Editors finally focus on crisis in Aleppo, Syrian-Americans

In this map of Aleppo, Syria, published in August by the Carnegie Middle East Center, the Old City is in East Aleppo, right, where fighting to retake rebel-held areas and the humanitarian crisis have reached a crescendo in recent weeks.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Today, The Record's editors finally discover a local angle for reporting on the deepening humanitarian crisis in Aleppo, Syria.

Staff Writer Hannan Adely interviewed Prospect Park Mayor Mohamed Khairullah and other Syrian-Americans who have lost touch with friends or relatives or know people who have been killed in the Syrian civil war (1A and 4A).  

This Page 1 story reminds readers of the one Adely wrote in November 2015 -- more than a week after Governor Christie announced that he wanted to bar all Syrian refugees from entering New Jersey.

Why the delay? Syrians have been immigrating to Paterson since the early 1900s.

In his column on Nov. 22, 2015, Staff Writer Mike Kelly called Christie "a crazy uncle" for saying he would not even allow Syrian orphans under the age of 5 into the United States.

His Page 1 column the day before was completely devoid of criticism or condemnation of anti-Muslim rhetoric in the wake of the Paris terror attacks.

Putin and Trump

Until today, The Record has avoided reporting on the links between President-elect Donald J. Trump and Russia.

A story on 11A today traces Trump's "soft spot for Russia" to his desire to sell his luxury condos to wealthy Russians.

Trump, a major apologist for Vladimir Putin, also has dismissed reports from U.S. intelligence agencies that the Russian dictator tried to influence the outcome of the Nov. 8 election in favor of the New York billionaire.

You need a magnifying glass to read the legal notices in The Record.

Book deal, legal ads

Since Sunday, The Record's news editors and editorial writers have been consumed by what they see as an assault on the right of the press to profit from the publication of legal ads (1A, 8A and 16A).

One question isn't addressed: 

Does anyone actually read those legal notices, which are printed in small type?

Today's front page is dominated once again by a package of legislation that includes Christie's "book bill;" raises for his Cabinet, legislative staffs, judges, county prosecutors and others; and eliminating the long-standing law requiring local governments to publish legal notices -- such as budgets, ordinance changes and contracts.

"Motivation for pushing the bill, and tying it to action on salaries and book deal, said to be revenge by Christie against newspapers for their coverage of his administration," according to The Record.

Local news?

Still, readers of The Record have to ask whether the publication of budgets and ordinances gives the news staff an excuse to ignore important local news, such as the campaign by nine candidates in the April election for three Board of Education seats in Hackensack.

There was no discussion of the issues in The Record or Hackensack Chronicle.

Nor did the daily or weekly paper report any of the details of the proposed $104 million school budget before voters went to the polls to approve or reject it -- even though education accounts for 44% of every homeowner's property tax bill.

Another 'food crawl'

Have "food crawl" articles in Better Living replaced the weekly restaurant review, and is it a budget-cutting move?

Freelancer Shelby Vittek is back today with a "Polish Food Crawl" on 14BL and 15BL, although the out of focus cover photo of pirogis with sour cream doesn't look appetizing at all.
Elisa Ung, the restaurant reviewer who left the paper in November, likely blew $200 to $300 or more on two meals with a friend at every one of the fine-dining restaurants she reviewed.

When Ung was hired more than 9 years ago, The Record allowed the restaurant critic to treat three other people to two dinners at each restaurant.

When The Record introduced the "Informal Dining" reviews Ung did once a month, that cut the paper's expenses.

Now, if the food crawl has replaced all restaurant reviews, the additional savings would be significant. 

First Christie rat abandons sinking ship of state

David Wildstein, Governor Christie's appointee to the Port Authority, orchestrated early September lane closures that caused gridlock in Democratic Fort Lee, above and below. Now, Wildstein claims Christie knew about the lane closures as they happened, but he hasn't disclosed the "evidence."

By VICTOR E. SASSON
Editor

The Record's front-page photo today shows Governor Christie with two of his appointees to the patronage mill known as the Port Authority, which runs bridges, tunnels, ports and airports in the bi-state region.

The photo was taken during the early September George Washington Bridge lane closures that have been viewed as political revenge in Democratic Fort Lee.

Now, former Port Authority executive David Wildstein, who appears with Christie in today's A-1 and A-10 photos, is the first rat to abandon the sinking ship of state.

Did Christie lie?

Basically, Wildstein is saying Christie lied during his two-hour news conference three weeks ago, when he said he had no knowledge of the lane closures engineered in e-mails between Bridget Anne Kelly, who was the governor's deputy chief of staff, and the Port Authority.

Wildstein's claim that he has evidence Christie knew of the lane closures -- as they were happening -- broke first on The New York Times Web site after 3 on Friday afternoon, setting off a scramble in the Woodland Park newsroom.

Today's banner headline shows the effect, incorrectly calling Wildstein an "ex-aide" of the GOP bully. That's a stretch.

In the text, on Page 1, a copy editor made a second mistake, missing a lower-case "legislature."

Political spin

And instead of assigning a reporter to write an "ANALYSIS," Editor Marty Gottlieb called on the columnist who is the paper's chief political hack, Charles Stile, to assess whether Christie's "career is in tatters" (A-1).

Stile has given the governor so many journalistic blow jobs in the past four years, everything he writes now is suspect.

Super bullshit

The lead Page 1 story says a letter from Wildstein's lawyer, first disclosed by The Times, "landed like a bombshell two days before North Jersey hosts its first Super Bowl ... and three days before massive amounts of records subpoenaed by an investigative committee of the state Legislature were due for delivery."

Three more Wildstein sidebars appear inside on A-6 and A-10.

The Record's editors had the good sense to put the third, 8-page "Super Bowl Special" section this week inside the paper, instead of wrapping all that mindless publicity around other sections, as they did on Thursday and Friday.


Weak local report

But Dan Sforza, the incompetent deputy assignment editor, still needed two Super Bowl stories on L-1 to fill out the local-news section.

Instead of more pro football nonsense, Sforza should have given better play to:

The tributes to Harriette Townsend, a beloved crossing guard in Leonia killed in a house fire (L-1); and efforts by Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. to get the United States to accept more refugees from the Syrian civil war (L-3).

'Insufferable hype'

Congratulations to Staff Writer Kara Yorio for telling readers how to escape the "insufferable hype" of endless Super Bowl coverage from The Record and other media (BL-1).

But Yorio is wrong on advising readers to take mass transit into the city on Sunday. 

The day of the Super Bowl has always been known as a paradise for drivers as millions stay glued to TVs at home and in bars and restaurants.

Delayed bargains

One downside of a North Jersey Super Bowl is that Manhattan's biggest dining bargains have been postponed until after the game.

The city's famous Winter Restaurant Weeks -- which usually begin in late January -- won't start until Feb. 17 and will be shortened by a week, ending on March 7.

North Jersey residents and out-of-towners are being denied three-course lunches for $25, plus tax and tip, compared to $40 to $45 for the same food ordered a la carte, and three-course dinners for $38.