It has been over a year since the mess at the News Press, the local newspaper in Santa Barbara, began. Some 70+ employees including over 50 in the newsroom alone have been fired or resigned over the practices at the paper. One response was the formation of a website - Santa Barbara Newsroom which was an attept to keep the news coming. It was run by a number of former News Press reporters who were fired for union activities. Well Santa Barbara Newsroom is no longer live (they ran out of money) but their swan song is a documentary that shows what has happened in Santa Barbara.
The documentary teaches us some important lessons regarding the role of a newspaper, the necessity for unions to regain their strength, and the disaster that occurs when wealth and power run unconstrained. It runs about 29 minutes, but it is worth watching.
It also reminds me that the battle is not over and that we must not forget it and move on to the next thing... if you live in Santa Barbara and have not cancelled your subscription to the News Press, do it today. If you have friends or family here, ask them to do so. If you visit stores in Santa Barbara, encourage them to find other venues for advertising and patronize those businesses that do advertise elsewhere. Fight the good fight!
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