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Greer: No “pay to play” with black media

Posted Jul 1, 2009 by William March

Updated Jul 1, 2009 at 03:27 PM

A meeting last weekend between Republican Party officials and representatives of Florida black community news organizations, part of state party Chairman Jim Greer’s minority outreach effort, is having some strange aftereffects.

Some Republicans apparently are worried, based on news reports about the meeting, that the party intends to buy advertising in black media in return for news coverage. Greer sent an email to party members today denying that.

“The RPOF [Republican Party of Florida] has not and will not engage in any type of ‘quid pro quo,’ or ‘pay to play’ relationship with any media organization,” Greer wrote.

Since taking office as party chairman, Greer has set up advisory committees on minority affairs, held conferences for black Republicans and taken other steps to improve the party’s relationship with black voters.

He set up the meeting in Orlando Friday with representatives of black news organizations.

A story in the Orlando Sentinel about the meeting, headlined “Black-owned media tell GOP that money talks,” quoted the black media officials as saying Republicans would get favorable news coverage in black media if they bought advertising.

It also quoted state Rep. Jennifer Carroll of Jacksonville, chairman of Greer’s outreach committee for black voters, as suggesting black media could increase their advertising revenues with more coverage of Republicans.

Altering news content to please paying advertisers violates ethical standards espoused by most mainstream news organizations.

Greer said he has received “numerous calls and email questioning the content of the article.”

It included extensive quotes from the meeting, but Greer nonetheless contended in his email to Republicans that the report of the discussion was “taken out of context.”

Greer said that in the past, the Republican Party has responded to black media by “turning a blind eye and a deaf ear,” and that he wants to change that.

“If my attempt to correct this previous overlooking of the Black media ... was perceived as committing to a ‘pay to play’ relationship, that assumption is incorrect,” he said.