Last Best News (https://montana-mint.com/lastbestnews/tag/missoula-independent/page/2/)
I couldn’t get past this sports headline in the June 25 Billings Gazette: “Three-time NFR qualifier Bill Parker passes at 62.”
I didn’t know Bill Parker and mean him no disrespect. But “passes”? A quarterback passes. A point guard passes. Even an offensive lineman with a C-minus average passes. Continue Reading →
What happens when a small town loses its local newspaper? Derek Brouwer, a former Billings Gazette reporter now working for the weekly Missoula Independent, attempts to answer that question in a front-page story published yesterday. He writes of the demise of the Bigfork Eagle, which went from independent ownership to becoming a property of Lee Enterprises (publisher of the Gazette, the Missoulian and a few other Montana papers) and then of Duane Hagadone, the owner of a regional media conglomerate. Along the way, Brouwer looks at the venerable Choteau Acantha, a much-respected little paper that has been publishing in Teton County for 123 years. (One of its editors was A.B. Guthrie’s father, and Guthrie worked there as a boy, in the capacity of printer’s devil, a term so old I’m not even sure what it means.)
The article covers a lot of familiar ground—Facebook is the new small-town newspaper, print is nearly obsolete, etc.—but from a purely Montana perspective. Continue Reading →
One of my favorite Montana columnists, Dan Brooks, who writes for the Missoula Independent, has a good piece out about the governor’s race. So far, he says, the contest between sitting Gov. Steve Bullock and his Republican challenger, Greg Gianforte, has boiled down to partisan attacks on Bullock for using the governor’s plane for personal matters and partisan attacks on Gianforte for a lawsuit he filed nearly 10 years ago to kill an easement that gave the public access to the East Gallatin River across his family’s property. Both things really did happen, Brooks writes—Gianforte did file a suit and Bullock did apparently overuse that plane—but neither camp has made much of a case for what either candidate will actually do if elected next fall. “What’s the hot idea out of Bullock for Governor right now, besides that Greg Gianforte tried to shut down a beach?” Brooks asks. Continue Reading →
The Missoula Independent is reporting some details about the Missoulian editor who resigned earlier this week, after being suspended for bringing a gun to work. From the sounds of it, Matt Bunk’s brief tenure at the newspaper was such a disaster that his showing up in the newsroom packing heat gave the powers that be an opportunity to get rid of him with little fear of being sued again. Here’s the key paragraph: “Current staffers and former reporters who spoke with the Indy this week describe a newsroom that was nearing revolt against an editor who they say bullied reporters and routinely threatened their jobs during disagreements. Some say they expected further resignations, or even a walkout, had Bunk been permitted to return.” Much of the blame lies with Missoulian Publisher Mark Heintzelman, who hired Bunk seven months ago after demoting longtime editor Sherry Devlin, who later resigned and sued the newspaper for wrongful discharge. Continue Reading →
Following up on a story broken by the Missoula Current, the Missoula Independent has new details on the suspension of Missoulian editor Matt Bunk, who violated company policy by bringing a gun to work. Indy reporter Derek Brouwer (formerly a reporter for the Billings Gazette) writes: “In a personal Facebook post he shared Monday with the Indy, Bunk says the incident involved an antique handgun his girlfriend recently gave him as an engagement gift. The editor says he has a concealed carry permit and often wears a gun, but forgot to remove it from his hip before entering the office one day. ‘Someone pointed it out, and I put it back in my car immediately,’ he wrote.” The Missoulian, like the Gazette, is owned by Lee Enterprises, and Brouwer points out that the “antique firearm” excuse wasn’t good enough for another editor at a Lee newspaper. Continue Reading →
You may have seen the news that a researcher in California claims that there is no Missoula. The Nevada County (Calif.) Scooper reported last week that Skyy Wolford, of North San Juan, Calif., had concluded that Missoula “is an elaborate hoax and does not exist.” (more…) Continue Reading →
If you are still an old-fashioned reader of Montana newspapers published by Lee Enterprises, then you missed last week’s most intriguing story. News that Lee was closing its Capitol bureau this week and letting go two of the state’s most respected journalists, Chuck Johnson and Mike Dennison, appeared first on the front page of the Great Falls Tribune. (more…) Continue Reading →
Don’t miss Dan Brooks’ fine analysis of the 2015 Legislature. Writing in the Missoula Independent, Brooks reminds us that, despite so much evidence to the contrary, there is occasionally some justice in the universe. The jumping-off point for Brooks’ column was the recent outbreak of bipartisan cooperation in Helena. Searching for a cause, he concluded that we can thank Rep. Art Wittich, R-Belgrade, for this unexpected turn of events. “Wittich’s doctrinaire conservatism,” Brooks writes, “forced moderate Republicans into a coalition with Democrats last week, and their cooperation might make the 2015 session productive after all.” Continue Reading →
When a business can’t wait to tell you what a great deal it is offering you, without quite explaining what the deal is, watch out. (more…) Continue Reading →
