South Dakota’s sweeping abortion ban has become one of the key political stories of the day, but don’t expect the state’s largest newspaper to publish an editorial on the subject. Apparently, abortion is too controversial.
“Part of it was that we wouldn’t change people’s minds, and part of it, regardless of which side we came down on this, is that people would read into it things that are not true,” Chuck Baldwin, editorial page editor of the Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, S.D., told E&P. “People would think our coverage is tainted, and not just on abortion but on everything.”
When asked if such a view could preclude editorials on virtually any controversial issue, Baldwin disagreed. “Abortion is different from other issues,” he replied. “It is a hot-button issue at the core of everyone’s soul. It will not change no matter what.”
I’m not an avid reader of the Argus Leader, but E&P reported that the paper does editorials endorsing candidates and on emotional issues such as the war and the death penalty, but they’re taking a pass on the huge political/legal/cultural fight that’s taking place in their backyard.
Beck revealed that the editorial board “agonized, we argued, we spoke passionately and personally. And at the end of two tortuous sessions, we concluded what you likely already know. Given the intractable divisions in our state and nation, nothing we could say on our editorial page would change anyone’s mind – and it could well jeopardize the credibility we have worked long and hard to establish.”
Reading between the lines, the Argus Leader’s editorial board doesn’t support the new ban, but the paper seems to have reached a political decision. It won’t do an editorial, and readers won’t freak out.
When the next round of Profile in Courage awards are handed out, Argus Leader editors shouldn’t expect a phone call.