PressEthic

It seems that this lets endorse a mayoral candidate strategy is getting popular with newspapers. There has been much talk about Mayor Bloomberg being endorsed by the The New York Times, but El Diario’s endorsement of Ferrer has not created quite the same stir. It is understandable of course given the fact that El Diario has a much smaller circulation than the The New York Times —and it’s not an English language paper.What's more the paper had started voicing it's support' of Ferrer even before he was officially nominated as the democratic candidate.

As a Puerto Rican in a multi-racial, multi-cultural city that is 27 percent Hispanic, Fernando Ferrer is the best leader for our times. For all these reasons we endorse Fernando Ferrer for Mayor of New York City.

And there you have it--the announcement followed, what can only be called a glowing tribute to Ferrer’s abilities and politician record.

In his long and distinguished career as a public servant, Ferrer has shown skill and honesty. As Borough President of the Bronx, he led the massive rebuilding of the South Bronx after others had allowed it to become a symbol of urban blight and decay. He worked with business, labor, community groups, and city, state and federal governments to create new homes, businesses, and opportunities, a revitalization that continues today.

I am not one of those people who feel compelled to promote the under-dog, but this shows a sad state of affairs for Ferrer. Just the difference in the scale and circulation of these papers reflects on the kind of odds he is up against.

Nevertheless, I would really prefer if newspapers kept their mayoral preferences to themselves, because their coverage definitely starts to lack credibility after such announcements. Reading the write-up in El Diario it seems they are reviewing an extremely successful movie, rather than analyzing a mayoral candidate. On the other hand if big publications can do it under the guise of balance and neutrality, at least El Diario is declaring its bias at the end of the article.