Dear Editor;
Last issue July 15, you dedicated a generous amount of space to MP John Barlow's musings on the WE scandal, the ballooning federal debt and the CERB program. Though one-sided almost to the point of qualifying as an opinion piece, it was informative. However, the only mention of provincial politics was a summer reading recommendation by MLA RJ Sigurdson.
You’d think nothing was going on with the Province when, in fact, it was one of the most tumultuous weeks yet. According a survey released well before your deadline, nearly half of doctors said they are thinking of leaving Alberta for greener pastures. This gap in coverage was conspicuous — and it wasn't the first time.
Your newspaper is the only physical piece of journalism that hits many of our coffee tables every week.
Your readership treasures your product. It's obvious you're open to covering federal and provincial issues, yet you stop short when it comes tackling the bad news or angles our representatives might find challenging.
Every week, you have two full pages devoted to opinion but, more often than not, the meaty stuff doesn't make it in.
There's so much going on right now in the legislature that can easily be localized because it affects every single one of us.
The purpose of journalism is to inform and educate, give a voice to ordinary people and to hold authority to account. Ignoring the difficult stuff, news or editorial-wise, is a disservice to our community.
Jessica Hallam
Okotoks
