Lansing State Journal needs an attitude check

Lansing, Michigan is not a podunk town, but its newspaper, the Lansing State Journal, a Gannett newspaper, acts like its a small farming village. 

A good example is a recent column written by Derek Melot where he describes city governments on-again, off-again deficit in its treasury.

The city's finance guy one day says there is a multi-million dollar deficit, changes and says "oops" that he was wrong.  And, then...

he says there is.  This goes on for several more rounds.  Something's wrong with this picture.

When I was a newspaper reporter that kind of contradiction with that level of seriousness would raise your interest.  IT'S A STORY.  You would work night and day to find out what the deal is.  You would get a months worth of by-lines.

And, local tv would play the story, using your efforts as a tipsheet, a starting point.

What's the problem here?  The local media should be all over Mayor Tony Benivdes.  Is it incompetence?  Are they hiding something?  Could there be a logical explanation?

Lansing voters will never know because the Lansing State Journal won't do its job. 

You need to know that every possible angle of Michigan State's basketball efforts and their journey to the NCAA Final Four  is covered with incredible thoroughness.  And, so is every other story.

The people in this once great State Capitol city are the ones getting cheated.  Why have the First Amendment?  Gannett has no journalistic backbone.  Their newspapers are cookie-cutter. 

This should be an easy story and for the reporter and others involved with it in the newsroom, it should be fun to watch the local politicos squirm.