KS Meadowlark: If Yael only spelled is name as "Yae" he wouldn't be a liar?

April 16, 2007

Does the "L" in KC Star's Editorial Board Member Yael Abouhalkah's Name Mean He's a Liar?
If Yael only spelled his name as "Yae" he wouldn't be a liar? Oh, this is just a joke?

On the March 29th Ruckus show (repeated April 1st) on KCPT [aka Public Television 19, a 501(c)(3) public charity] in Kansas City, the "Ruckettes" briefly discussed the political future of Johnson County District Attorney Phill Kline.

Without providing any justification, Ruckette Yael Abouhalkah (second from left above), who is columnist for the Kansas City Star and a member of the paper's editorial board, suggested that the second "L" in Phill Kline's name stood for "Liar" and Kline might have a political future if he just dropped the second "L" from his name. As "Phil Kline" perhaps he could be elected.

What kind of lame, 6th-grade journalism statement was this on a non-profit, public TV station? How does this demonstrate anything but blatant bias by this KC Star editorial board member? So, is "Yael" also a liar because his name ends in an "L"? It's OK to tell a "joke" like this without any justification on public TV?

When asked to explain this "L" for "Liar" mnemonic via E-mail, Abouhalkah's explanation was even more lame:

In fact, it's actually quite helpful to journalists, because we cover three people with similar names in this area: Phill Kline; Phil Kline, a former state rep., and Phil Klein, a Kansas activist.

So local journalists remember Phill Kline the DA because the second-"L" means "Liar"? How can this be viewed as anything but hateful and biased? How does hateful, name calling like this help any public dialog about any issue? If Abouhalkah said the second-"L" was for "Life" because Kline supports the Culture of Life, that would be politically accurate and not derogatory. But why the derogatory name calling by a KC Star Editorial Board member?

Abouhalkah expressed regret via E-mail that the comment may have offended me, but apparently he didn't see anything unprofessional or wrong with his statement on tax-payer funded public television, and declined to say whether he thought an apology to Phill Kline was in order.

Abouhalkah's comments on KCPT would seem to be a violation of the Kansas City Star's Code of Ethics:

Editorial employees should:

Avoid even the appearance of a conflict and immediately report to their supervisor anything that would allow a news source to call our impartiality into question. Editors should make news judgments solely on their merits and use diligence in determining when real conflicts exist.

Political Involvement

Staff members are encouraged, even urged, to exercise their franchise as citizens to discuss matters of public interest and to register and vote. However, because their profession requires stringent efforts against partiality and perceptions of bias, ...

But the Star doesn't appear to take their Code of Ethics seriously when their columnists or editorial board members are blatantly biased -- which also shows in most of their editorials. Star columnist Mike Hendricks recently showed his "impartiality" by attending an event with a "Proud to be Liberal" bumper sticker on his van. I only regret my camera was turned off when I realized what I had witnessed.

The blatant bias by members of the Kansas City Star is unbelievable. Like Hendricks, they must be proud of it.