Adrian Gibson
First published in The Tribune http://www.tribune242.com/ on Friday, August 28, 2009 under the byline, Young Man's View.
"Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.
"As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
"Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
"And listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story.
"Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit
... an excerpt from the poem Desiderata, written by Max Ehrmann in the 1920s.
ON MONDAY, I was bombarded by phone calls -- in and outside of the journalistic community -- notifying me that Steve McKinney, a giant joke and well-recognized talking head had, in an incendiary and nasty monologue, launched a scurrilous and personal attack on me when he made erroneous claims on Island 102.9 FM's Sunday talk show Parliament Street.
Personally, I am not a listener/viewer of any of Mr McKinney's programmes, and I have never met him.
Frankly, Mr McKinney made disparaging remarks that were misleading, factually incorrect and apparently based upon his personal feelings. Steve McKinney, who appears to be a pandering demagogue, seems to have a finely honed ability to bend and distort reality and, in this case, proceeded to misinform the public--presumably upset about a recent column--and has therefore invited a response.
On July 31, The Tribune published a column in which I suggested that the new proposal for the establishment of a Bahamas National Press Association (BNPA) appeared to be on the fast track to crashing and burning, particularly as most credible journalists/columnists would not come close to such an organisation with a 10-foot pole--that is, as long as Steve McKinney, a man who is not seen as a journalist by many, remains vice-president of the association. I questioned whether or not this was a sick joke being played on the country's fourth estate, while also highlighting the 2007 election campaign in which Mr McKinney appeared to be a political operative and propaganda puppet for the then government, taking a seemingly biased broadcasting stance on public-owned radio. It is widely know that following the present government's victory at the polls, Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham publicly told Mr McKinney to "find (his) own ZNS" and summarily fired him, presumably for perceived misuse of the public airwaves.
Over time, I have come to see Mr McKinney as an insufferable, overrated poser parading around town from one radio station to another.
In the Yuletide season of 2007/2008, Mr McKinney also used the Parliament Street platform to attack me, as well as Tribune publisher Eileen Carron and then managing editor John Marquis. I listened and remembered "what peace there may be in silence", choosing not to respond to his comments. However, since this week Monday, I have listened to Mr McKinney's recent egregious claims and factual errors, and so today I will address them while discussing McKinney's so-called press club.
On his talk show, Mr McKinney--who reminds me of an imitation Rush Limbaugh--said:
"He is no journalist per se, he is a school teacher, a young fella who just turned 25 by his own admission in a column he wrote.
Column
"Why are you going to disrespect that (presumably meaning him and his experience), when you yourself--you are just a kid--you just came into the field, you're not even a journalist, you write a column and they give you something every now and then in the newspapers," he ranted, even telling a caller that he did not consider me a journalist. Here, Mr McKinney seemed to have been contradicting himself, oscillating on what he thought about me.
Mr McKinney continued: "Certainly (he is) on the wrong wicket if he's gonna go around the place attacking people whose shoulders (he) should be standing on and appreciating that he could sit at the feet and learn something."
At this point, it was clear that Mr McKinney had implied that I have never worked in a newsroom--this being breaking news to myself and all those who know me. However, it appears that Mr McKinney's unsubstantiated foaming-at-the-mouth only illustrated an allergy to the facts and documentation--in this case, as it related to me.
Yes, I am an educator. However, I am also a trained journalist. Mr McKinney, I believe, calls himself a journalist and wants to be seen as a "senior man"--a leader of a press association--but, had he made the slightest effort to conduct some form of research, or had he simply called Tribune news editor Paco Nunez, he would not have spewed such blatant misinformation. Had Steve McKinney taken his own advice and visited The Tribune's morgue, he would have found news stories written by myself. Although I had to leave The Tribune's newsroom for college, even today I retain my byline to pen a new story here or there and, at age 20, was afforded the opportunity to write a column. Go do your home work, Steve!
Mr McKinney, you in my opinion are a pariah in the journalistic community, so what--pray tell--can I learn at your discredited feet that renowned, credible journalists such as Paco Nunez, Erica Wells, John Marquis, Eileen Carron, or even Sir Arthur Foulkes (now a politician with oversight of BIS) could not teach me? What am I going to learn at the feet of a government propagandist--to be a "yes man", hiding behind a desk? Sir, in my opinion, you are not in the league of Kirk Smith, Phil Smith, Carlton Smith, Rusty Bethel, Darold Miller, Wendall Jones, Picewell Forbes and several of the other great broadcasters that have graced the airwaves!
In 2007, when other pundits criticised this same "broadcaster" for what appeared to be political pandering, an over abundance of government contracts and outright bias on taxpayer radio, I remained silent and sympathized with Mr McKinney whose daughter also passed away that year after she was brutally stabbed by her boyfriend, who was the father of her child.
However, Mr McKinney has, in making his feeble argument against me, chosen to sordidly boost his claim to having more experience by using the age of his late daughter as a measuring stick, saying that I "just reach" and "well you ain't start to live yet brother, my daughter would have been older than you, have more respect."
He went on to say: "Obviously, somebody else influences him, probably some person who he respects as a journalist would have influenced him to constantly write such rubbish and nonsense." There is pathology here. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Steve McKinney also claimed that I said in a recent column that "fat people should get a life."
That is a complete lie! Furthermore, he claims that "he attacks me because he don't like me, period" and that I merely "want to be seen and counted." These statements are laughable and it is pathetic when such a "senior journalist" is fervently demanding my respect. Today, Mr McKinney earns the title of "misinformer of the week."
There are some journalists for whom I have a great deal of respect, for eg, Nicki Kelly, Paco Nunez, Eileen Carron, Athena Damianos, Wendall Jones, Carlton Smith, Erica Wells, P Anthony White, etc. Some of these persons are genuine journalists, untarnished by any political interests or scandal, and who would be fitting heads of any press club!
Indeed, it appears that as a "journalist", Mr McKinney has lost his appreciation for journalistic freedom, since today he is merely a propagandist for the government's mouth piece (BIS), describing his role on Sunday as "introducing what the government is saying." Yet he has the nerve to talk about reportage! The joke is that Mr McKinney claimed, on the same talk show, that he does documentaries--hopefully, that's not what they now call the dissemination of government propaganda.
Is it possible that Mr McKinney has got tired of trotting behind government ministers, and is now desperately seeking to fabricate a feud to increase his sagging listenership? Could it be said that accurate reporting may appear to be a secondary consideration for Mr McKinney? Who would want to be in a press association with people who work for government run organizations such as BIS? BIS is not a part of the media, it is a part of the propaganda arm of the government!
Journalism
Mr McKinney, if you are such a great journalist, why did you chicken out and join the government propaganda machine instead of staying in independent journalism? Or, is it maybe that you couldn't hack it or maybe the profession didn't want you anymore? The job of the real press is to speak for the people, not for the government!
Does Mr McKinney--the journalist--even write his own script at BIS? Is this so-called press club another cheap bid to feel special, to promote a larger group--even one comparable to a lodge?
Bahamians are tired of Mr McKinney's arrogant and reckless talk.
Mr McKinney should try to work on his personal development rather than seemingly seeking prominence and quick fixes. This self-appointed vice president should know that such a press club--without open elections--is no backdoor route to prominence or possible electability. The news rooms have, for the most part, all burst into hysterical laughter after receiving a package from McKinney's press association, with several members of the press openly expressing their resistance to even joining a conga line with Steve McKinney in a leadership position.
If Mr McKinney really wishes to know what other real, respected journalists think about him, he should just google the names "Sir Arthur Foulkes" and "Larry Smith". Sir, at times, I am sorry that you have to suffer the presence of yourself!
