don't know what a web forum is, but knows We will be better off without it, read between the lines, there are people in A.L that just don't want there actions brought into question(business as usual) is what they like, and I believe they brought pressure on this wannabe editor and He wimped out.
Posted by rosebudinal on Aug. 25 2003,11:40 pm
Belden, schmelden!!!!!!!!Not here to monitor and censor us. I for one am content with this site. 
Posted by minnow on Aug. 26 2003,4:20 am
Gabe gave Dylan a cookie to shut the forum down.
Posted by Mamma on Aug. 26 2003,9:07 am
Well if he gave him a cookie to shut him up...ten to one it was a box of animal crackers with the heads already biten off.
Posted by jimhanson on Aug. 26 2003,9:40 am
Leave it to Mamma to distill the statement down to its essence! Great one! 
Posted by jimhanson on Aug. 26 2003,10:02 am
Anybody have a comment they would like me to deliver to Dylan and the Publisher this afternoon? Only if it's clean!
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 26 2003,10:06 am
Yes 
, never mind, I will tell them myself tomorrow.
Posted by MADDOG on Aug. 26 2003,10:10 am
Hoosier, way to go. Can't say I didn't see that one coming. If Belden doesn't know what's coming yet, boy will he know after this week!
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 26 2003,10:19 am
Jim, tell them if they think the campaign to clean up county government has grown and gotten out of hand, they aint seen nothing yet. This will not stop until Belden is gone. Thats gonna be my message I give them. First we work on their advertizers, then we go out and get the people to drop their subscription to the paper. Its Mosers and Boones choice, but Belden has got to go.
Posted by GEOKARJO on Aug. 26 2003,1:03 pm
Do not log onto Albertleatribune.com They have a hidden counter that tracks who comes there so they can sell advertising on the site, no hits no advertising accounts.
Posted by Liberal on Aug. 26 2003,2:23 pm
Where else would I get the news KATE is torture to a young person. Other local radio stations don't really have much for news. That leaves KAAL and KIMT and they don't cover a whole lot of news about Albert Lea.
Posted by GEOKARJO on Aug. 26 2003,4:04 pm
Albert Lea News? I call it distrorted information.
Posted by Ole1kanobe on Aug. 26 2003,4:12 pm
Here is my view on the local 
Posted by Bubba on Aug. 26 2003,5:05 pm
I grew up with a fellow that became the editor of a local daily news paper. We got together a number of years ago at a wedding of one of our friend's kid. At that time the Freeborn County Shopper had gone after being declaired the offical paper for local government notices. My friend the editor was somewhat knowledgable about what was going on but wanted my input on it. In my friends opinion he did not see this as being good for the newspaper business and he was worried about this becoming a trend.Shortly after our visit, owners of The Albert Lea Tribune bought out the Shopper. At the time I thought that action interesting.
Just a few weeks ago, our county officals stated that they were not going to post board minutes in the paper. Not being a great thinker, I said to my self, now isn't that interesting.
Posted by minnow on Aug. 26 2003,5:13 pm
Yep... monopolies are always good for the bottom line because the paper can control add rates.Now there's another choice...the peoples forum at albertlea.com...
Posted by jimhanson on Aug. 27 2003,9:14 am
I met with the Publisher of the Tribune, Christine Moser yesterday. Also sitting in was Advertising Director Mr. True, who asked to join us to "learn the ropes (?)". Contrary to prior arrangement, Dylan did not join us, though he was in the building. The :40 minute conversation went exactly along the lines of the unpublished letter to the editor I published under the heading "Dylan has a sock puppet?"--excerpted below:"You are guaranteed freedom of the press, Mr. Belden. Along with that freedom comes a responsibility--to REPORT the news--ALL of the news, ACCURATELY AND OBJECTIVELY. By this standard, the Tribune has failed--and the citizens realize it. The GREATEST ASSET A NEWSPAPER HAS is its CREDIBILITY--and the Tribune has sacrificed it. When a newspaper can no longer be trusted to give an objective accounting of the news, it ceases to be a newspaper--it is little more than an advertising shopper.
The Tribune has consistently refused to report what really goes on at County Board meetings--not having a reporter in attendance--relying instead on minutes tendered to them--until the current controversy exposed how meetings were REALLY conducted. The Tribune, through its columnists and editorials, (most recently David Rask Behling, who managed to offend 1/4 of the County!) condoned and defended the status quo. You have consistently refused to print letters to the editor from individuals who take opposite positions from what the paper has printed--a violation of the trust of objectivity placed with you.
The recent shutdown of the Tribune Forum was the last straw. By your own words, you said it was second only to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune in activity, with 10,000 posts, compared to 500 for Austin. There were well over 230 registered members, and countless unregistered members, reading the Forum every day--a source of discussion in groups all around the County. The Forum was the ONLY means for these members to communicate--but it was SO EFFECTIVE that it brought public scrutiny to County Board actions. One would think you would be PROUD to host such a medium for change--BUT YOU SHUT IT DOWN. It certainly wasn't for COST--it costs virtually NOTHING to host a Forum. You said it was "due to abuses by members"--but members recall only two posts that had objectionable material in them, and they can be caught by your "auto-censor" that screens for objectionable words. TWO posts out of 10,000! No, it wasn't shut down because of "abuses"--IT WAS SHUT DOWN BECAUSE PEOPLE WERE BECOMING CRITICAL OF THE TRIBUNE, AND OF COUNTY GOVERNMENT! It would be interesting to let people judge for themselves whether or not the Forum was truly abusive--BUT YOU'VE DESTROYED THE EVIDENCE! The new Forum, paid for by the users, and self-censoring, is up at albertlea.com"
Ms. Moser was aware of the former Forum, and of this one. I made the point that there was a REASON that the former forum was so popular--it was because it was NEEDED in the community! Nobody I know can't wait to get their hands on the printed version of the paper, but obviously, there is a GREAT DEAL of interest in the doings in the County on the FORUM--just because it is RELEVANT, UNCENSORED, and breaks news instead of printing what's handed to it.
I again made my case for "harder" news, for investigative reporting, for comparison articles (I used the comparison between the Freeborn County Collaborative and the Steele County versions, suggesting that the two be compared, and let readers decide), I asked that the paper take an educational tack for its readers, that they come up with a balance for Behling,
Christine asked why I posted articles about the County, and not the City--I said that as a contractor for the City, while it would be legal for me to offer opinions, I felt it would not be proper. She asked "with all the controversy going on with the County government, do you think there is a difference between it and the City? Since the question was about COUNTY government, I told her--"The difference between the City and County government is the way business is conducted. The City operates with an agenda, published well in advance, with a pre-agenda meeting, all facts in front of Council members, meetings are held at night, where the public can attend, and the meetings are broadcast. By comparison, the County meetings are a "free-for-all", held at 8:30 on a Tuesday morning (when most people cannot attend), not well attended by the media, and NOT broadcast. It is easy for the County to slip something by when nobody is looking".
Moser and True were attentive, they took notes, and while no promises were made, I had a good feeling about the meeting. Several more people have appointments--here's your chance to weigh in with your thoughts--call 373-1411 to schedule an appointment, or to give your thoughts by phone. I really do believe she is listening--whether she has the power to make changes is unknown.
Posted by minnow on Aug. 27 2003,9:41 am
Well, no one can say you didn't take action and did what you could do. They can't complain about that!
Posted by hoosier on Aug. 27 2003,11:34 am
Nice post Jim. I just came from my meeting with Ms. Moser and Kevin, their ad director. First off, let me say how nice it was for them to meet with us, it was the smart thing to do of course, but they didnt have to. For that thanks. Our meeting lasted about an hour, Ms. Moser seemed to me that she really was interested in what I had to say, she took notes and asked some questions. I pointed out the illegal meetings that was attended by one of their reporters, who by the way isnt at the Tribune any longer, and the fact that he was seen at Phillys every weekend with two or three commissioners. She understood that this was a problem and it made the paper look bad. I asked how can an elected official just make a call to the paper and have his story printed word for word without ever checking the truthfulness of it? I'm talking about Nelson calling the socalled state authority on open meetings. Anyway, they listened to what I had to say, looked at some material I had brought to show them how far out of line Belden can be, and they both agreed that they could do better, and that they are going to do their best to see that it does get better. I for one believe her. I have been one of the papers biggest critics, but I am willing to give her a chance. I did tell her that if it turns out you are just meeting with us to make us think you care, and nothing gets done to change things at the paper, that the next step for me would be to go door to door asking people to cancel their paper, go to the advertisers and tell them that we will boycott their stores and products. For now I believe these things can wait, at least until she has a chance to do some things differently at the Tribune. You might say they are on probation. But for now, I truely think that she cares, that she thinks we had legitimate questions, and that she will do everything in her power to make things better at the Tribune. She did say one thing about the Tribune forum I thought was interesting. I told her I thought Belden had a right to post on his forum, but that it just didnt work, that he just pissed people off. She said he should have never posted in the forum, just like she would never do it, it was his mistake to do it in the first place. She also said that he should be able to take the heat a little better. So you see, she wasnt just there to defend Belden, she knows he has made a lot of mistakes. But like I said, as long as she is the boss and does the things she told me today that she would do, I am more than willing to give her the chance. But, this is the last chance.
Posted by minnow on Aug. 27 2003,11:51 am
It looks like Dylan done (pissed off) censored the wrong people! 