HACKENSACK, N.J. — Assemblywoman and attorney Holly Schepisi (R-39) isn’t happy with how her district’s largest local daily is handling its coverage of the Katie Brennan hearings.
“For anyone ever wondering how the media picking and choosing what to report influences the public here is a prime example. Today I spent the entire day, sitting on the legislative panel, hearing testimony regarding the failure of pretty much everyone in the MURPHY administration to address the rape of a woman after they became aware. Tonight there is absolutely nothing on Northjersey.com regarding these hearings. Below are screenshots of the current headlines. In comparison, I sat on the Bridgegate committee as well and there was no other story reported on other than Bridgegate for close to 2 years.”
“Rape or bogus traffic study? Which is more important in your view?” said Schepisi on Facebook.
NorthJersey.com did in fact publish a story on Tuesday’s hearing featuring Murphy aides, but the story didn’t appear on the main page until around the time of Schepisi’s criticism, and it didn’t have prime positioning on the Bergen-Passiac focused news portal’s website as Schepisi pointed out in her Facebook post:
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https://www.facebook.com/hollyschepisi/posts/10156887939268711
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As of this writing, the aforementioned NorthJersey.com story on Tuesday’s hearings is still on the site’s main page. Stories with better position on the site include (1) a Vermont skiing story, (2) local High School sports box scores, and (3) a teaser headline concerning what’s the best hot dog.
The Record (northjersey.com) is owned by Gannett; the parent company reportedly began buying out members of its reporting staff last year. The departure of journalists including Herb Jackson has raised questions as to the commitment of the second-largest newspaper in New Jersey to continue offering strong political coverage.
The Brennan hearings are still trudging along with or without strong coverage. Meanwhile, Katie Brennan’s attorneys have taken the initial steps to sue the State of New Jersey over its hiring of her alleged rapist, Al Alvarez, a former Murphy Administration official.
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