Copy of What's making news in Salem you might have missed

Good morning…

So far, more than 1,300 people have viewed the video of the mayor’s debate between Chris Hoy and Julie Hoy.

Western University of Health Sciences Lebanon Oregon

That’s remarkable attention to an important political race here in Salem.

And that’s on top of the 350 or so who showed up at the Elsinore Theatre to watch the event live on Tuesday, April 30.

Voters can make a true difference in races such as the one for Salem mayor. Chris Hoy, the incumbent, and Julie Hoy, the restaurateur and city councilor, stake out starkly different views of Salem’s future.

Managing Editor Rachel Alexander captured that in her coverage of the debate, which was conducted jointly by Salem Reporter and the Salem City Club.

Another difference between the Hoys is money. Our team is examining campaign finance reports now. In the coming days, Salem Reporter will show who’s giving money as we question contributors about what’s behind their choices.

Meantime, you can watch the debate anytime, courtesy of Capital Community Media’s Youtube presentation. It’s under an hour and worth your time.

We are thankful for the notes we received from readers who appreciated the debate and its format.

Here’s just one: “The mayoral debate was a huge success. The questions were tough and the facilitation fair. It’s tough to keep candidates from lapsing into empty rhetoric but you pressed again and again for specifics.”

Reporter Abbey McDonald has spent hours talking to the candidates, including the Hoys. She lays out the issues and candidate responses in the mayor’s race. She also did the same with races for Salem City Council, the latest focusing on Irvin Brown and Michael Hoselton.

Her reporting also found one candidate for city council with a thin record of voting himself. This is the kind of vetting our team does to help you better know the people on the ballot.

With so much attention on city races, it’s easy to overlook another competitive race. Four people are running to become a state judge in Marion County. Reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian gives you a peek into this campaign.

Federal prosecutors closed out two criminal cases last week with Salem ties. In one, a man was sentenced for selling the illegal drug that killed a 15-year-old Salem teen. In another, a man’s sexual assault at a cemetery of a woman with development disabilities was punished with a 25-year prison sentence.

And in the week ahead, federal judges will hear arguments in a case that will decide whether DEA agent Samuel Landis faces prosecution in Marion County. Landis is accused of causing the death of a Salem cyclist last year after he ran a stop sign. Ardeshir Tabrizian will report on the arguments and the status of the case.

There has been good news in Salem too.

At Weddle Elementary School, a mural in the works for some time was finally unveiled. Student suggestions were incorporated in the amazing artwork.

And photographer Laura Tesler captured the joy – and some of the struggle – of those participating in the recent Awesome 3000.

Columnist Harry Fuller gets you up to speed on the osprey nesting season and columnist Pamela Ferrara explains what is often misunderstood about Salem’s unemployment figures.

Finally, we have news of our own.

Rachel Alexander, in her Editor’s Note, introduces you to Joe Siess, the newest member of our team. This expands our ability to cover Salem and we’re fortunate to attract an experienced Oregon journalist to work with us.

YOU made this possible

That we can expand our staff is due to one factor: Subscribers.

More and more people turn to us for news of Salem they can’t get anywhere else. And they are willing to pay.

Why do we charge for news?

Because covering the news with experienced journalists costs money. We want to pay our team a decent wage. We need to cover overhead, such as the rent, phones and technology support.

As the hiring of Joe Siess demonstrates, we are investing in serving Salem, not making some hedge fund fatter than it already is. We’d building, not cutting. We can and want to do more for our community.

A subscription to Salem Reporter is easy to set up. It’s affordable. And it’s the way for readers to vote in favor of the kind of news we deliver. Our fee is modest. The cost is $10 a month, $100 for the year. Why not join in? Click HERE and in moments you’ll be a Salem Reporter subscriber. (You can take us for a test spin for just $10 – get three months for the price of one.)

As always, thank you for reading and feel free to reach out to me anytime at [email protected] with ideas, questions or concerns.

–Les Zaitz, CEO and editor, Salem Reporter

Salem Reporter’s new team includes, from left, Les Zaitz, Rachel Alexander, Abbey McDonald, Ardeshir Tabrizian and Joe Siess. (LAURA TESLER/Special to Salem Reporter)

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Copy of What’s making news in Salem you might have missed

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