7 Comments

This is extra bizarre because Worcester already has a publication that covers the interests of the Worcester business community, and which has journalists and editors and has actually been doing some meaningful reporting in the last few years in topics like the stadium and even mental health beds. Why wouldn't the chamber just work to support and bolster the Worcester Business Journal, which is already doing the work?

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I can just imagine the kind of right wing crank stories they will publish. We can count on misinformation, inaccuracies, and outright lies designed to bolster the right wing candidates for city council and school

Committee. Not to mention how they will smear the progressive agenda.

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They have a paper called “The Chamber Exchange” that they already put out on a regular basis. I keep getting it in the mail against my will despite never having subscribed to it. If this is a separate thing and not a rebrand of that, seems like a *totally normal* move, not at all any kind of attempt for one pro-capitalist org to control any media narratives in the city…

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The Guardian :: Our locations

The Guardian

https://workforus.theguardian.com › locations

Our locations. With locations in the UK, Australia and the US, Guardian News & Media are a truly international news organisation.

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Congratulations to the Worcester Business Chamber of Commerce to leave no doubt about its lack of integrity. What an excellent way to draw new businesses and investment into our community! The city might want to consider increasing their budget for marketing and public relations given the level of damage control

In order.

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Perhaps this is the end of the woods, the telegram and gazette as we have known it for so long

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To make things even more fun, their FAQ page is an absolute joke where they answer "Are you a nonprofit?" with "Yes, we have a website where you can buy a digital subscription." The website has all the earmarks of a hastily slapped together project that no one really put any thought into. They don't yet have a 502(c)3 number, and are still waiting on being accepted into the nonprofit journalism organization. If you're serious about something like this, you hold off your launch until you've got your ducks lined up. They're not serious.

Oh, The Beacon's page also borrows heavily from the sample ethics pages provided by the Independent Nonprofit News organization, but at least The Beacon did some customization.

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