Why is this newspaper trashing its own town?
Just another 'Bad News Day' in Albury-Wodonga? (click on image to enlarge)
This is a screen shot of today’s Border Mail website. The Border Mail is a very large regional daily newspaper published out of nearby Albury and is part of the Fairfax group. Look at the stories it constantly highlights – they’re all very negative and usually about crime, violence, bashings, knifings and vandalism. It’s something I’ve noticed over the years and it seems to be getting worse.
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So, what does this mean? Does it mean that Albury and Wodonga (its twin city on the Victorian side of the border) are hotbeds of social unrest and NOT good places to relocate to? You could be forgiven for thinking that. Or does it mean that the paper has some kind of agenda, like maybe they don’t want to encourage people from the capitals to relocate to their little piece of paradise on the Murray River?
I know it sounds like a conspiracy theory but in my opinion it’s more of the latter. Albury-Wodonga has no worse social problems than anywhere else and I’d go so far as to say people are far safer living there than in either Melbourne or Sydney. But if you were thinking of a tree change to our largest inland regional centre and doing your research, it’s for sure you’d come across the BM’s website. And it’s equally for sure that after monitoring the news coming via the BM, you’d probably change your mind and stay put, or move elsewhere.
It looks like the message that the Border Mail is putting out is this one :
“We’re full, don’t come here”.
Which, unfortunately, is an attitude that sadly prevails in many regional areas.
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Promoting 'Beautiful Bright'.
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Things must be rough. Fev is going to Yarra rather than one of the border teams. Even the Pokies in Albury or Lavington don’t entice. Sad days indeed.
He should play for Myrtleford – lots of, um, side benefits.
After living in Albury for 23 years I moved to Wangaratta just over two years ago. It was a wise decision. For one thing it’s safe living here, you can confidently walk down the main street at midnight and not feel threatened, most of its inhabitants are tucked up in bed and every thing is closed but that’s not the point!
Albury really is dangerously feral after midnight and Wodonga is just well just feral most of the time.
Sadly, Albury Wodonga thinks it’s an important town. It’s not. The headlines are right Ray.
Fair enough, Indii, but I don’t think Albury-Wodonga is as bad as you and the BM paint it. The BM is definitely putting the worst face on its website. Those stories are handpicked out of the hard copy paper and look like a deliberate over-sensationalising to me.
You want all this Violence to stop……it’s simple…….bring back 10 o’clock closing!!
Well, they won’t turn back the clock, Steve. Are you from A-W, btw?
Crime sells Ray, but I don’t agree with plastering it all over a website which has a global audience. Other things attract readers too, like quirky stories and special achievements.
Crime is easy to report and what you’re seeing is cheap journalism. You need adequate resources of dedicated staff and editorial direction to pursue a positive, human-interest agenda. I suspect The Border Mail is running on empty under Fairfax.
As for Fevola, I sort of hoped he would come to my adopted club of West Adelaide, but he was rightly rejected after insisting on a fly-in, fly-out arrangement.
Hi Michael. So maybe it’s just poor journalism by the BM? Sure makes Albury-Wodonga look bad.
I would say it’s poor editing or poor management, rather than poor journalism, unless you know something I don’t about the actual reports.
Of course, Michael. It’s not the reporters and writers making the decision on what gets highlighted on the website.
Yes Ray….I’m from A/W…….now tell me one good reason why 10 o’clock closing can’t be re-introduced!!
Because it would never get through Parliament, Steve. There’s no going back, I’m afraid.
Nah!!….that’s not a reason….that’s just greed!!
It’s just reality, Steve.
So we just roll along & except it….well that will get rid of the Violence!!
Steve, would be interesting to look at what the public says. Are the burghers of Wodonga and Albury jumping up and down? Do the give a stuff?
And what is the view of the major parties?. Can you for a second believe that the Coalition would back what would be considered a restraint of trade? Is this a bread and butter “law and order” priority?
What changed in Melbourne with the spate of nightclub bashings? Did they review or alter trading times?
I reckon if the rabble that cause the issues: loitering, vandalism, violence etc are keen, they’ll procure their grog from other sources. Are they going to go home and play scrabble over a couple of beers? This is all about boredom, bravado and a lack of respect.
I’d be interested to know the motivations and essence of why these morons are what they are and why this area. Herein lies the real problem methinks, not the pubs and nightclubs, although I certainly am no supporter of those. There is no moral or socially responsible ethic that these establishments take, they are a business and their ethic is to make money, short of not serving totally inebriated types, their responsibility stops there.
But of course, it might all be trumped up as Raymond says.
Baldrick, there’s no doubt that Albury has a late night alcohol-related street violence and anti-social behaviour problem in Dean Street. But I’d suggest it’s no worse than many other places and nowhere near as bad as Melbourne. I’m not trying to deny it exists but I agree with you that changing the opening hours or closing down certain venues won’t do much to curtail it. In my opinion the only solution is a policing one. It requires more police on the beat, it’s as simple as that.
My point is that the Border Mail is emphasing on its website (that goes to the whole world) ALL the social problems, not just the late-night revellers, and is highlighting even domestic disputes, car thefts, vandalism and just about any crime-related story. It’s not a good look for the town and would put any potential new arrival off.
However, if you read the hard copy of the BM, some of the stories they highlight on the website are just small articles stuck back in page 5, 6, 7 etc. I.E. they’re not ‘front page news’ yet the BM is making them so on its website. And I don’t see any commercial benefit in doing that (as Michael suggests – “crime sells”) because I’d say that very few people reading the website then go out and buy the paper. The website exists for three reasons:
1. To promote the paper.
2. To promote the area.
3. Because, well, because the BM thinks it has to have a website.
But the message they are putting out is that Albury-Wodonga is a crap place to live and, from what I have seen, that’s well out of proportion to the reality.
Yes….you are both probably right, my suggestion of early closing was to make a start somewhere to stem the Violence with less cost to the Community….Policing costs…….I have lived in this area most of my life & have seen the changes to Albury/Wodonga & it’s Activities at night over that time……Policing back in the early 70′s was controllable & yes there was Domestic Violence & there probably always will be, but it was policeable because everything shut down at 10pm, which was only the Clubs, Pubs & their Bottle Shops that sold Alcohol……but then they introduced 24 hr Trading Time & that made Alcohol more accessible over a longer period, then gradually at more Establishments over the years to what we have now…..Clubs, Pubs, Bottle Shops in Residential & the CBD area’s, as well as in every Supermarket & Shopping Centres……the impact that has had on Police Resources has been enormous over the years to the extent that they will never be able to keep up with the by product that Alcohol produces “Violence” & lets not forget that Police have many other tasks they have to attend to apart from attending Violent Activities…….& lets face it, those that made the decision way back then to introduce the longer Trading Hours, never for one minute thought about the Social Impact it would have on Society, it was always about the almighty $$$’s they could reap in……& your right we are not the only place with Social problems, but in saying that I don’t think we can compare ourselves to Melbourne or Sydney, but what we can say is that we are becoming a haven for the fallout of those Cites with People that have had Social Problems & come here to get away from their troubles & then what happens….”Boredom” sets in……don’t think I need to explain what happens after that.
Agree, Steve. There is no doubt that the plentifull supply of alcohol has seen more of it consumed. Same goes for drugs. It’s also an educational issue. Unfortunately, these are the times we live in. There are benefits to freeing everything up but, like you say, we haven’t dealt with the negative side effects yet.
I live in Albury and sadly although the Border Mail certainly does sensationalise these things from time to time, the essence of these stories is true. Unfortunately in the last 20 years or so the place has become drowned in an ocean of booze and there now seems to be an element here who believe they can do what they like and the law does little or nothing to dissuade them from their illegal, immoral and generally disgusting activities.
The answer is simple, more police with proper powers to enforce the law backed up by the judicary. Yes, we are better off living here than Melbourne or Sydney but for how much longer?
It’s more than “the essence” that is true, blotch. The stories about crime & violence that the BM chooses to highlight on their website are no doubt absolutely true, I’m not denying that. The point is they are not ‘front page news’ stories and have been deliberately and purposely plucked out of the hard copy and placed on the website for a reason. And the reason appears to be to send a message – to the whole world, it’s the Internet, after all – that Albury-Wodonga is a shit place to live. It’s very misleading. Sure, they have problems but to highlight them in this manner is blowing them out of proportion.
Yes, I take your point Ray and A-W is certainly not a shit place to live in by any means. But unless the BM constantly highlights these issues the apathetic local population just won’t or can’t believe what is going on under their noses. Or worse still they just shrug their shoulders and come up with that old favourite ” You can’t do anything about it!”
The BM despite its faults is doing a public service here.
I’ll be laughed out of town and the bleeding hearts will have a fit, however, why not bring back the stocks? – you know, that quaint medieval device where miscreants were immobilised while the locals pelted them with rotten eggs (& worse).
I can see it now. Bogan Billy and his scaley mates are hauled before the beak to answer to ………………… (insert your own charge). Instead of imposing a ……………………… (name your own sentence), they get to spend an hour in the stocks being ridiculed and shamed, with a picture of their agony in living colour on the front page of the Daily Bugle the next day
Mum & Dad Bogan, who probably contributed to young Billy’s bad behaviour, could also spend a useful hour or so in the same device.
I’m thinking of suggesting that the Alpine Shire put one in each town as a tourist drawcard. Heaven knows, we could use the publicity that Ray keeps banging on about. (I know a great location in Myrtleford. There’s a small park next to the Magistrate’s court and close to the Visitor Information Centre! I’m sure there are suitable locations in Bright & Mt Beauty.)
I don’t agree, blotch. If the BM were directing these stories at the local public they’d put them on the front page of the hard copy of the paper. The fact they are plucking somewhat obscure stories out of the minor pages and highlighting them on their website suggests (to me) that they are aiming them at the outside world, not the locals. And I think that’s a disservice to the community.
Because, Noel, in Myrtleford there’d be more miscreants than eggs. I read the papers.
Aren’t the councillors based in Bright? Woolies, I’m sure could do a deal on the eggs.
They’d be the first to be put in the stocks, Noel, so no, I don’t think they’ll have a bar of it. Where would you set the threshold for stocks humiliation? How about for being picked up over the limit and then refusing a second breath test?
I was thinking more along the lines of generally stupid behaviour – graffiti, vandalism, drunken larrikinism.
Drinking & driving is another kettle of fish. I’d be looking at a Ducking Stool on the banks of the Ovens River near the Bright VIC. That way, they’d sober up fast after which they could rescue their car out of the Tronoh Dredge Hole at Harrietville which would be the other part of their punishment.
It’s just that I thought you’d like to see a certain ex-Mayor in your stocks, Noel.
The law is impartial Ray, so why just single him out?
Just a joke, Noel. You know, the one you started.