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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Don't like weather where you are? Move a mile or two Check it Out: Galician Harvest Festival 10 things to know for Monday Festival spreads the buzz about bees Annual See's candy sales start Friday Education Crossing guard clowns, but takes job seriously Ashland's DECA team proves a quick study Helman hosts literacy event Ashland Kiwanis honors two AHS students SOU bucks trend, increases enrollment Environment Don't like weather where you are? 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Chris Honoré: Was the midterm election a mandate? ... Our View: ... Ashland Calendar ... Chris Honoré: Was the midterm election a mandate? ... Our View: ... RELOCATIONS Herb Rothschild: Tell us how they vote DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Nov. 1, 2014 @ 12:01 am Posted Nov. 1, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News In Medford Monday I spotted a bumper sticker that advised us to “Re-elect Nobody.” If I interpret the message rightly, it means “Throw out all the bums.” If so, I would rather have seen a bumper sticker urging the election of a candidate I don’t favor. Too often people lump together all politicians and castigate them. “They’re all this” or “They’re all that.” What they do have in common is that they wish to enter, or continue in, public service. Beyond that, the differences can be strikingly meaningful. Unhappily, too many of us won’t take the time to discern the differences. That people behave with such sloth in so critical a dimension of their lives depresses me. In general, Americans take more care choosing among television shows than among candidates for public office, as if being entertained for an hour is more important than whether our children will be sent to war or our environment fouled beyond livability. While I have my preferences, I’m grateful to everyone who is spending time, energy, and money seeking office. I feel special gratitude toward those who are challenging entrenched incumbents. That’s because the voting records of our elected legislators rarely get publicized except during contested elections. News media — especially newspapers — are diligent about helping us discern differences among candidates. They report on the more prominent races and they help with candidates’ forums. Newspapers editorialize for their choices and open their Letters sections for demurring as well as concurring opinions. They deserve our thanks. What the news media don’t do well enough is inform us about the victors’ performance once in office. There is a woeful lack of reporting about how our representatives are voting in Salem and in Washington. Relying on electoral challengers to highlight the incumbents’ records every two or four years isn’t an adequate system of accountability. Challengers inevitably present the records in skewed ways, and sometimes deliberately distort them, as in the current state Senate race. Incumbents or their supporters respond, but the back-and-forth can get confusing. More than two years ago I pointed out this media shortcoming on Geoffrey Riley’s wonderful show The Jefferson Exchange on JPR. After six of us were arrested for staging a sit-in at U.S. Rep. Greg Walden’s Medford office in December 2012, Geoffrey invited me and someone in Klamath Falls who had protested over there to be on the show. I explained to the listeners that we engaged in the civil disobedience to draw media attention, and the attention we wanted to draw was not to ourselves, but to Walden’s voting record, especially on behalf of the very wealthy to the detriment of the large majority of his constituents. I said we had tried less “sexy” ways to publicize it, but without success. We simply weren’t getting any help from the media. The civil disobedience worked as intended, but we couldn’t keep doing that. Instead, I urged our area news media to report regularly on how our lawmakers are voting at the state and national levels. I now renew that request, especially to JPR, SOPTV, and our newspapers. Interns could research the voting records, and staff could help them succinctly explain the issues. “How They Voted” should run no less frequently than bi-weekly, and there should be related stories on the high-profile issues. It’s not enough to elect candidates. We must hold their feet to the fire, and we need accurate information to do that. With it, when elections come around, we would have formed our opinions about who are and who aren’t the “bums” we must throw out. Herb Rothschild Jr. is chairman of the board of Peace House.   DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Nov. 1, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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