Oppel's Memory Hole

Rich Oppel (Photo By Jana Birchum)

A couple of Sundays ago, Statesman Editor Rich Oppel turned his unblinking eye on the record of Austin state Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos and found the senator wanting ("Could November election be bedtime for Gonzo?" Sept. 29). Oppel described Barrientos' legislative record as "reed-thin," his Capitol style as "provocative, arrogant and counterproductive," and even suggested the senator is better looking than effective: "He is ramrod straight, handsomely coifed and tanned ... [and] clearly spends a few extra bucks on quality suits." (Asked about the column, Barrientos snorted, "I'd just like to note that I buy my suits from the $99 rack at K&G, and I was born with this tan -- it's permanent.")

Oppel has every right to embrace GOP opponent Ben Bentzin's campaign characterization of Barrientos (whatever its merits), and even to imply that conventional wisdom is not on Barrientos' side. It's his column.

But there are those troubling facts. Before telling his readers that Barrientos' relative lack of committee chairmanships suggests Senate leaders don't respect him, Oppel might have noted that, with rare exceptions, it's standard Senate practice that those who serve on the demanding Finance Committee (as does Barrientos) do not also hold chairs.

Likewise, Oppel "reported" that most of Barrientos' 468 bills passed were mere co-sponsorships. But the editor might have acknowledged that Barrientos has, in fact, authored bills on five of the six issues Oppel singles out as important to Central Texas -- DNA testing, school dropout prevention, scholarships, water quality, elder abuse, and the high-tech economy. Barrientos has also has been a central figure in battles over children's health insurance, the hate crimes law, and school vouchers. Hardly a "reed-thin" or "counterproductive" record, on its face.

All this reportorial inattention is par for the Oppel course; despite being a "leader of the profession" (Pulitzer Prize winner, former chair of the American Society of Newspaper Editors), in his Statesman columns Oppel has more than once shot first and checked the facts later. But most curious is Oppel's recollection of his 1998 meeting with members of the Central Texas House delegation -- while failing to note that's why "Barrientos was excluded." Oppel claims the House members (Democratic and Republican) criticized Barrientos' "alleged failure to share credit with them, to grandstand and to show up late for meetings."

Oddly enough, that's not -- at all -- how the House members themselves recall the meeting. They say they asked for the meeting in response to the Statesman's consistently poor coverage of the House, and in particular an Oct. 14, 1998 editorial, "Looking for leaders." That screed dismissed them all, of both parties, as do-littles who failed Central Texas, especially on transportation and county government issues -- in direct contrast to Barrientos, whom the Statesman editors praised for working hard and effectively on highways and regional planning, with little help from the House.

The House members also recall that the meeting was explicitly off the record -- not only to clear the air, but also because Oppel didn't want frank criticism of his staff aired in public. "It wasn't a Barrientos-bashing meeting," recalled a very steamed Rep. Glen Maxey. "It was a Statesman-bashing meeting -- we were pointing out the Statesman's piss-poor coverage of the House, and that Austin representatives and Austin issues received better and more thorough coverage in Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth than they did at home."

With little variation except in emphasis, Democratic Reps. Dawnna Dukes and Elliott Naishtat, and former Rep. Sherri Greenberg, independently confirmed Maxey's recollection. An aide to GOP Rep. Mike Krusee said that, because the 1998 meeting was confidential, Krusee could not disclose what was discussed. Keel could not be reached for comment.

Asked about the discrepancies, Oppel said he doesn't remember any "off-the-record agreement" for the "not especially newsworthy" gathering, and that he welcomes criticism of the Statesman, "publishing as much of it as we reasonably can." "My recollection is clear that Sen. Barrientos' name came up more than incidentally," Oppel said. "The column I wrote is accurate."

Well, four years is a long time, and Oppel's memory -- as well as his journalistic obligation to maintain confidentiality -- may be getting a little fuzzy. But in cold print four years ago, his newspaper was praising Barrientos as a real leader who takes initiative and makes progress on important regional issues while other elected officials are only "making speeches." Now he thinks the senator should ask himself, "Why am I in politics?" Maybe Oppel should instead ask himself, "Why am I in journalism?"