The Asbury Park Press reporter who covers Jackson Township was criticized on Twitter for consistently reporting on standard zoning pitfalls for Jewish construction in Jackson, and for often quoting the anti-Semitic voices opposing frum growth within the township.
The criticism came after Mike Davis, the APP reporter for Jackson, ran a story called “Jackson Synagogue Plan Leads to Parking Worries from Whitesville Road Neighbors.” The article began by accentuating the downside of what is a typical Zoning Board decision. “The problem with plans for a synagogue on Whitesville Road isn’t the construction of the actual synagogue, neighbors and township officials said. It’s the parking… Neighboring residents said parking was their chief concern.”
The article went on to explain that the facility could serve a maximum of 35 congregants, but would include only 12 parking spaces – which the project engineer said still meets the township’s requirements. Davis went on to highlight the opposition. “And if congregants were to park on the street? ‘Somebody’s going to get hurt. Somebody’s going to get killed,’ East Veterans Highway resident Elaina Puglisi said. ‘You’re only 200 feet from East Veterans Highway. There are tractor-trailers. Garbage trucks. Dump trucks. Crazy drivers. There’s not enough room for somebody to stop.’”
The lens on Jewish construction, with reporting even on everyday type of bumps that are standard in land-use applications, has sparked some critique on social media.
“Uh-huh. It’s the parking,” Politico reporter Matt Friedman responded sarcastically on Twitter. “Headline prediction, one year from now: ‘Residents oppose Jackson synagogue with 35-space parking lot over stormwater runoff concerns.’”
Community members were also clearly perturbed by Davis’s reporting.
“I guess the question is how many land use articles have been written recently?” accountant Jacob Ehrenpreis wrote on Twitter. “Amongst those, how many start off in a similar or related fashion? When new retail is proposed, is it met with positively or negatively vibes?”
Lakewood-based media watchdog Yossi Wolk responded with a long, but pointed, critique.
“I’m going to be blunt,” Wolk wrote. “The Asbury Park Press coverage of Jackson’s Jewish community recently by Mike Davis sickens me. The APP was once replete with bigotry in their coverage of the Jewish community, but in the last few years, they have completely changed course, to their credit. In the last months, however, Mike Davis has been peddling a narrative of unabashed bigotry. Yes, he is a very talented reporter, and – from what I’ve heard – an upstanding human being, but his reporting indicates that he harbors an underlying animus towards the Jewish community. The subtlety of those sentiments is a testament to his talent. But the direction and focus of his articles display it prominently.
“Take today’s piece,” Wolk continued. “‘Parking worries dominate Jackson hearing on synagogue plan.’ It’s about a shul application that may lack parking. That’s a pretty standard issue. The board can chose to approve it, or ask them to add parking and come back. Everyday business in land-use boards across the state. Newsworthy? Yes, because it’s a headline that reinforces a narrative the Jews don’t care about neighbors.
“Search ‘Jackson’ on APP’s homepage,” Wolk added. “Go ahead and do it. The last four stories – all by Mike Davis – are about Jewish-related construction in Jackson Township. Yes, the Asbury Park Press can stand behind the veil of ‘that’s news,’ but the obsession with the narrative is undeniable. If it would be another ethnic group flourishing in a township, there would be positive coverage heralding the diversity. But the Jewish community is an allowed target. Perhaps even an encouraged target. And when someone threatens to ‘bash heads’ in Lakewood, we wonder why.
“I would not be surprised if Mike Davis will come on Twitter and respond with a string of answers or excuses,” Wolk concluded. “But the pattern is clear, and no words can mask it. Actions (in this case, articles) speak louder than words (tweets).”
Davis did indeed respond on Twitter, with a simple tweet.
“We’ve never met or spoken a word to each other, only exchanged tweets,” he wrote. “So instead of a ‘string of answers or excuses,’ I’ll just say I’m sorry you feel that way and that I’ll gladly take any suggestions you’ve got.”
Wolk has yet to respond, but another community member followed up. “Don’t publicly disseminate bigotry and then come say ‘give me suggestions’ when you are called out for it. You’re a reporter. Don’t be a mouthpiece for the few bigoted losers who pander to you.”
{Matzav.com}
The zoning board is full of corruption if these specific cases are ok it doesn’t change the fact that their are obviously zoning issues