Utah newspapers mull response to political attacks

Attacks by politicians on newspapers are as old as the newspaper business, but the Utah Newspaper Association is taking one attacker seriously, out of concern that his attacks "could affect the public’s right to know," reports the latest edition of UNA's Pressing Issues.

The object of concern is "Inside Utah Politics," a weekly radio talk show by state Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, that begins with the line "Where conservative politicians get even with the liberal local media." He includes the Deseret News, the daily newspaper in Salt Lake City that is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and encourages listeners to abandon the papers for a Web site, TheNewsHive.com, which calls itself "a collaborative news and information site."

Joel Campbell, right, a former Deseret News reporter and editor who now teaches at Brigham Young University, another Mormon institution, "is going to be working on news releases, advertising strategy, in-house ads and public relations materials to help counter the attacks," Pressing Issues reports. (Read more)