Petrelis Files

This is the first story to appear in the gay press on gay publishers and reporters donating to politicians. Kudos to the writer, David Webb, for writing an article about this angle to my research of Federal Election Commission recods.
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The Dallas Voice
August 9, 2004

San Francisco activist tracks media members’ campaign contributions

Petrelis ‘surprised by the extent’ of donations; some executives take issue with his stance


By David Webb
Staff Writer


San Francisco AIDS advocate Michael Petrelis has shifted his attention to the political activities of reporters and other members of the news media.

His target? People charged with producing fair and balanced news reports who also contribute money to political campaigns.

“I’m surprised by the extent,” said Petrelis, who began monitoring campaign finance disclosure Web sites this spring. “My concern is that we need more transparency from the media.”

The media wields great political influence, he said. It should be standard practice for publishers, report-ers, broadcasters, editors and producers to reveal their political contributions so readers and viewers would be alert to biases, Petrelis said.

“I think readers should know about those donations,” he said.

The indomitable Petrelis, who began his very public career in Austin in the mid-1980s, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges of harassing some officials of the San Francisco Health Department last year and is now on probation.
Petrelis is also under a restraining order to stay away from the offices and employees of the San Francsico Chronicle because he harassed reporters and editors who covered AIDS.

Petrelis said he became interested in the topic when he logged onto a campaign contribution site in an effort to determine if a reporter who covers AIDS had made donations. That could have revealed something about the reporter’s mindset, he said.

“He hadn’t made any contributions, but I discovered that lots of other people had,” Petrelis said. “That’s what got me started.”

Research of campaign finance records show that a total of 200 media employees, representing 91 reporters and editors and 109 publishers, have contributed money to the 2004 election cycle so far.

The activist said that he has checked out about 50 newspapers and magazines to determine if publishers, editors and reporters are making political contributions. It’s proved to be an eye-opener, he said.

He discovered that Katrina Heuvel Vanden, editor of The Nation, had donated extensively to political campaigns.

“She’s given tons of money for the past two decades,” Petrelis said. “I didn’t know she was so rich.”

Petrelis said that he was also surprised to learn that fashion editor Elizabeth Stewart at The New York Times Magazine had contributed $1,000 to the John Kerry campaign. The newspaper has a strict policy against political activity or contributions by newsroom employees.

“I certainly don’t think of The Times as a pro-Bush publication,” Petrelis said.
Petrelis said he determined that Hendrik Hertzberg, senior editor of The New Yorker, is “clearly for Kerry.” The editor, who writes political opinion pieces for the magazine, gave $900 to Kerry’s campaign, he said.

And it was no surprise to learn that William F. Buckley, publisher of the National Review, had contributed to Republican Party candidates, Petrelis said.

Petrelis said that he discovered that publishers and employees of GLBT publications also contribute to political candidates.

Former Washington Blade editor Lisa Keen, a freelance writer who covered the recent National Democratic Convention for PlanetOut, donated $250 to Sen. Carol Moseley Braun’s ill-fated presidential campaign. And San Francisco Bay Area Reporter publisher Bob Ross, who died last year, contributed $3,000 to congressional candidates, according to the campaign disclosure sites.

Window Media publisher William Waybourn, whose company operates four gay newspapers, in Washington, New York, Atlanta and Houston, has given a total of $6,950 to mostly gay political candidates, during the 2004 election cycle. Some of the funds went to the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund. Waybourn is co-founder the victo-
ry fund and served as the organization’s first
executive director.

Waybourn said that he sees no reason to disclose his contributions in the four Window newspapers, because anyone who wants to know can find the information in other records available to the public.

“It’s not a matter of hiding anything,” Waybourn said. “I don’t write any stories, so there’s nothing for me to influence.”

Petrelis’ research also showed that Dallas Voice publisher Robert Moore contributed $250 to the Clark for President campaign.

No newsroom employees of the Voice have made any political contributions, the records show.

Moore said that the newspaper’s owners have always kept the newsroom “distinctly removed from any political activity in which we have personally participated.” He noted that he has never submitted an opinion piece for publication during his 20 years at the paper, which he co-founded in 1984. He also has never edited news copy, he said.

“To be honest, it’s not a question I’ve ever considered,” Moore said.
But the publisher added: “In disclosing your personal political donations, you would, by default, be making a public statement.”

Petrelis’ activities monitoring media contributions seem redundant, Waybourn added.

“It’s not a bad thing,” Waybourn said. “But when you have something that is already disclosed, someone else trying to disclose it is not going to change the dynamics.”

Both Waybourn and Moore said that their publications’ policies prohibit news employees, including editors, from making campaign contributions or participating in any political activity, which the men agreed would present a conflict of interest.

The Dallas Morning News has a similar policy, and research failed to turn up evidence of news employees making campaign contributions.

Petrelis said that he is not abandoning his role as an AIDS campaigner. But he plans to continue monitoring the political activities of the media and other selected contributors. He noted that he has always monitored the media’s coverage of AIDS issues.

Waybourn said that Petrelis has been asked by company officials to cease contacting reporters at Window Media newspapers because he had “screamed and yelled” at them.
Petrelis said he was unaware of any complaints about him harassing Window Media reporters.

“That’s news to me,” said Petrelis, who acknowledged that there is a restraining order barring him from contacting San Francisco Chronicle reporters. “I kind of think what William is trying to do is deflect attention from his donations.”

Petrelis said that he is abiding by the terms of his probation and has quit contacting both health department officials and newspaper reporters in San Francisco.

“Jailhouse orange is not my color,” Petrelis said. “I would say my activism has adapted. I don’t even litter.”

Petrelis said he hopes more people will start logging on to Web sites like www.tray.com to take advantage of the information offered about campaign contributions and the sources of politicians’ money. Campaign contributors can be tracked by name, occupation and employer name, he said.

E-mail webb@dallasvoice.com