Walters: Why Journalism Matters
dan_walters
By Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary
Published 4 years ago on
March 18, 2020
Photo of newspapers
(Shutterstock)

Share

This is Sunshine Week, which pays homage to the principle that the public’s business should be public even though officials often try to keep us in the dark about their unsavory activities.
By happenstance, last week provided Californians with four cogent examples of why independent journalism is a vital bulwark against shenanigans and coverups.


Dan Walters
Opinion
The first involves California’s woebegone bullet train project and Los Angeles Times reporter Ralph Vartabedian, who has broken story after story about the project’s dipsy-doodle financing and management — or, more accurately, mismanagement.
Vartabedian’s latest saga of the train to nowhere describes how employees of the project’s lead contractor, WSP, were disciplined if they “failed to toe the company line” that the project was proceeding smoothly.
“I was told to shut up and not say anything,” Vartabedian quotes Mark Styles, who had been hired by WSP as a senior scheduler in its Fresno office. “I was told that I didn’t understand the political arena the project was in. I told them I am not going to shut up. This is my job.”
Vartabedian wrote, “The atmosphere described by Styles has been corroborated by a half dozen current and former senior officials knowledgeable about the project’s Fresno office.”
The second example comes from the Sacramento Bee and reporter Wes Venteicher, who specializes in the vast state bureaucracy.

Many Lawmakers Skirt Campaign Finance Laws by Setting up Personal Charities

His article revealed that the warden of Mule Creek State Prison, Joe Lizarraga, retired with a $433,000 lump sum payment and an $11,500 monthly pension while under investigation for theft and trying to cover up his actions.
Venteicher used the California Public Records Act, a vital tool in uncovering official malfeasance, to obtain a redacted report from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation that laid out what Lizarraga had allegedly done.
“The investigation centered on a Sept. 14, 2018, incident at Interfaith Food Bank Thrift Store in Sutter Creek, according to the report,” Venteicher wrote. “Lizarraga removed price tags from winter equipment in the store and then suggested lower prices to a cashier, according to the report.”
Venteicher ‘s article continued, “About two weeks after he visited the store, Lizarraga wrote a personal money order for $125 to dissuade a witness from participating in his criminal prosecution, according to the report.
“On Dec. 24, 2018, he made another bribe attempt using charitable funds from the prison, according to the report.”
Laurel Rosenhall, a CalMatters reporter who specializes in the Legislature, revealed that many lawmakers skirt campaign finance laws by setting up personal charities to which special interests contribute.

Californians Would Have Known Nothing About Them

“A nonprofit run by a California assemblyman has helped fund a literacy organization led by his wife, who, as CEO, was drawing a six-figure salary,” Rosenhall wrote. “Nonprofits run by lawmakers and their staff are hosting fundraisers where lobbyists can mingle at the Disneyland Hotel with politicians, and policy conferences where tech executives can dine in Silicon Valley with legislators shaping California’s laws on data privacy and the gig economy.”
“Much of the money has come from corporations and unions with business before the Legislature, including oil, tobacco and other lobbies whose political contributions are officially or unofficially shunned by the member’s party,” Rosenhall continued.
Finally, Fresno Bee reporter Yesenia Amaro, after a lengthy investigation, reported that a Madera County social worker “intentionally discarded hundreds of child abuse reports last year.”
Amaro also used the Public Records Act to obtain departmental emails about the 357 reports that had been dumped by an unnamed social worker, who’s no longer working for the county.
“While sources said there is no known evidence that any child died as a result, emails show workers feared children suffered more abuse while reports were stuffed in waste bins and gathered dust around the social worker’s desk between September and November last year,” Amaro wrote.
What’s wrong with the situations that Vartabedian, Venteicher, Rosenhall and Amaro describe? Everything, and Californians would have known nothing about them without their digging.
CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more stories by Dan Walters, go to calmatters.org/commentary.
[activecampaign form=31]

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

How California’s Prized Solution for Methane Gas Is Backfiring on Farmers

DON'T MISS

Many Californians Rely on This Farmers Market Program. Newsom Wants to Cut It

DON'T MISS

Carbon Capture Storage Is Key to California’s Economy & Energy Future

DON'T MISS

CA Leaders Must Address Falling Enrollment & Rising Absenteeism in Public Schools

DON'T MISS

Shady Business Owners Can Hide Behind LLCs. CA Should Make Their Identities Public.

DON'T MISS

Sunshine Week: Growing Secrecy Limits Government Accountability

DON'T MISS

SLO Moves to End Gerrymandering, Yet Much of California Still Lets Politicians Draw Voting Maps

DON'T MISS

Sunshine Week: A Healthy Democracy Requires Your Support of Local Journalism

DON'T MISS

SoCal’s Huge Logistics Industry Faces Backlash Over Wages and Pollution

DON'T MISS

No Politician Alive Can ‘Save Democracy.’ That Job Is Exclusively for ‘We the People.’

No data was found

The 49ers Have Been Docked a 2025 Fifth-Round Draft Pick for an Accounting Error

11 hours ago

Fresno Bank Sued. It Allegedly Helped Bitwise Commit Fraud.

Bitwise /

11 hours ago

How California’s Prized Solution for Methane Gas Is Backfiring on Farmers

Environment /

14 hours ago

Supreme Court Seems Favorable to Biden Administration Over Efforts to Combat Social Media Posts

15 hours ago

Putin Extends Rule in Preordained Russian Election After Harshest Crackdown Since Soviet Era

15 hours ago

Ohtani to Begin Throwing Program Soon. Roberts Hints Dodgers Star Might Play in the Field

15 hours ago

Trump: Some Migrants Are ‘Not People’, There’ll Be a ‘Bloodbath’ if I Lose

15 hours ago

Tech Lawyer and Philanthropist Nicole Shanahan Rumored as RFK Jr.’s VP Pick

News /

16 hours ago

March Madness is Here. UConn, Purdue, Houston and North Carolina Get Top Seeding in NCAA Tournament

16 hours ago

Crafts Retailer Joann Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy as Consumers Cut Back on Pandemic-Era Hobbies

17 hours ago

Records Show That Valley Children’s Leader Suntrapak’s Pay Exceeds $5 Million

■Valley Children’s paid CEO Todd Suntrapak $5.2 million in 2021. The hospital also gave him a $5 million forgivable home loan. ■The Va...
Healthcare /

11 hours ago

Healthcare /
11 hours ago

Records Show That Valley Children’s Leader Suntrapak’s Pay Exceeds $5 Million

Local Education /
11 hours ago

3 Valley Schools Honored by State as Model Community Day Schools

Local Education /
11 hours ago

Will FUSD Trustees Look First Only at Internal Candidates in Superintendent Search?

11 hours ago

The 49ers Have Been Docked a 2025 Fifth-Round Draft Pick for an Accounting Error

Bitwise /
11 hours ago

Fresno Bank Sued. It Allegedly Helped Bitwise Commit Fraud.

Environment /
14 hours ago

How California’s Prized Solution for Methane Gas Is Backfiring on Farmers

15 hours ago

Supreme Court Seems Favorable to Biden Administration Over Efforts to Combat Social Media Posts

15 hours ago

Putin Extends Rule in Preordained Russian Election After Harshest Crackdown Since Soviet Era

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend