Politics

 



This page is in progress.  Here is the rough draft of our political coverage policies.  We encourage reader feedback as we develop this section.  As always, the goal of the Ferndale 115 News is to encourage fairness and open, healthy debate.  Editor and publisher Crystal Proxmire strives for objectivity and voluntarily sacrifices by not voting in local-level elections for office so she can truly remain impartial.  The Ferndale 115 News will not endorse any candidates, and we hope to aim any advocacy towards the general search for truth and improvement of communication.  Current views on political coverage:

 

1.  Any elected official, registered political candidate, or spokesperson for an established political group, is welcome to submit a letter to our readers, up to once per month.  This should be between 400-1000 words.  If it is your first time writing, please include contact information and a picture of yourself we can use with the letter.

 

2.  Anyone not included in the above are always welcome to send in their views through our FERNDALE VIEWS page.  This online paper is for everyone in Ferndale to have a voice, but it is up to you to use it.

 

3.  All candidates are welcome to send in up to 3 fund raising or political events per month for the EVENTS page.

 

4.  We will be doing political articles, but realistically we don’t have the resources to do this consistently.  Please be patient as we develop this skill, and realize that our coverage is done completely at convenience.  The more informed you keep us about meetings and events, the more likely we will be able to cover them.

 

5.  Political Advertising.  Political advertising is a tricky moral subject.  As an editor I do not want to contribute to the larger problem of money influencing elections.  However, The 115 currently accepts advertising from politicians as long as their ads won’t be on pages dealing with government or politics.  There are two reasons that we will accept political ads.  1.  People in Ferndale (and surrounding cities with shared districts) give money to other people in Ferndale so they can promote themselves to others in Ferndale.  By allowing political advertising at this hyper-local level, The 115 is helping the people of Ferndale get the best value for their money through the Democratic process.  Even our most expensive ad package is cheap enough that no one could buy our loyalties, and anyone who might complain about it can afford to buy their own ad too.  2.  I think it would be hard to draw the line between who would be politicians and who wouldn’t be, because in Ferndale the people who are active and care about the community are also the people who are involved politically.  That’s my main audience for readers, and the best chance I have for support.  As long as we remain fair, any candidate, individual or business should feel good about supporting The 115.

 

Send your suggestions to editor@ferndale115.com.  Also please let us know if you’re interested in sponsoring this page.