I have been communicating with the AP regarding this article. Here is one follow-up email listing some of my concerns about the article. I am told they will be printing a correction. Let us see how they handle this.
The letter:
I appreciate your time, and anticipate a satisfactory resolution to this episode for all involved. Below are the issues I raised concerning the article, grouped into factual inaccuracies, omissions, and misrepresentation.
Nigel, that was low.
I was extremely open with you; I shared any and all information I could, and you took the information that supported your story and ignored everything else. You used your position to throw another rock and you further tarnished the journalistic profession. I will not lie down and take it, as Agriprocessors does when “journalists” smear them.
In the spirit of PostvilleVoices, which you seek to discredit, I will make my case directly to the people.
It’s a new age, Nigel.
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It happens every time.
Just when you put away the food, pop all the balloons and turn off the lights, everyone shows up.
Welcome to PostvilleVoices. Feel free to look around. This site was created shortly after the immigration raid, to serve as a platform for people in Postville, on both sides of the issue, who felt the real story was not being told.
In addition to sharing their own observations and experiences, people sent in corrections of reported news and, on two occasions, a report of the UFCW in action. Unfortunately(!), no one submitted any negative “Voices,” and, not belonging to the media or the union, we didn’t seek them out.
What makes all this interesting to a reporter is the involvement of a Rubashkin family member, Getzel Rubashkin. The fact that he couldn’t advertise his involvement made it even juicier, although he is quick to note that he made not the slightest effort to hide it and that his involvement was common knowledge here in town. See his response to the article here.
Additionally, although we made no effort to hide our own leanings, none of us advertised our names - we saw the site as a platform for all, not a personal website.
Of course, we appreciated his efforts. Among his more valuable contributions was his help with some of the technical aspects of the web development, he was the inspiration behind the first post, he encouraged many people to make their voices heard, and he videoed the video statements.
Since credit is being given, we figured we could at least give everyone else the credit they are due for their involvement. We would therefore like to mention:
Yisroel Karasik - originator of the idea, and the guy who did the little unappreciated things, like running the whole thing.
Yitzchak Shafer - thank you for providing domain registration and hosting at your own expense.
David Bates - the man behind the programming.
Diego Abba, and Pablo Niz - the artistic talent behind the look of the blog
Jeff Abbas - the Voice of Radio Postville. Thanks for helping spread the word.
Amy D. - Thanks for trying to set up a phone line so people could more easily participate. “A” for Effort.
Contributors:
Jeff Andow - Thanks for putting a name and a face to your short and sweet statement.
Verland Lenth - We love you, man. Seriously. Say it like it is.
Scott Prahl - No nonsense All-American boy. Thanks for the vid.
Asher Ohana - Thanks for taking the time to share your analysis.
Chaim Kaufman - Sorry about that. Thanks for sharing.
Sebastian Worthon - Thanks for the vid. A breath of fresh multicultural air.
Trevor Seibert - Thanks for sticking up for the Latinos. I liked them too.
Don Baade - Thanks for making your voice heard.
Warren Timmerman - Thanks for setting the record straight.
Anonymous - Thanks for forwarding the UFCW’s letter.
Steven Shangreau - Thank you for setting the record straight and sharing your personal story.
Tipster - Thanks for the quick reporting on the Couriers sources.
Many other people helped with the small things like proofreading and constructive comments. We can’t list you all but: Thank you all.
We would like to thank everyone who took the time to comment, on both sides of the issue, and we would like to apologize to all the people who sent in stuff that wasn’t posted. Don’t take it personally.
This site was created and run as an equal opportunity platform. For a site that was started to inform the public of the other side of the story, see here. It is run by “family, friends and supporters” of Agriprocessors. No need to thank me for the plug, guys.
So, for the second time, I will now sign off. Thank you for visiting.
Oh, and when you’re all done, get the lights, will you?
Many have emailed about this blogs silence. Some have made the accusation that it was a site run by 5WPR, others have asked that we continue to blog. At the very least, a word of explanation is in order. This site was not run by Agriprocessors or any company affiliated with Agri. It was a group project and the one who was holding it together left town at the beginning of the summer. No additional posts will be made here.
The Wall Street Journal ran a piece which was essentially about groups using allegations against Agriprocessors to further their social agendas. You can read it here. Interestingly, in the “Related Reading” section of the article you find:
1. A Blogger who has dedicated an entire section of his site to smearing Rubashkins.
2. A Blogger who “share[s a] poem inspired in general by the sickness and evil near the root of Aaron Rubashkin’s animal slaughtering and meat processing factory in Postville, Iowa[...]”
3. A Blogger who makes an unflattering mention of Agri’s PR firm.
4. The association of Conservative rabbis calling on consumers to shun Agriprocessors products.
That’s the whole list.
The reporter says management declined to be interviewed, but the company reps I spoke to say they were not asked to comment.
A video containing an interview with Rev. Paul Ouderkirk of the local Catholic Church was posted by the St. Paul “Star Tribune” along with a long article.
In it, he described the working conditions at the plant, among other things. According to him, the employees have no separate lunch room, only a little cardboard corner. “They had a lunchroom for the Rabbis,” he adds. Well, here is a look at the employee lunchroom.
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If anyone had any doubts as to the quality of the reporting on Postville, allow us to lay those doubts to rest. There can be no doubt about quality with UFCW as the tour guide. That’s right, reporters were seen today being escorted around Postville by a representative of the UFCW. The ones running the corporate campaign against Agriprocessors.
Something tells me they’re taking the UFCW’s special Scenic Route.
Update: Turns out they were from the Waterloo Courier. Read the result of the collaborative effort here. Stay tuned to this blog for the real story. We don’t take scenic routes.
After a lull in the reporting, when the news sites had little more than reruns and op-eds, Postville is again in the online news. Headlines like “Agriprocessors turns to homeless for help” are the latest attempt to milk this story for some readership. The story quotes a radio interview given here in town by a recruit from Texas while ignoring a follow-up interview which happened only hours later in which the rest of the story was told.
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PETA - you know… the ethical people? No?
Well, anyway, PETA has long been critical of Agriprocessors. They have come up with a long and creative list of issues, but they’re mainly upset that Agriprocessors is a slaughterhouse. Even though they have been criticizing Agri’s safety for a long time, one Jay Branchesi took a job there just to dig up dirt on Agri. Through no fault of his own, the press release was pretty lame, but he did get to call himself an “undercover investigator.”
