The publisher of the Star Tribune, Par Ridder, has been accused of, and has admitted to, some questionable business practices. In his move from the Pioneer Press to the Star Tribune, he apparently violated certain non-compete agreements. And he allegedly absconded with some strategic, internal business information that would aid his new employer at the direct expense of his old. As a conservative, i.e., an adherent of fair play and the highest of ethics in business , that is decidedly not cool.

However ...

There's got to be something right about a guy who's enflamed such hatred in the local journalism community. The journalist union at the Star Tribune recently voted 110 - 2 to call for the resignation of their boss. A bold move for a bunch of people in a floundering industry about to start negotiations on a new contract. (To pass along some ancient advice, if you're going to try and kill the king, better make sure you kill the king.)

Their statement:

We, the journalists of the Star Tribune, call on Par Ridder to resign as publisher," the resolution said. "We believe the unethical actions to which he admitted in court have damaged the Star Tribune's credibility and integrity and undermined our ability to hold public figures accountable for their actions. For the good of the Star Tribune and the community it serves, we believe he should step down.

Please. Par Ridder's antics damaging the "credibility and integrity" of the Star Tribune is like saying the ocean floor damaged the hull of the Titanic.

Liberal media columnist Brian Lambert has been documenting (and reveling in) the enmity local journalists feel toward the man. He recently recounted some of his experiences working under Ridder at the Pioneer Press:

One of the two occasions I had the good fortune to listen to Mr. Ridder up close -- prior to his court appearances, I mean -- was a "Business Literacy"-Lite gathering he held for the staff of the Pioneer Press A&E section back in 2004. At one point he explained how he believed it was a good idea to steer the Pioneer Press Op-Ed page into "a conservative alternative to the Star Tribune."

Hmmm. That is an excellent idea. I wish I'd have come up with that. Wait a minute, I did. From August 2004:

Newspapers are my favorite medium and to get a local one providing a counterbalancing voice to the unyielding yammering of liberal ideology expressed in this town day in and day out? It would be nothing short of exquisite, for me and the other tens of thousands of conservatives in this increasingly 50-50 state and metro area. Such a move is also good business, particularly for the weaker sister in this tandem.

Also from Lambert, this report on Ridder's opinion on newspaper endorsements:

Par was explicit, I'm told, in seeing no good reason for the Star Tribune to continue making presidential endorsements.

Flashback to me, from October, 2004:

With the election fast approaching we are now entering the season of candidate endorsements by the local papers. In my humble opinion, one of the low points of the year for journalism.

Of all the quarrels and quibbles we have with the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press, there's no more alienating event for the readership (specifically the Conservative segment) than reading the official institutional judgment on who we should be voting for. From on high, these self-selected experts on politics decree the right man for the job.

And at that moment, every dime you ever spent on that paper's subscription or patronizing its advertisers, feels like icy, bitter self-betrayal. Your local paper, as an institution, wraps it's arms and legs around a candidate you may despise and tells you and the world to vote for him. It doesn't get any more lonely than that for the dissenting news consumer.

This is getting eerie. Has anyone ever seen Par Ridder and me in the same room at the same time? I don't think so!

No, I am not Par Ridder. We just happen to be the two brightest young media executives, and visionaries, in this town.

If the palace coup succeeds in dumping him from his perch at the Star Tribune, rest assured, Par will always have a home with us at Fraters Libertas. Here's a vision for you, the Ridder Family fortune bankrolling the efforts (and six figure contributor salaries) of this fine web site. Sounds like the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Labels: Media-Local (05-07)

Posted by Saint Paul--Link