LETTERS: EMERSON COVERAGE

To the editor:

On the evening of Aug. 17 more than 700 people came to the Arena Building to support Jo Ann Emerson for Congress. It was an extraordinary show of support for a unique Independent candidacy. The crowd covered the floor and spilled over the bleachers. Jo Ann outlined her positions on the key issues in the race. The Republican candidates for governor and attorney general gave previews of their races.

This was a newsworthy event. What did the Southeast Missourian tell us? Well, there was a photo on page 10A of the Aug. 18 paper but no story. There was an oblique reference in a front-page article on Margaret Kelly, but no substance.

When the entire Democratic ticket came to town earlier this year, they rented the Show Me Center. Although only 125 people showed up, the Democrats got a front-page story -- above the fold -- with a color picture showing only the dais and not the empty hall. The candidates were quoted at length just as the Aug. 18 paper quoted no one.

The editorial pages can be as conservative or liberal as the boss wants, but the news is something else.

BENJAMIN F. LEWIS

Cape Girardeau