I’m not sure The Aspen Times can survive last Saturday. It was then the newspaper made an attempt to restore its reputation and resuscitate its useful life in Aspen. Unfortunately, it was not a proactive step forward in its battle for survival, but more an ungraceful stumble that left it slipping onto its backside in an icy intersection as it attempted to cross Main Street against the “don’t walk” signal.
What set the events in motion was a letter to The Times parent company, Ogden Newspapers in West Virginia, by a group of 18 current and past local elected officials. It stated their concerns about the suppression of editorial content pertaining to the sale of the Gorsuch Haus property at Lift 1A to Vladislav Doronin for $76.25 million and the termination of the paper’s new editor, Andrew Travers, for later publishing some of that information with what appeared to be explicit written permission to do so — all of which has raised eyebrows so high that one can’t help but scratch their head because it feels so weird.
The group of elected officials led off saying, “We write to you with grave concerns about the recent conduct of Ogden Newspapers’ leadership in regards to editorial decisions at The Aspen Times daily newspaper.” They then listed ways in which the paper might restore trust.
The letter seemed more a lifeline to the paper than a manifesto for its destruction. I read it under the premise that nobody wants The Aspen Times to die. Love for what it was fuels the passion against what it has become.
However, instead of beginning the arduous process of trying to restore community trust, The Aspen Times publisher, Allison Pattillo, tried to wash dirty laundry in the spin cycle. In a commentary in her paper placed immediately before the elected officials’ letter, she stated, “It is frankly shocking to see elected officials so brazenly use their positions of power to control a community paper.”
What is actually shocking is that this is an accusation of criminal activity committed by the elected officials for sending the letter. Good grief!
In fact, the elected officials stated: “Our faith in Ogden Newspapers is shattered and we are individually considering separate reactions as a result, including: directing our individual organizations to pull advertisements and notices from the paper; encourage local businesses to do the same; refusing interviews with reporters at The Aspen Times; or calling for a community boycott of the paper.”
It is clear that the officials were “individually” considering these actions. That their letter listed current and past political offices could not reasonably be interpreted as an official governmental threat to The Times, as their past and present positions cover a spectrum of roles throughout three separate municipalities and two counties in the Roaring Fork Valley.
Sounding like she was running for political office as a dark horse candidate instead of trying to save a cherished Aspen institution, Pattillo continued, “Worse, the letter, shared with me and company owners, is based on incomplete and inaccurate accounts of recent events at The Aspen Times. I look forward to clearing up any misconceptions or inaccuracies in the days and weeks to come.”
In other words, the elected officials’ letter was fine, but give the folks at Ogden a little time and maybe they can pick it apart enough to divert attention from the real issues. Otherwise, why not put it all out there right now to clear the air while the town is acutely agonizing over this situation?
I think the Ogden team would have been wise to see that the inclusion of these people’s electoral credentials in their letter is a reminder that all have been popularly elected to local offices and should be presumed to, collectively, have a solid read on how the community is seeing this. In short, they know what is going on around here.
Instead, Pattillo’s response may further antagonize many locals. That is the result the paper can least afford. Ogden employed a poor defensive strategy when a Hail Mary pass was called for. As it continues to stand, ownership doesn’t trust the newsroom, the newsroom doesn’t trust ownership and the community has lost faith. Everybody is losing.
In almost any other community, a local newspaper in this predicament could probably rise from the ashes with patience, humility and hard work. Even if the executives at Ogden would reverse course and make this effort, I’m not sure this possibility exists in Aspen today. Here is the harsh environment of a housing crisis — the gutted paper needs to replace professional and specifically trained staff amidst a severe local labor shortage. The paper has a camouflaged hook that few might hang a career move on. That is a lot to overcome.
Roger Marolt sees that when financial titans dance in our streets, they can’t help stomping all over local institutions with their clumsiness. [email protected]
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