07/10/2007
Does the money-laundering "pipeline" scandal belong to Minas Gerais or the PSDB?
By Mário Magalhães
ombudsman@uol.com.br
If the "allowance" bribery scheme belongs to the governing Workers Party (PT), the money-laundering "pipeline" scandal belongs to the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB). Without equivalent criteria, the Workers Party (PT) looks bad and the PSDB is spared.
Strictly speaking, it belongs to the state of Minas Gerais and to the PSDB.
But the answer depends on another question: is the "allowance" bribery scheme a nationwide one or does it belong to the PT? Without a doubt, it is national as well as that of the PT.
What you can't have is the "allowance" bribery scandal considered national while the money-laundering "pipeline" scandal belongs to just the PSDB, or the "pipeline"scandal belonging only to Minas Gerais and the "allowance" scheme just to the PT.
This is not about playing with adjectives, but rather the use of one of the pillars of Folha's editorial project, non-partisanship.
That is what the front page was missing last Sunday when the headline - "Money-laundering pipeline in Minas Gerais paid electoral official, Federal Police say" --summarized a good story.
In the teaser, the brief text that summarized the information on inside pages, the expression "PT's allowance scandal" contrasted with "money-laundering pipeline in Minas Gerais."
Those who read "PT allowance scandal" get the right information: the illicit scheme of paying politicians in various states and others associated with the federal government was in effect since 2003 by top-level PT officials and prominent members of the administration --and is the opinion of Attorney General Antonio Fernando Souza, appointed by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Those who read "money-laundering pipeline in Minas Gerais" have half the information: the diversion of public funds that helped the reelection campaign for then-Gov. (now Sen.) Eduardo Azeredo in 1998 was concentrated in the PSDB, according to the Federal Police investigation.
Therefore, if the "allowance" bribery scheme belongs to the PT, the money-laundering "pipeline" belongs to the PSDB. Without equivalent criteria, they use two weights and two measures --the PT appears bad and the PSDB is spared.
The scheme of funneling money through companies belonging to publicist Marcos Valério de Sousa was at its peak during Lula's first term in office. Afterward we knew of its origin in Azeredo's administration.
The national "allowance" favored many parties, but its nucleus was the PT. The money-laundering "pipeline" may have benefitted diverse names, but it developed around the PSDB.
An example of critical and balanced journalism was published by Folha itself, also last Sunday: the story that compared the "allowance" scheme with the money-laundering "pipeline."
A contribution which inspired debate about coverage was by the ombudsman at the Internet Group (IG) website, Mario Vitor Santos (the former ombudsman at Folha), published on his blog, which anchors the website.
Mr. Creysson is the same as the others
Folha put at the top of its front page on Wednesday a document with the stamp of the National Congress which read "Congreço" with a "ç." Thousands of papers in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies were stamped that way.
Under the same reproduction, on page A4, the newspaper used the headline "Mr. Creysson," a character on the comedy TV show "Casseta & Planeta" who torments the language.
I agree that was the case in the news, but it was not something to rejoice, especially with so much prominence. The ceiling is glass.
On Sunday, Folha Magazine misspelled convalescence. The investment section "Fovest" showed bad form on Tuesday by misspelling tension.
On Thursday, the daily news section asserted that an elevator was "repaired" but misspelled the word. On Friday, the sports section made a grammatical blunder in saying, "There are three days of the classic." On Sept. 23, the national news section goofed the words of the national anthem.
All of these errors were pointed out by readers. Maybe they don't think Mr. Creysson lives in Brasília... My take on it: Folha ignored its own stylebook by omitting that "Congreço" came out earlier, the day before, in the Brasília daily "Correio Braziliense."
Abandoning babies and the right of silence
Like a good part of national journalism, Folha publishes information about abandoned babies. I worry that the news may encourage other mothers to abandon --or kill-- their babies. On Sunday afternoon, a newborn was found in a stream in Contagem, Minas Gerais state. In the hospital, she was "baptized" Michele.
Exploitation of the tragedy, especially by the electronic media, had as its epilogue the death of the baby on Thursday night.
On Tuesday, a little girl weighing little more than one kilogram was found live in a sack in Taboão de Serra, São Paulo state.
The day before yesterday, residents of Queimados, Rio de Janeiro state, discovered another baby (already dead) in a river.
These episodes should be the exception to the journalistic rule to publish what is known. Between the values in conflict (right of access to information and the right to life), the latter deserves to prevail.
Folha's managing editor does not believe that "news of abandoned babies could encourage this practice. To the contrary, pubic opinion is always revolted in cases such as this (in Minas Gerais)."
Only that it is not public opinion that abandons babies, and yes, mothers are influenced by the news that they see.
By telephone
The 1987 edition of the stylebook contained a predatory recommendation about the journalistic nature of reporting: "Journalistic work that could be done by telephone dispenses with personal contact between the journalist and the source of the information."
The principle is another: check by telephone only when you can't make personal contact.
The passage was eliminated. I remembered it in coverage about the repeal of contract 1.064 covering sugar cane cutters at the Pagrisa Plantation in Ulianópolis, Pará state.
According to inspectors from the Labor Ministry, they lived in a situation analogous to slavery. For the plantation owners and some senators, the workers were doing fine.
In protest against the Senate's intervention, inspectors stopped their activities to combat slave labor, as Folha reported Sept. 22.
Since then, the newspaper published reports, statements and interviews. Everything was gathered from afar. It would be better to go to Pará, where there is a correspondent, to investigate.
Showing the differing versions is not enough. It is necessary to produce original work, something faithful to all the facts available. With a reporter at the location, there are more chances for success.
Translation by John Wright
