Citizendia

TypeDaily newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
OwnerHearst Corporation
PublisherJack Sweeney
EditorJeff Cohen
Founded1901
Price$0. A newspaper is a written Publication containing News, information and Advertising, usually printed on low-cost paper called Newsprint. Broadsheet is the largest of the various Newspaper formats and is characterized by long vertical pages (typically 22 inches or more Hearst Communications Inc is a privately-held American -based Media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower in New York City, USA Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting 50 Monday-Saturday
$1. 75 Sunday
Headquarters801 Texas Avenue
Houston, Texas 77002
Flag of the United States United States
Circulation503,114 Daily [1]
677,425 Sunday[2]
ISSN1074-7109
Website: chron.com

The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the This is a list of the daily Newspapers in the World by average circulation An International Standard Serial Number ( ISSN) is a unique eight-digit number used to identify a print or electronic Periodical publication. A newspaper is a written Publication containing News, information and Advertising, usually printed on low-cost paper called Newsprint. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the As of March 2007, it is the ninth largest newspaper in the United States. This is a list of the top 100 newspapers in the United States by largest reported circulation With the demise of its long-time rival the Houston Post, its nearest major competitors are located in Dallas-Fort Worth. The Houston Post was a Newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States that was established on February 19, 1880,

The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily paper owned and operated by the Hearst Corporation, a multinational corporate media conglomerate with $4 billion in revenues. Hearst Communications Inc is a privately-held American -based Media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower in New York City, USA Multinational corporation ( MNC) or transnational corporation ( TNC) is a Corporation or enterprise that manages Production or delivers A media conglomerate describes companies that own large numbers of companies in various Mass media such as Television, Radio, Publishing, The paper employs nearly 2,000 people, including approximately 300 journalists, editors, and photographers. Journalism is the profession of writing or communicating formally employed by publications and broadcasters for the benefit of a particular Community of people An editorial, leader (UK or leading article (UK is an article in a Newspaper or Magazine that expresses the opinion of the Editor Photography (fә'tɒgrәfi or fә'tɑːgrәfi (from Greek φωτο and γραφία is the process and Art of recording pictures by means of capturing The Chronicle has bureaus in Washington, D.C., Mexico, Colombia, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, Beaumont and the Rio Grande Valley. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Colombia (kəˈlʌmbɪə officially the Republic of Colombia () is a country in northwestern South America. Beaumont is a city in and the County seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont&ndash Port Arthur Metropolitan The Rio Grande Valley is an area located in the southernmost tip of Texas. Its web site averages 25 million hits per month[3].

Contents

History

1901: Marcellus E. Foster

The Houston Chronicle was founded in 1901 by a former reporter for the now-defunct Houston Post, Marcellus E. Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The Houston Post was a Newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States that was established on February 19, 1880, Foster. Foster, who had been covering the Spindletop oil boom for the Post, invested in Spindletop and took $30 of the return on that investment — at the time equivalent to a week's wages — and used it to found the Chronicle. Spindletop is a Salt dome Oil field located in south Beaumont, Texas (approx

The Chronicle's first edition was published on October 14, 1901 and sold for two cents per copy, at a time when most papers sold for five cents each. Events 1066 - Norman Conquest: Battle of Hastings - In England on Senlac Hill seven miles from Hastings, the forces Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting At the end of its first month in operation, the Chronicle had a circulation of 4,378 — roughly one tenth of the population of Houston at the time. [4] Within the first year of operation, the paper purchased and consolidated the Daily Herald.

Goodfellows

In 1911, City Editor George Kepple started Goodfellows. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year On a Christmas Eve in 1911, Kepple passed a hat among the Chronicle's reporters to collect money to buy toys for a shoe-shine boy. Christmas Eve, December 24, is the day before Christmas Day, the celebrated birthday of Jesus.

Goodfellows continues today through donations made by the newspaper and its readers. It has grown into a city-wide program that provides needy children between the ages of two and ten with toys during the winter holidays. In 2003, Goodfellows distributed almost 250,000 toys to more than 100,000 needy children in the Greater Houston area. Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown is a 10-county Metropolitan area defined by the Office of Management and Budget.

1926: Jesse H. Jones

In 1926, Jesse H. Jones became the sole owner of the paper. Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Jesse Holman Jones (also known as Jesse H Jones) ( April 5, 1874 &ndash June 1, 1956) was a Houston Texas politician In 1968, the Chronicle set a Texas newspaper circulation record. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1981, the business pages — which up until then had been combined with sports — became its own section of the newspaper. Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981

1987: Hearst

On May 1, 1987, the Hearst Corporation purchased the Houston Chronicle for $415 Million. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Hearst Communications Inc is a privately-held American -based Media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower in New York City, USA In 1994, the Chronicle switched to being a morning-only paper. Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar) With the demise of the Houston Post the following year, the Chronicle became Houston's sole major daily newspaper.

People

Jack Sweeney is the publisher and president of the Houston Chronicle.

As of April 2006, the editorial board includes:

(The previous president was Richard J. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. V. Johnson, who died in 2006. )

The paper employs nearly 2,000 people, including approximately 300 journalists. Journalism is the profession of writing or communicating formally employed by publications and broadcasters for the benefit of a particular Community of people The paper's main political columnist is Cragg Hines, who is based in Washington, D. Cragg Hines is a Washington DC based political opinion columnist C. In addition, the Chronicle contracts with multiple distributors who circulate and deliver copies of the newspaper.

A longtime Chronicle officer was John Hulen Murphy, I, the assistant to Richard Johnson, former executive vice president of the Texas Daily Newspaper Association, and a newspaperman, mostly in Houston, for seventy-four years. John Hulen Murphy I ( February 23, 1913 - September 29, 2007) a Newspaperman for seventy-four years was the longtime executive vice

Awards

Individual awards

Pulitzer Prize

The Houston Chronicle is the only newspaper of the '10 largest' in the United States to have never won a Pulitzer Prize for journalism. The Pulitzer Prize, ˈpʊlɨtsɚ PULL-it-sər is an American award regarded as the highest national honor in Newspaper journalism, [6]

However, reporters at the newspaper have several times been Pulitzer finalists, recently for international reporting:

Sections

The Houston Chronicle is divided into several sections:

On some days, "local" sections (Z) for residents of various Houston-area neighborhoods appear - Depending on one's residence, a customer will receive one of the following sections on Thursdays:

Criticism

The paper's main critics are conservative talk radio station KSEV and its affiliated weblogs, Chronically Biased and Lone Star Times. Aldine is a Census-designated place (CDP in Harris County, Texas, United States, located within the Extraterritorial jurisdiction Alief is a community in Harris County, Texas, United States that is mostly within the city limits of Houston Texas. Bellaire is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area West University Place, often called West University or West U for short is a city located in the U "River Oaks" redirects here For the city in Tarrant County see River Oaks Texas. Meyerland is a community in southwest Houston Texas, outside of the 610 Loop and inside Beltway 8. The ZIP code is the system of Postal codes used by the United States Postal Service (USPS Southside Place is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States. Southampton is a neighborhood located in Houston, Texas. Southampton is known for its canopied boulevards and historic homes William Marsh Rice University (commonly called Rice University and opened in 1912 as The William Marsh Rice Institute for the Advancement of Letters Science and Art The Texas Medical Center, with one of the highest densities of clinical facilities for patient care basic science and Translational research of any location is the largest The Houston Museum District (colloquially just Museum District) is an area of Houston Texas south of downtown Westbury is a Neighborhood in the southwest part of Houston, Texas. Clear Lake City is a Master-planned community located in southeast Harris County Texas and is the second-largest master-planned community in Houston&mdashbehind This article is about a city in the US state of Texas For the Intel processor see Intel Core 2. Cypress (often referred to as Cypress-Fairbanks or Cy-Fair is an Unincorporated area of Harris County, Texas, United States located completely The East End is a district in eastern Houston, Texas, United States, located between the eastern edge of downtown to the Port of Houston When the city of Houston was founded in 1836 and incorporated in 1837 its founders&mdash John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen &mdashdivided it into political Fort Bend County is a county located along the Gulf Coast region in the U Houston Heights, often referred to simply as " The Heights," is a large community located in northwest-central Houston, Neartown is an area located in west-central Houston, Texas, United States and is one of the city's major cultural areas Katy is a city located in Fort Bend, Harris, and Waller Counties in the U For Kinwood Texas see Kinwood Kingwood is a 14000 acre (57 km² Master-planned community located in northeast Houston Texas Humble is a city in Harris County, Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area The Memorial area of Houston Texas is a wealthy district west of the Downtown Houston and northwest of Uptown Houston. Spring Branch is a community in west-northwest Houston, Texas, United States, roughly bordered by Clay Road and U Pasadena ( is a City south of Houston in Harris County Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area Baytown is a City in Chambers and Harris Counties in the Gulf Coast region of the U Pearland is a city located along the Gulf Coast region in the U Friendswood is a city in Galveston and Harris Counties in the U Spring is a Census-designated place (CDP and Unincorporated community located within the Extraterritorial jurisdiction of Houston in northern Klein is an unincorporated community in the Extraterritorial jurisdiction of Houston within north Harris County Texas, bordering on Houston to the Tomball is a city in Harris county in the US state of Texas. The population was 9089 at the 2000 census Tomball is a city in Harris county in the US state of Texas. The population was 9089 at the 2000 census Magnolia is a city in Montgomery County, Texas, United States. The Woodlands is not a Census-designated place (CDP and large master-planned community of Montgomery and Harris counties in the U Conservatism is a term used to describe political philosophies that favour Tradition, where tradition refers to various religious cultural or nationally defined Talk radio is a Radio format containing discussion about topical issues KSEV is a talk station at 700 on the AM radio dial and is available throughout the Houston, Texas area A blog (a contraction of the term " Web log " is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary descriptions of The paper's editorial page is often a target in Houston's political circles for what critics perceive as an overbearing habit of promoting light rail transit. For specific light rail systems many of which use the words "light rail" as part of their name see List of light-rail transit systems. Chronically Biased featured a cartoon character named "Captain Chronicle" who espouses light rail transit as the solution to all of Houston's problems (including those unrelated to traffic. )

In May of 2005 the Harris County Republican Party joined a boycott of the newspaper, [24] called for previously by KSEV hosts. Harris County is a County located in the US state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area The Republican Party accused the paper of having a liberal political slant, of biased coverage of the light rail project, of supporting Planned Parenthood and of waging a "personal smear campaign" against Houston area congressman Tom DeLay. METRORail is the Light rail line located in Houston Texas ( U Planned Parenthood is the collective name of organizations worldwide who are members of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF Thomas Dale DeLay (born April 8 1947 is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Sugar Land, Texas.

The newspaper also has had critics on the political left. The Houston Press, an alternative weekly tabloid newspaper that often takes a liberal perspective, used to run a column entitled "News Hostage", which often critiqued the Chronicle. The Houston Press is an Alternative weekly Newspaper published in Houston Texas. A tabloid is a Newspaper industry term which refers to a smaller newspaper format per spread to a weekly or semi-weekly alternative newspaper that focuses on local-interest Now that paper only occasionally criticizes the Chronicle in its "Hairballs" column.

Light Rail memorandum controversy

In late 2002, Chronicle website managers accidentally posted an internal memorandum on its Web site, HoustonChronicle.com. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. The memorandum [25] outlined a draft agenda of coordinated news articles, editorials, and op-eds seemingly intended to promote a hotly contested mass transit referendum to expand Houston's controversial METRORail system on the 2003 ballot, which was later approved narrowly by voters. A referendum (plural referendums or referenda) ballot question, or plebiscite (from Latin plebiscita METRORail is the Light rail line located in Houston Texas ( U Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. The memo's anonymous author proposed supporting the referendum and stated:

"Next November, voters in the city and across the Metropolitan Transit Authority service area will cast a truly important vote: They will decide whether Metro should be permitted to expand our rail rail system beyond the 7-mile South Main line. There isn't a more critical issue on the horizon.
I propose a series of editorials, editorial cartoons and Sounding Board columns leading up to the rail referendum, with this specific objective: Continuing our long standing efforts to make rail a permanent part of the transit mix here.
The timing, language and approach of the paper's editorials would, of course, be the decision of the Editorial Board. But I suggest that they could be built upon and informed by a news-feature package with an equally specific focus. . . "

The memorandum then proposed several "investigative" news stories and editorials designed to examine "the campaign led by Tom DeLay and Bob Lanier to defeat rail expansion. Thomas Dale DeLay (born April 8 1947 is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Sugar Land, Texas. Bob Lanier (born March 10, 1925) is a Businessman in the Real estate Industry ( Landar) who served as Mayor " DeLay, a Houston congressman, and Lanier, a former mayor of Houston, had both actively opposed light rail in the past.

The document was online for only an hour, but long enough to be viewed by some readers. Soon after the Houston Review, a conservative newspaper published by students at the University of Houston (now defunct), printed the memo's full text and an accompanying commentary that criticized the paper for bias toward rail. The University of Houston (often referred to as " U of H," " UH," or " Houston " is a public doctoral/research The Houston Press also accused the Chronicle of having a bias toward rail. [26] They dubbed the paper Houston's "in-house light rail newsletter," described it as a "tireless promoter of rail," and mocked its editorial board's portrayal of light rail as the key to making Houston a "world class" city [27] — a claim echoed by the city's former mayor, Lee Brown, who campaigned on a platform of bringing light rail to Houston. Other local weekly and monthly newspapers, including the Houston Forward Times, a local African-American weekly newspaper, seized on the controversy, as did local talk radio stations, bloggers, and the conservative Free Republic Internet forum. African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa Talk radio is a Radio format containing discussion about topical issues A blog (a contraction of the term " Web log " is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary descriptions of Free Republic is a moderated Internet forum, activist and chat site for self-described conservatives and nationalists, primarily within the United

The Chronicle's response was notably muted. Its first official response appeared in the "corrections" section later the same week stating: "An internal Houston Chronicle document was mistakenly posted to the editorial/opinion area of the Web site early Thursday morning. We apologize for any confusion it may have caused. "

Later, the Houston Press discovered Chronicle editor Jeff Cohen, who gave a statement in defense of the memorandum: "I make no apologies for having a thorough discussion of the issue. We have nothing to apologize for…There was an inadvertent posting of it to the Web site, and I'm sorry about that, but I make no apologies for the contents of it. "

After the memo's accidental release, the Chronicle's critics noted that its Editorial Board continued being a vocal advocate of the expansion of Houston's light rail and charged that the paper became a partisan participant in the debate over light rail expansion. According to a content analysis of the paper by the Houston Review done to support their allegation of bias, the Houston Chronicle published 5 editorials attacking rail opponents, 6 editorials promoting or endorsing light rail, 6 news stories attacking the motives of rail opponents, 3 news stories promoting a criminal investigation of rail opponents, and 1 staff editorial endorsing a criminal investigation of rail opponents during the course of the election. As the bond referendum approached, rail opponents criticized the Houston Chronicle's request that Texans for True Mobility (TTM), the main critic of METRORail, provide the paper with a copy of their financial contributor reports. TTM declined, saying they did not believe the Chronicle would adequately protect the privacy of their donors.

The Chronicle responded by making a complaint to the Harris County District Attorney's office asking that Texans for True Mobility be investigated for potential violations of Texas election law. The Chronicle alleged that TTM broke a law requiring PACs to disclose their donors. In the US, a Political Action Committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group regardless of size organized to elect political candidates Violation of this law, a misdemeanor, is punishable by a maximum $500 fine. TTM was a registered non-profit 501(c)(6) organization and said this status did not require them to disclose contributors like PACs must do. A non-profit organization ( abbreviated "NPO" also "not-for-profit" is a legally constituted Organization whose objective is to support or engage 501(c is a provision of the United States Internal Revenue Code ( listing 28 types of Non-profit organizations exempt from some federal The Chronicle argued that the law covered TTM because it made "paid political moves. " Texas campaign law allows nonprofits to run "educational" advertisements, but those advertisements cannot endorse specific political positions or people or make a specific recommendation in a pending election. The dispute was over whether TTM's advertisements, and specifically the slogans "Metro's Rail Plan Costs Too Much . . . Does Too Little" and "Metro's Plan Won't Work Here," were specific recommendations on how to vote.

Rosenthal later dismissed the Chronicle's complaint, finding it without merit on the grounds that the statute did not apply. Rosenthal's involvement in the probe itself came under fire by the Houston Press, which in editorials questioned whether Rosenthal was too close to TTM: from 2000 to 2004, Rosenthal accepted some $30,000 in donations from known TTM supporters. The Houston Press is an Alternative weekly Newspaper published in Houston Texas.

Later that year, the group revealed that that their TV and radio ads were funded by $30,000 in contributions made the day before the election by two PACs controlled by DeLay.

By comparison with TTM, which was extensively attacked in the paper's editorials and covered in multiple news stories, the Chronicle devoted only a portion of one article to the finances of Texans for Public Transportation (TPT), the main pro-METRORail group, according to the Houston Review. The Houston Review further alleged multiple conflicts of interest in TPT's financing. The report involved fourteen METRORail contracters and business interests who stood to gain financially from the project and donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to promote the referendum. [28]

Feuds with KSEV radio and Bill O'Reilly

In early 2004 the Chronicle was accused of bias and adding to the family's grief regarding its coverage of the death of Leroy Sandoval, a soldier from Houston who was killed in Iraq. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Chronicle reporter Lucas Wall visited the family of Sandoval for an interview about the loss of their loved one.

After the article appeared, Sandoval's family members complained that a sentence alleging "President Bush's failure to find weapons of mass destruction" in Iraq misrepresented their views on the war and President George W. Bush (the Sandoval family was supportive of the war). George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. The next day Sandoval's stepfather and sister called into Houston talk radio station KSEV and explained that Wall had pressured them for a quotation that criticized Bush and then included the line alleging Bush's "failure" against the wishes of the family. KSEV is a talk station at 700 on the AM radio dial and is available throughout the Houston, Texas area [29]

A bitter on-air showdown ensued between the KSEV radio show host/owner Dan Patrick, and an assistant managing editor at the Chronicle, who defended his reporter's story. Dan Patrick (born Dannie Scott Goeb 4 April 1950) is a Texas State Senator, broadcaster, author and conservative radio The incident prompted Patrick to join the call for a boycott of the paper. A boycott is a form of Consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using buying or dealing with someone or some other organization as an expression of [30] The story was also picked up by the local Houston television stations and, a week later, the O'Reilly Factor. The O'Reilly Factor is an American Talk show on the Fox News Channel hosted by commentator Bill O'Reilly, who discusses The issue cooled down when Chronicle publisher Jack Sweeney contacted the Sandoval family to apologize. [31]

Patrick and Bill O'Reilly have both been involved in subsequent disputes with the Chronicle over alleged biases and writings pertaining to each other. William James O'Reilly Jr (born September 10 1949 is an American television / radio host, Author, Syndicated columnist, and [32] In 2005 O'Reilly and editorial page editor James Howard Gibbons became involved in a heated exchange carried out over their respective media outlets involving a Chronicle editorial that, according to O'Reilly, seemingly advocated softer treatment for convicted child sex offenders. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Child sexual abuse is a form of Child abuse in which a child is abused for the sexual gratification of an adult or older adolescent


[33] The Chronicle responded to O'Reilly by editorializing against the host and accusing him of misrepresenting their position and misquoting a segment of the editorial. O'Reilly retracted the erroneous quotation but reiterated his criticism by quoting the correct editorial, which criticized Florida's Jessica Lunsford Act, espoused rehabilitation for sex offenders, and argued that "counseling reduces recidivism". Jessie's Law or "Jessica's Law" is the informal name given to a 2005 Florida law as well as laws in several other states designed to punish Sex A sex offender is a person who has been criminally charged and convicted of or has pled guilty to or pled Nolo contendere to a Sex crime. Recidivism ( IPA: /ɹɪˈsɪdɪvɪzm̩/ From recidive + ism, from Latin recidīvus "recurring" from re- The incident also prompted O'Reilly to host a segment on liberal bias at the Houston Chronicle on his March 12 television broadcast, featuring criticisms of the paper by Patrick. Media bias in the United States Events 538 - Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving [34]

Planned Parenthood contributions

The newspaper's objectivity on the issue of abortion has also been called into question following revelations that the Chronicle makes several annual contributions to Planned Parenthood. An Planned Parenthood is the collective name of organizations worldwide who are members of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF According to an investigation by the Houston Review, an "independent, conservative, student-run journal of news and opinion", the Chronicle donated between $6,000 - $12,000 to Planned Parenthood over the period 1994 to 1998. Year 1994 ( MCMXCIV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1994 Gregorian calendar) Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) One of its executives, Richard J. V. Johnson (together with his wife), has also donated between $5,000 and $15,000 over the period 1992 to 1998. Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The Chronicle additionally donated between $1,000 and $5,000 to Planned Parenthood in 2002 and is a member of the organization's employee donations program that matches dollar amounts contributed to the group by the paper's employees. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. [35].

Such donations typically occur in the form of buying tables for Planned Parenthood luncheons and similar events.

According to the Texas Alliance for Life's Dr. Joe Pojman, this activity "calls into question the Chronicle’s professional objectivity when reporting on the abortion issue. " The Texas Foundation for Life, another pro-life organization, has accused the paper of taking a pro-choice position in its editorials. Overview See also Ethical aspects of abortion Pro-choice advocates emphasize their beliefs that having a child is a personal choice that affects a woman's body and The organization also contends that the paper has misrepresented the effects of legislation that removes state funding for abortion providers by relying heavily on Planned Parenthood sources for its articles. [36]

The paper's support for Planned Parenthood has also been cited by KSEV radio and the Republican Party as a reason for their boycotts.

Purchase of Houston Post assets

In 1995, the Houston Post ceased operations, leaving the Chronicle as Houston's only major daily newspaper, and the Hearst Corporation purchased some of the Post's assets. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Houston Chronicle announced it in a way that suggested the shutdown and Hearst's purchase of the Post's assets were simultaneous events. "Post closes; Hearst buys assets," the Chronicle headline read the day after the Post was shut.

Internal memos obtained from by FOIA from the Justice Department antitrust attorneys who investigated the closing of the Houston Post said the Chronicle's parent organization struck a deal to buy the Post six months before it closed. For animal rights group see Justice Department (JD The United States Department of Justice ( DOJ) is a Cabinet department The memos, first obtained by the alternative paper the Houston Press, say the Chronicle's conglomerate and the Post "reached an agreement in October, 1994, for the sale of Houston Post Co. 's assets for approximately $120 million. " [37]

No anti-trust charges have been filed against the Houston Chronicle, the Houston Post or against the Hearst corporation.

Robert Jensen and September 11, 2001 controversy

In the weeks following the September 11, 2001 attacks the Houston Chronicle published a series of opinion articles by University of Texas journalism professor Robert Jensen that asserted the United States was "just as guilty" as the hijackers in committing acts of violence and compared that attack with the history of U. Robert William Jensen (born July 14 1958) is a professor of Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin. S. attacks on civilians in other countries. According to an article of Jensen's published by the Chronicle three days after the attacks.

"For more than five decades throughout the Third World, the United States has deliberately targeted civilians or engaged in violence so indiscriminate that there is no other way to understand it except as terrorism. Third World is a name given to nations that are generally considered to be underdeveloped economically State terrorism refers to acts of Terrorism conducted by governments "

In a follow up article Jensen continued, asserting "my anger is directed not only at individuals who engineered the Sept. 11 tragedy, but at those who have held power in the United States and have engineered attacks on civilians every bit as tragic. " He goes on to warn of more civilian deaths that may follow retaliation, "let us not forget that a 'massive response' will kill people, and if the pattern of past U. Collateral damage is damage that is unintended or incidental to the intended outcome S. actions holds, it will kill innocents. " [38]

The opinion piece resulted in hundreds of angry letters to the editor and reportedly over 4,000 angry responses to Jensen. [39] Among them were claims of insensitivity against the newspaper and of giving an unduly large audience to a position characterized as being extremist. University of Texas president Larry Faulkner issued a response denouncing Jenson's as "a fountain of undiluted foolishness on issues of public policy", noting "[h]e is not speaking in the University's name and may not speak in its name. Larry Faulkner was the twenty-seventh president of The University of Texas at Austin. " [40]

Despite the public backlash, the Chronicle printed four subsequent opinion articles by Jensen, asserting his case. Jensen is also a regular guest writer on the opinion page and has published several dozen opinion articles on other subjects in the Chronicle.

Tom DeLay poll

In January 2006 the Chronicle hired Dr. Richard Murray of the University of Houston to conduct an election survey in the district of U. Richard Alan Murray is British Businessman and the current chairman of Charlton Athletic F The University of Houston (often referred to as " U of H," " UH," or " Houston " is a public doctoral/research S. Rep. Tom DeLay, in light of his 2005 indictment by District Attorney Ronnie Earle for alleged campaign money violations. Thomas Dale DeLay (born April 8 1947 is a former member of the United States House of Representatives from Sugar Land, Texas. Ronald Dale "Ronnie" Earle (born February 23, 1942) is the District Attorney for Travis County Texas The Chronicle claimed that its poll showed "severely eroded support for U. S. Rep Tom DeLay in his district, most notably among Republicans who have voted for him before. "[41]

Almost immediately, supporters of DeLay began to argue that Murray's poll had severe methodological flaws and was designed to be biased against DeLay. Dr. David Hill, a pollster who writes for The Hill newspaper, questioned the poll's accuracy. The Hill is a Newspaper published in Washington DC It is written for and about the U According to Hill the poll by Murray had an unusually small sample of participants. This gave the poll a margin of error of plus/minus 9 percentage points, which is more than twice the error margin of most election surveys. [42]

Former Texas Secretary of State Jack Rains contacted the Chronicle's James Howard Gibbons, alleging that the poll appeared to incorrectly count non-Republican Primary voters in its sample. Rains also pointed out that Dr. Murray had a conflict of interest in the poll. Murray's son Keir Murray is a Democratic political consultant who works for Nick Lampson, DeLay's Democratic challenger in 2006. Nicholas Valentino Lampson, usually known as Nick Lampson (born February 14, 1945) is an American politician from the state of [43] In response, Gibbons denied the methodological flaws in the poll and stated:

If you object to the potential for conflict between Murray pere et fils, what must you think of Rep. DeLay, who allowed his wife and daughter to be hired by PACs and lobbying firms?[44]

KSEV Talk Show Host Edd Hendee contacted Dr. Murray directly and accused him of manufacturing the poll to "demonstrate political vulnerability of DeLay" and of having a conflict of interest due to his son's employer. Hendee also pointed out that Keir Murray, who works for Lampson, is one of the 3 board members (along with his father) in the University of Houston polling group that designed the survey. [45] Murray's responses, if any, have not been made public.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Circulation at the Top 20 Newspapers", The Associated Press, 2007-04-30. The Houston Press is an Alternative weekly Newspaper published in Houston Texas. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Retrieved on 2007-04-30. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule  
  2. ^ 2007 Top 100 Daily Newspapers in the U.S. by Circulation (PDF). BurrellesLuce (2007-03-31). Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 307 - After divorcing his wife Minervina, Constantine marries Fausta, the daughter of the retired Roman Emperor Retrieved on 2007-05-28. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 585 BC - A Solar eclipse occurs as predicted by Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling
  3. ^ Houston Chronicle. Hearst Corporation. Last accessed September 13, 2006.
  4. ^ Houston Chronicle. Handbook of Texas Online. The Handbook of Texas (ISBN 0-87611-151-7 is a comprehensive Encyclopedia of Texas geography history and historical persons published by the Texas June 6, 2001. Last accessed September 13, 2006.

External links

Official sites

Links critical of the Chronicle

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