Dear Editor:
The April 4 North Bergen Reporter story, “Allegations Fly in Mayor/Commissioners’ Race,” paints a misleading picture and creates a false equivalence between the outrageous and increasingly farcical allegations from the so-called “Concerned Citizens” slate and Mayor Nick Sacco’s team. While the “Citizens” continue to hurl political attacks at Mayor Sacco, they have been met with simple statements of fact refuting them. There have certainly not been “allegations … back and forth on an almost daily basis” as the article claims.
The story later quotes an anonymous person who claims to be a North Bergen resident afraid to speak publicly. This type of supermarket tabloid journalism is more suited for a gossip column than a news story in a reputable paper. We all expect better from the North Bergen Reporter.
This “Concerned Citizens” slate has offered little to no real solutions or ideas and instead continued to lob unbelievable assaults at Mayor Sacco, demeaning one of the most respected public servants in New Jersey. And yet this story simply regurgitates them, taking no responsibility for what is true and only seeking to be “objective.” If being objective means repeating whatever ridiculous claims are fed to you by a rogue slate of long-shot candidates desperate for attention, it’s clearly not in keeping with journalistic ethics and responsibilities.
We hope that in the future the North Bergen Reporter will strive to print the truth, and not take the easy way out and continue seeking only to be “objective.”
Philip Swibinski
Sacco Team Campaign Spokesman