The editor of The Jackson Free Press finally addressed my post of two weeks ago concerning the listing of IRS liens on the JFP, http://kingfish1935.blogspot.com/2008/01/tax-problems-at-jfp.html.
Here is what Ms. Ladd posted:
Also, I'm going to say this only one time because I just saw one of the JFP-haters surface with it on Folo: The JFP does not owe back taxes. Suffice it to say, there has been an amateurish attempt locally to smear us without even a call to us to ascertain the actual facts. This is a teachable moment on the topic we're discussing—that anonymous blogger's story is getting a lot of play considering that it was *inaccurate*. On this side of the ethical line, we have to call and get a response, double-check facts, and not believe everything we see on the Internet before spreading rumors meant to do harm to someone's business..."
http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/comments.php?id=16097_0_67_0_C#105340
Well, I certainly do not want to be accused of smearing someone or being unethical, so I will address this point by point.
1. "The JFP does not owe back taxes."
I merely reported what is listed on the Secretary of State's website and is filed at the Hinds County Chancery Court. Those liens were reported by the Chancery Clerk's office and SOS as being active. There were three liens and one was released. However, there were at one time THREE IRS liens. Period. Case closed. Two of them are still reported by the government as open. If it were my business and reputation, I would have gone to the IRS, Courthouse, and SOS's office and made sure those liens were reported as released. If you take certified funds to the IRS, they will immediately fax a release to the courthouse if you provide them with a fax number. Her gripe is not with me but with the government.
2. " there has been an amateurish attempt locally to smear us .."
There was no smearing of the JFP. I merely reported what is listed with government agencies. There was NO editorial comment made in the post as I merely posted the information, nothing more, nothing less. Now what I would consider to be a smear would be when she reported young Michael Taylor as "Frank Melton's 17 year old live-in companion." or this post where she tried to smear Marshall Ramsey of The Clarion-Ledger, http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/comments.php?id=8659_0_27_0_C . Having said that, there was no attempt to smear the JFP.
By the way, if I were to speculate, I would guess at one time the publication had a tax problem and is probably on a repayment plan as it is a large sum of money to pay in full and probably would not be reported as released until paid. Many businesses have tax problems and work them out with the IRS.
3. "without even calling us to ascertain the actual facts..."
As there is no attempt to smear the newsweekly here, I will gladly post any explanation or rebuttal sent to me by its staff. There is a very good reason why I didn't call to ascertain the facts. Last year, Ms. Ladd and I had a spirited disagreement through emails. Here is what she told me in her last email to me (The emails had started that day with her criticism of one of my posts criticizing a writer) on October 18, 2007: "I want no more communications from you."
Sorry guys, but when someone tells me that, they get EXACTLY what they want. I'm not about to get accused of cyberharassment or any other form of harassment by anyone, much less by someone who is probably an expert on such laws. I personally have nothing against Ms. Ladd or her staff. Dealing with her or anyone else on my blog is similar to when I was in law school. In law school, you ripped each other to pieces in debates, then when you left the classroom you left it at the door as it wasn't personal regardless of how mad you got in class. Having said that, Ms. Ladd can't have it both ways by telling me in writing to never communicate with her, and by extension, her publication, and then complain I never contacted the JFP because I honored her wishes.
4. "ethical..."
Does this even deserve a comment? I bash everyone. I didn't do anything sneaky or underhanded. I did not make any sleazy comments. I didn't steal any personal information. I personally went to the courthouse to confirm what the SOS website reported. I did not say any back taxes were owed. I reported what the government reported, nothing more or less. By the way, I am not a journalist. I never have claimed to be one. I consider myself a commentator and one better educated than most reporters. I comment on different aspects of Jackson and other issues. At times I try to connect the dots or post tidbits of information I come across but I have never claimed to be a journalist. If something is suspect when I post it, I try to include a disclaimer so as to show how credible the information is. There is no agenda or goal to "get" anyone. This blog is about whatever catches my interest at a particular moment and what I think about it.
That is my rebuttal to these false claims made on the JFP website.
Oh, as for my being an anonymous blogger....I think everyone, including most of the JFP staff, knows who I am.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Owner of Jackson Free Press lies, tries to smear Jackson Jambalaya.
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20 comments:
and by the way, if one of the rumors I am hearing comes true, Ms. Ladd will be able to say I told you so.
and I will make a nice post saying so.
So posting factual information is unethical?
apparently so.
I wondered if she called the publisher of the CL for comment when she criticized them for stopping Christmas bonuses for employees and his getting hardwood floors installed in his office.
Notice that Ladd did not deny having any liens. She only speaks in the present tense that they don't currently owe any back taxes.
And you are hardly anonymous. Maybe you should post those pics of you and her pal'n around some time back.
fish
You are beginning to sound like a "little spoiled boy" who did not get to play with the group.
Why all the criticism of JFP?
Were you not aware of the TOS of the JFP? My guess is that you were. However you violated them. Then you were banned from posting on the JFP site. This is what is called "suffering the consequences".
Does the phrase "what goes around, comes around" mean anything to you?
I TRULY hope one day, should you be caught in the action of doing ANYTHING!! illegal, you don't exhibit this same behavior.
Your behavior is negative. This is very!! unbecoming of anyone, who considers themselves a mature person.
Perhaps you should seek some professional assistance. Therapeutically speaking, if this sort of behavior continues, it will stick with you for the rest of your life. Of course you are too young to realize this.
ah, a JFP Hack.
Since you obviously have not read through my site, you might do it some time. If you did, you would discover that the Clarion Ledger has been bashed just as much or more than the JFP. JTV and LBT are called "the axis of Melton".
as for being banned from there, yeah I was banned from there. So what. We were discussing illegal immigration on there. I said that Mexico was happy to see them come here as they saw them as getting rid of the dregs of their society much like how France used to fight wars just to to get rid of their lower classes. Made it clear that was how the Mexican government, not I, saw them. So...Mr Matt Saldana, one of her reporters, said I thought all people who didn't speak english were stupid and that I was in favor of nation cleansing. Never said anything remotely close to what he claimed. He was making it up. And I wore the uniform and took an oath to give my life for everyone: White, Black, Green, Purple, whatever. Didn't appreciate being put on the level of a Serb or a Nazi and told him to go f**** himself. i don't take that crap from anyone. I was banned. No problem. I broke the rule. Even apologized to her that night and said I understood why I was banned. However, they both owe me an apology as far as I'm concerned. Anything I say on here I back up. I get it wrong, I apologize. You disagree with me, you don't get banned unless you get slanderous. And I defy you to show me where I have complained about being banned.
What I have found is that people are treated ugly over there when they get out of line, despite all of their protestations. Alot uglier than at other sites.
As for what goes around comes around...oh well, thats life.
So Gipper, take that and contemplate it on the Tree of Woe.
Why all the criticism of JFP?
Why all the criticism of everything under the sun in our community by Donna Ladd?
"Why all the criticism of everything under the sun in our community by Donna Ladd?"
Good question! Me thinks she doth protest too much.
And 'Fish - she thinks you are much younger than you are! You are not "Too young to realize" ha ha ha
fish
"Clarion Ledger has been bashed just as much or more than the JFP. JTV and LBT are called "the axis of Melton".
Just because one bashes another, does that mean you have to follow suite? VERY!!!! sad
"As for what goes around comes around...oh well, thats life."
Oh well, for your sake I hope you will be able to respond to "oh well, that's just life" when karma bites you. AND!!! "Karma DOES!! return.
You guys keep forgetting this is a personal blog and he can write whatever he wants! It is not a media outlet.
"Oh well, for your sake I hope you will be able to respond to "oh well, that's just life" when karma bites you. AND!!! "Karma DOES!! return."
And as for you, you weirdo, we all see the pattern of your posts. What happened? Did Fish not respond to your overtures? Or did he simply state the truth and it hurt?
I zapped your post because you started dragging my personal stuff into this, which I have never done with anyone at the JFP or CL or any other media organization. You were fine until the last two sentences.
Question: If there are tax problems, where is the money going to come from for the brand new slick magazine Boom?
Of late I've noticed a certain shall we say "reticence" in the JFP's reporting. Am I really to believe Haley Barbour won in the Best of Jackson contest? Considering their liberal bent I found that unusual. The run to help promote everything Downtown Jackson Partners is doing along with starting up a new magazine to help the push smacks of the media jumping into bed with the money. In the past I have enjoyed the JFP and truly felt the paper was honest in its views even if those views seemed skewed to me. I don't think a media outlet which promotes itself as fair and unbiased should become a marketing arm of any business, especially a business like Downtown Jackson Partners. If my suspicions are correct about the relationship between DJP and JFP, it's going to be awfully difficult to remain "unbiased" when the DJP organization gets into difficulty. Or maybe our unbiased media outlets will just look the other way.
I think you can do the Boom magazine and still remain critical.
In Baton Rouge, there is 225 Magazine. Slick glossy monthly publication that is a true culture & leisure magazine with some hard news stories. http://www.225batonrouge.com/ It promotes Baton Rouge and is especially big on promoting downtown BR (I have a feeling someone has looked at how this is done.).
It is produced by the Baton Rouge Business Report which is a biweekly magazine, has won national awards, and provides more than a little news coverage of BR that is critical and highly respected. http://www.businessreport.com
So yes, it can be done but only time will tell how independent it will truly be in its coverage. Hopefully these projects launch a Renaissance of downtown Jackson.
Not the way I would do it of course. If it were me, I would've developed the two lakes from the levee to Trustmark park and put that convention center right there on the lake.
The JFP has never questioned anything going on downtown unless it was somehow related to Melton. They've were compromised long ago. They never critically looked at the economics of the convention center though there is a plethora of information on the net which points out that the convention business has been soft for a long while and cities all across this nation are holding deficit bags from the convention center blue sky yarns spun by consultants that never came true. But when it came to potentially bulldozing Smith-Wills for a new arena the JFP yucks came out of the weeds to question every minute detail. Ladd is a fraud. Plain and simple.
Anonymous
Weirdo!!! Please. That is such an elementary way of communicating.
Overtures??
I have NEVER!!! Approached fish. However he has approached me. I declined.
I am going to leave this up now. I have zapped this post four times and this person has insisted on making this little allegation. I'm going to leave it up here because it is not true and I have nothing to hide.
Its funny how defensive this person is when challenged by another anonymous poster and is dead set on smearing me. If it is who I think it is it is one of two people; one who is a nutty busybody who is much too old for me and someone who definitely would have an agenda and is quite capable of taking a mere hello or good morning into an overture.
fish
Did you know chat sessions can be saved?
Sure I do.
Go ahead and post if you feel the need to. Says more about yourself than it does anything else. Especially when I have not posted anyone's emails or chat sessions on this website or any other.
What is weird is how you feel the need to get in here and get personal on me. Some other poster gets into it with you and you feel the need to start this crap with me. Its also pretty weird how you are hiding behind an anonymous name. you got a problem with me, you got my email. And I would love to know what you consider to be an overture.
I'm not taking this down. I'm leaving it up as I've got nothing to hide.
Karma returns when you least expect it.
Yeah, the King came on to me too but he's not hairy enough to meet my needs.
Sheesh. The JFP doesn't pay their taxes going all the way back to 2005 and the Laddyanna Cultists want it swept under the rug.
Keep on keeping on King.
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