Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

  • Shop
  • Subscribe to BMG
  • Contact
  • Log In
  • Front Page
  • All Posts
  • About
  • Rules
  • Events
  • Register on BMG

Does TV Station Employee’s Anti-Wind Activism Cross the Line?

December 30, 2013 By thegreenmiles

Anti-wind energy activists like to complain that the liberal media is out to get them. But one Fairhaven anti-wind activist not only works for a TV station, his video footage has repeatedly been used on air, raising questions about whether journalistic lines have been crossed.

By day, John Methia is director of broadcast operations at WLNE-TV in Providence. By night, he’s a leader of the Fairhaven group “WindWise” that promotes wind energy hypochondria, trying to convince people that wind turbines cause just about every malady known to man or beast. As Dean Starkman writes at GoLocalProv.com, those lines have blurred when Methia’s footage trying to discredit the turbines has aired on WLNE newscasts:

When Methia is shooting footage, he starts to put on a journalist’s hat. He is gathering news. I don’t see much distinction between taking photos, or video, and taking notes in a reporter’s notebook. Each act requires a process of selection. Some images or facts are included; some are left out. It shouldn’t come as a huge shock, for instance, that the Methia video that made it on the air would tend to be material that the anti-turbine people would want to see.

But wait: shouldn’t Methia’s video be considered like any other video coming over the transom – something to be evaluated by news personnel? In theory, there’s no difference. But in practice, what’s happening here is that a news organization employee – and with some clout, after all, even if he’s not on the news side — is gathering material for broadcast, and lo, it gets on the air.

Here, the pro-turbine people would seem to have a beef. Indeed, it’s a lot for ABC6 to ask viewers to trust some theoretical Chinese Wall between the business side and news, especially on such a hot-button issue. This is a bridge too far.

Methia is clearly trying to have it both ways – he wants to be a political activist by night, while being able to stroll across the TV station and place footage into the news director’s hands by day. “If Methia wants to stay active, and there’s no real reason he shouldn’t, he should avoid news-gathering,” Starkman concludes. “If he wants to gather news, he should be held to journalists’ standards.”

Underhanded tactics like this are why anti-wind activists keep losing public support. No one believes their absurd health claims, so they’re left to sneaking their propaganda videos into newscasts, dragging out dead-end legal battles, and using bullying and intimidation to try to get their way.

Years from now, the generation that’s grown up with wind turbines will find them just as unremarkable as previous generations found radio towers and cell phone towers, and they’ll wonder why anyone ever listened to anti-wind activists.

Please share widely!
fb-share-icon
Tweet
0
0

Filed Under: User Tagged With: fairhaven, media, wind-energy

Recommended Posts

  • No posts liked yet.

Recent User Posts

Predictions Open Thread

December 22, 2022 By jconway

This is why I love Joe Biden

December 21, 2022 By fredrichlariccia

Garland’s Word

December 19, 2022 By terrymcginty

Some Parting Thoughts

December 19, 2022 By jconway

Beware the latest grift

December 16, 2022 By fredrichlariccia

Thank you, Blue Mass Group!

December 15, 2022 By methuenprogressive

Recent Comments

  • blueeyes on Beware the latest griftSo where to, then??
  • Christopher on Some Parting ThoughtsI've enjoyed our discussions as well (but we have yet to…
  • Christopher on Beware the latest griftI can't imagine anyone of our ilk not already on Twitter…
  • blueeyes on Beware the latest griftI will miss this site. Where are people going? Twitter?…
  • chrismatth on A valedictoryI joined BMG late - 13 years ago next month and three da…
  • SomervilleTom on Geopolitics of FusionEVERY un-designed, un-built, and un-tested technology is…
  • Charley on the MTA on A valedictoryThat’s a great idea, and I’ll be there on Sunday. It’s a…

Archive

@bluemassgroup on Twitter

Twitter feed is not available at the moment.

From our sponsors




Google Calendar







Search

Archives

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter




Copyright © 2025 Owned and operated by BMG Media Empire LLC. Read the terms of use. Some rights reserved.