Thank You, LA Times

Mr Jeff Johnson
Publisher, LA Times
jeff.johnson@latimes.com.

Dear Mr. Johnson:

I am writing to thank you for terminating Robert Scheer -- a sentiment that was strengthened dramatically when I read the letter you received from Dennis Kucinich and his Congressional colleagues criticising your act.

Mr. Scheer is an angry writer who lets his anger ride roughshod over research, reasonableness and respect. His tone and his accusations are not appropriate for a mainstream newspapers, and I see your termination of Mr. Scheer as an indication that you are correctly seeking more balance in the Opinion section in order to slow or reverse the circulation losses the LATimes is suffering.

It seems that Mr. Kucinich and his colleagues are attempting to use their Congressional weight to threaten the freedom of the press. As a single citizen, I rarely agree with the LA Times' editorial position, but I support your right to staff your paper as you see fit, and feel it is inappropriate for members of Congress to send a delegation letter in order to exert pressure on a newspaper publisher.

I encourage you to continue improving the once-great LA Times, and to do that by bringing more balance to the news coverage, as well as the Opinion section.

Sincerely,
Laer Pearce