Building Trades News

Why Isn’t Labor’s Story on the Front Page?

By Richard Slawson, Executive-Secretary

"Colts Win Super Bowl - 29 to 17", Global Warming, the Middle East in Crisis, Free Trade, Plenty versus Poverty, Health Care Costs, Jobs, Illegal Immigration, Terrorist Threats, Nuclear Proliferation, U.S. National Debt, American Jobs, and the Super Bowl will continue to be linked in America's future. They are linked because of the coverage of the Super Bowl has overwhelmed all of the other issues, today. There are 56 sports channels on my Cable Service and 6 news channels, with 8 channels with some news reports and even the news channels carried the Super Bowl news. Sports make money. It is more fun to watch a football, basketball, baseball, hockey or soccer game than it is to sit through a speech by some monotone elected official or bureaucrat on an issue that we seemingly can't do anything about. The Super Bowl, as other entertainment, not just sports, has completely eclipsed the most critically important issues of our time with a huge part number of adult Americans. Buried within that statement is the reason that corporate interests run rampant in the U.S. today. The CEOs and their friends in Congress are continuing the dismantling of America while we watch football and other diversions that keep our attention away from what is really happening. A good dose of sports, movies or game shows is good for all of us at one time or another. We all lead busy lives today and enjoying a game provides some relaxation. But, we have to realize that the corporate interest in the Country control the media and what we watch and what we read. Of all of the issues, including the Super Bowl that I named, what wasn't included in anyone's list, was any discussion of the right to have a Union. It's not exciting to Americans to talk about Unions. With only 15 million Union members out of a total workforce of somewhere around 130 million we aren't making enough noise to be noticed by the mainstream media. So now, when the media is looking for stories that sell, they would rather do a piece about sports, a movie star or an elected official being indicted than they would a story about a Union organizing effort, especially one that is being successful. With all of the "news" that is reported on tv, radio, internet, and in the newspapers and magazines, you would think that the timely settlement of a collective bargaining agreements covering 20,000 workers would be noticed. But, no - a labor/management negotiations only catch the attention of the media when there isn't a timely settlement. This has been the Method of Operation for the media since the inception of collective bargaining. The effect of this M.O. has been to reinforce the negative aspects of labor management relations. If there is something negative to report the story must be told to the broadest audience and if there is something positive to report it is not reported at all or in a minimal manner. We have all looked for the story about the early and jointly beneficial contract settlement of our own collective bargaining agreement, only to find nothing reported, even after have distributed "press releases" to the local television, radio and print media. So you say: "How does that relate to the Super Bowl?" As I said earlier, "Sports make Money!" Unions don't make money for big business and therefore, big business doesn't report Unions' successes. It is easy to figure out that if we want our story told; (and that includes every Union member) how we negotiate more money for workers and their families, how we support American jobs and fair trade policies and how we are American patriots by buying American made products; we have to demand that the media cover our stories on the front page. If the Super Bowl catches Americans' attention we need to know that it is because it is something that every American can participate in - from their childhood to adulthood they can watch and root for the home team. We have to find a way to catch Americans' attention the same way for Unions. Unions are Americans' own organizations. They should understand that just as their father, mother or uncle was a Union member and as they are Union members today, they can watch, participate and root for the home team - American Unions. Changing the media's outlook will only happen if we change the way that American's view Unions. When enough of the public demands fair coverage of Unions and our negotiating, organizing and fairness efforts, the media will be directed by their own business interests to put us on the Front Page. You can help by asking your newspaper or other media why they haven't reported on your Unions' successes.

 

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