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PostNov 10, 2006#31

Downtown2007 wrote:bsharmastl, its because negative news gets higher ratings than positive news.


I "sort of" understand that, but maybe if the survey was

"Would you rather hear about the good things happening in your city or the bad"

The results may be different.
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PostNov 10, 2006#32

Positive spin on downtown... let's see...



Well, we just did a couple weeks of stories about the Cardinals showing a vibrant, booming downtown. That was followed by coverage of the $800 million or so Ballpark Village. Tonight, we featured Vin de Set, a great new restaurant on the edge of Lafayette Square in a rehabbed warehouse building. I know we've done stories about the loft boom, as well.



As for tonight's piece... we weren't looking to do a story that put a bad spin on the city. We wanted to point out a problem so people may feel the urge to do something about it. For example...



If it's a family from west county coming down for the game -- they may want to be picky about the garage they choose to patronize.



If it's the garage owners -- they may want to make their facilities safer.



If it's the police/city -- they may want to make sure the people who come downtown have a good, safe experience while they're here.



This board is obviously full of people who really want to see downtown succeed. I would hope you would use this information to seek change from those who have the power to create change.
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PostNov 10, 2006#33

^Actually, this board is about accentuating the positive of St. Louis. This board and its predecessor, St. Louis Rising, were created to offset all of the negative information, media and attitudes that are so much a part of the St. Louis fabric - especially in relation to St. Louis City.



Additionally, there are many positive examples of community activism that have resonated from this board. We definitely understand the power we hold and appreciate reasonable discourse here, but I think it is equally important for you and KMOV to acknowledge the power you all have.



Why now? Why create such a story now - especially after last week's negative national media attention? It seems like you all might be riding the wave. Didn't KMOV have access to all of this information long before sweeps month? Where was the concern for the public's safety prior to November? I'm just asking.



Honestly, while I feel that it is important for the public to be informed about safety and protection, this topic might be more suited for the stltoday.com forums or some other St. Louis board if disintegrates into a St. Louis crimefest debate.



Yes, there are cheerleaders for the city and downtown who exist on this board. And although I am not the designated spokesman for Urban St. Louis, I think we understand that St. Louis has its problems, which she continues to address and MUST address. We are not oblivious to this fact. We appreciate honest efforts by local media to address problems where they lie. However, I think it is a bit disingenuous to suggest that KMOV cares about the safety of visitors to downtown, at this convenient time, when these statistics obviously have been accessible for months.



Just my two cents.
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PostNov 10, 2006#34

These stories were the result of a couple hundred man-hours of work and cost us thousands of dollars to produce. It was not something that a reporter turned in a day based off of a press release.



When a television station puts those resources into a story, they expect a return on their investment. So, of course a story like this will run in a "sweeps" period. Why hide a lantern under a basket? The upside is... a larger group of people are watching TV during "sweeps" so a story like this can reach a bigger audience, having a greater impact.



One day, "sweeps" months will be eliminated and you'll see stories like this run year-round. Until then, television stations will continue to funnel their big projects into these important months.



And we're not "riding the wave" as you suggest. This is a project we began in June and completed just last week.
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PostNov 10, 2006#35

Steve Chamraz wrote:Positive spin on downtown... let's see...



Well, we just did a couple weeks of stories about the Cardinals showing a vibrant, booming downtown. That was followed by coverage of the $800 million or so Ballpark Village. Tonight, we featured Vin de Set, a great new restaurant on the edge of Lafayette Square in a rehabbed warehouse building. I know we've done stories about the loft boom, as well.



As for tonight's piece... we weren't looking to do a story that put a bad spin on the city. We wanted to point out a problem so people may feel the urge to do something about it. For example...



If it's a family from west county coming down for the game -- they may want to be picky about the garage they choose to patronize.



If it's the garage owners -- they may want to make their facilities safer.



If it's the police/city -- they may want to make sure the people who come downtown have a good, safe experience while they're here.



This board is obviously full of people who really want to see downtown succeed. I would hope you would use this information to seek change from those who have the power to create change.


Unfortunately by wanting to point out a problem you did it in a way that will keep some people from setting foot in downtown unless absolutely necessary. Just look at small things like the music bed that was used for the piece. That jarring, echoing, booming sound was meant to incite fear, danger and risk. So the tone was set early then carried on throughout the spot. I just don't undersand why you wouldn't want to infuse a small bit of positive support. Instead of interviewing someone who says they will avoid downtown at all costs, find someone who agrees that there is a problem but loves living in the city and is hoping that measures are being taken to help the problem. You CAN do an investigative report without the scare tactics.
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PostNov 10, 2006#36

Having been one of the three or four dozen people Steve talked to before his station aired the story, I have to say that I found him to be open-minded and fair about the material he included. Too often, reporters show up for interviews with un-shakeable theories.



Not Steve. He asked good questions, listened to the answers, and changed his mind about some things.



He had already noticed that downtown's changing population had colored the crime stats: the presence of new businesses and, especially, residents have shifted some of the auto crime from streets to the big parking garages. More eyes on the streets have changed things.



If his second story highlights two things (1) the difficulty and frustration of policing crimes that judges do not consider important enough for jail, and (2) the fact that most cars parked downtown never have problems, while some cars parked in suburban malls do -- then, I can live with it.



PS The circuit attorney's website lets its readers track cases through the courts. How many people hand-wringing about this kind of story took the time to figure out which circuit judges up for retention on Tuesday's ballot routinely let car clouters walk out of court?
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PostNov 10, 2006#37

St. Louis has the highest crime rate per capita. Let's make that distiction. Not that it is "better". If St. Louis city could stretch the lines of city limits to match those of Cambdenton, NJ (260 sq miles), KC, MO (319 sq miles), or Detroit, MI (138.8 sq miles) the city would NOT have a crime rate to what many would feel is "bad". It isn't rocket science / nor "comparable) when you look at St. Louis (61.9 sq miles) and calculate it's crime against other cities. SO would we be saying St. Louis has the "highest crime" or a "crime problem" if we had the square mileage in comparison to other cities? Probably not. Think about that for a minute. St. Louis city, unfortunately has a very HIGH per person capita. This allows crime reports / statistics to show higher crime rates per person than any other city. NOT that St. Louis had more murders or non-violent crimes that Chicago, Detroit, L.A. or Miami. It doesn't. Yes, St. Louis city has crime issues, but maybe St. Louis would have a better police department doing a better job if St. Louis had a larger area providing a better and larger police department through larger funding.

Who knows, but important to note when comparing crime in St. Louis. Not ignoring it - but recognizing that St. Louis could have one of the nations lowest crime rates in the nation if we stretched out our boundaries to levels of comparable crime ridden cities. It is like comparing apples to oranges when I hear city to city comparisons in crime rate statistics (because they are done on a level of "per capita").





Steve:




If it's a family from west county coming down for the game -- they may want to be picky about the garage they choose to patronize.


The problem is ... they won't come downtown. Maybe for a game. But any further patronizing to downtown may become to "scary". They will leave right away after a game because they saw a report on KMOV about downtown's crime. Futhermore, Suburbanites, unfortunately, think the Central West End is downtown, Lafayette Square and Soulard is downtown, and midtown is downtown. :?
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PostNov 10, 2006#38

Steve - just want to reiterate that I appreciate you posting on this site and I hope that you continue to do so. There are some strong opinions here, but most are very fair. We'll all benefit from your input and perspective.
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PostNov 10, 2006#39

A comment to Steve: I hate the "sound effects" on the report. Just report the facts. We can understand the gravity of the situation. Tell your boss ASAP--thnx!
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PostNov 10, 2006#40

publiceye wrote:Having been one of the three or four dozen people Steve talked to before his station aired the story, I have to say that I found him to be open-minded and fair about the material he included. Too often, reporters show up for interviews with un-shakeable theories.



Not Steve. He asked good questions, listened to the answers, and changed his mind about some things.


I actually don't doubt that. How many other reporters have ever taken the time to come here and have a discussion. Steve gets some points in my book for that. I still think it comes down to station management wanting to do things like this.



I think the biggest issue we have with this is that it just gets old having to constantly defend the city against this stuff. We all know there are some issues to address, but we don't want people to pick up unfounded fears.
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PostNov 10, 2006#41

You also need to distinguish from per capita crime and where the crime occurs. Statistically per capita crime indicates the number of crimes per person, however this does not take into account where most of the crime occurs. Per Capita assumes everyone has a similar chance statistically to be a victim of crime, all things equal. This does not take into account neighborhood, unemployment rate, frequency of police patrols, or volume of police residency. All of these variables affect the likelihood of being a victim of violent crime.



Violent crimes, for example, occur more on the North Side than anywhere else, so if you don't live there then your chances of being a victim is pretty low. We do have a high per capita crime rate when it comes to violent crime, yet the chance of being a victim of this type of crime depends on your location.



Car break ins occur all over the Metro Area. This is a minor issue.



What I would like to see is hard investigations into why one section of our City has more violent crime than other areas. Obviously the factors I listed above will affect the rate, yet a few of them are within the capacity of the Police Department to address. The almost 20 percent increase in crime is the responsibility of the Police Department. Mokwa, Slay, and the majority of Police Officers (who still live here) tend to live in the South Side. Coincidentally, those areas have some of the lowest numbers of violent crime in the City. It is my belief that the high crime areas on the North Side need to be addressed. People do live there and if we expect our City to be great we cannot ignore them.



Here is an idea of what I am talking about:







As you can see, living in my 2nd District, the chances of you being a victim of violent crime is far less than the North Side Districts.



(Source, Pubdef.net)
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PostNov 10, 2006#42

Steve Chamraz wrote:These stories were the result of a couple hundred man-hours of work and cost us thousands of dollars to produce. It was not something that a reporter turned in a day based off of a press release.



When a television station puts those resources into a story, they expect a return on their investment. So, of course a story like this will run in a "sweeps" period. Why hide a lantern under a basket? The upside is... a larger group of people are watching TV during "sweeps" so a story like this can reach a bigger audience, having a greater impact.



One day, "sweeps" months will be eliminated and you'll see stories like this run year-round. Until then, television stations will continue to funnel their big projects into these important months.



And we're not "riding the wave" as you suggest. This is a project we began in June and completed just last week.
Not to be an antagonist, but it just so happens that the project wrapped up during November sweeps month. I still think management is riding the wave. I am sure there are plenty of other "sweeps" stories that KMOV has lined up for this month that they could have aired prior to these stories.



The media has to do its job, no doubt. However, there is still a way to captivate an audience, do a responsible job to get out the information, and get a return on the investment all without "hyper-sensationalizing" stories for increased ads and ratings. I have seen news stations do it. The Belo station in Houston, for example. Report what needs to be reported, but such stories, when hyper-sensationalized, could have a detrimental impact on what the region's leaders and stakeholders are trying to accomplish downtown.



Here's a little info....



Sweeps ( A television ratings term)



What are "sweeps"? Sweeps are time periods when television stations/networks typically schedule programming designed to attract a larger than usual audience.



Why? Sweep period programming is designed to attract larger audiences who in turn are exposed to advertising commercial messages. Thus, when the ratings for the sweeps period are revealed, the TV station/network can charge its advertisers more money because more people watched.



When do sweeps occur? Typically four times a year: the months of February, May, July and November.



Source

PostNov 10, 2006#43

Doug wrote:


As you can see, living in my 2nd District, the chances of you being a victim of violent crime is far less than the North Side Districts.



(Source, Pubdef.net)
While your district is one of the safest in the city, actually, some North St. Louis districts have lower incidents in some crimes than the Southside districts. BTW, most of the homicides in north St. Louis are gang and drug related. When the drug and gang activity is cleaned up - homicides will go down like in years past.
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PostNov 10, 2006#44

That map is awesome, but I would like to see the populations (or approxiamate populations) of the differnet districts added... I mean if district 2 has 1/4 the population, hey its a little safer, but not as safe as its made out to be... etc... Also areas like downtown have a LOT of visitors... so that might add to the numbers as well....
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PostNov 10, 2006#45

An observation-- I spent a week in Toronto and a week in D.C. recently and it really hit me hard on these two particular trip how white and safe St. Louis is. We really are living in a bit of a cocoon here. Largers cities the world over are becoming extremely diverse. I don't feel any time and resources spent on convincing or trying to educate families from the burbs or the farm about where to park or how to behave is approrpriate.
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PostNov 10, 2006#46

I understand everyone's desire to pump up St. Louis and to promote the city. The more people there are in the city, the better off the city will be. Safety in numbers. And negative stories about bad things do not fit into the objective of encouraging people to explore the beauty of the urban St. Louis. However, I think Steve is doing a service to the community-at-large, by bringing these issues to light.



If there are problems, such as high per-capita murders, high per-capita car thefts, excessive rapes, etc., one cannot expect these things to change unless there is publicity and a spotlight highlighting these issues.



I think the media in St. Louis needs to do a better, more thorough, job at investigating the powers that be, whether these powers be the business owners, the city PD, or the mayor, and pushing them to enact changes.



Negative publicity can lead to positive change. You should not expect any TV station to deliver news that only paints St. Louis as a utopia. If they do, the fundamental changes that need to take place, never will.



It also helps that these issues are tackled during sensational periods. The more people watching, the better the chances are of forcing change.



Don't attack Steve. Attack Mokwa. Attack Slay. They are where your problems lie.



I say, good job, Steve. But hey, don't forget to continue to present the positive changes that are taking place.
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PostNov 10, 2006#47

Arch City wrote:To say, "oh that crime is gang related, once the gangs are dealt with, then the problem is gone," leaves a few ideas in my head. First, we are so apathetic to allow gangs in our society, then we justify their violence as "gang related," therefore whatever violence occurs is deserved, or not our problem? Second, when is the key as this should be addressed now. Third, these gangs have members younger than many of us. Finally, I would like to see future investigations into the PD, however that probably will not happen.
Interesting comment. I don't know if you were speaking in general or directly to me, but if so, I was not suggesting by any stretch of the imagination apathy in regard to gangs and drug violence. However, they are key pieces of the crime problem regardless of what side of town they occur. In a similar thread, I suggested that these problems need to be addressed by the community with more resources - particularly in North St. Louis - but some people have a tendency to be adverse to implementing resources, yet they complain about the social/crime problems that are directly tied to a lack of resources.
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PostNov 10, 2006#48

zas wrote:However, I think Steve is doing a service to the community-at-large, by bringing these issues to light.



If there are problems, such as high per-capita murders, high per-capita car thefts, excessive rapes, etc., one cannot expect these things to change unless there is publicity and a spotlight highlighting these issues.



Negative publicity can lead to positive change. You should not expect any TV station to deliver news that only paints St. Louis as a utopia. If they do, the fundamental changes that need to take place, never will.
We know that NO city in America (or the world for that matter) is utopia.



I don't think anyone is discounting the need to bring such issues to the light. I don't think anyone is discounting Steve as a person or his hard work. It's not even about the city getting negative publicity. Aren't we used to that by now? What we have a problem with is how the news is brought to light. Publicity (good and bad) is needed to facilitate changes in the community, but how an outlet goes about disseminating information can sometimes be problematic. Let's be honest about that.
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PostNov 10, 2006#49

First, we are so apathetic to allow gangs in our society, then we justify their violence as "gang related," therefore whatever violence occurs is deserved, or not our problem?


Gang related, drug related and domestic violence don't scare me as much as muggings, rapes and home break-ins. If I were to choose what we should concentrate on (and we will never have the resources and/or will to really tackle all of these) it would be the latter crimes I mention.
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PostNov 10, 2006#50

Steve, welcome to the forum. I hope you'll continue to participate in our discussions, because I think it's great to have your insight and perspective here as an (unmasked) member of the local media.


zas wrote:I understand everyone's desire to pump up St. Louis and to promote the city. The more people there are in the city, the better off the city will be. Safety in numbers. And negative stories about bad things do not fit into the objective of encouraging people to explore the beauty of the urban St. Louis. However, I think Steve is doing a service to the community-at-large, by bringing these issues to light.


I agree completely.



Steve, I think people here have been a bit hard on you, but I'm sure you also understand their unbridled passion for city living and their desire to see downtown Saint Louis succeed.



I must admit I was upset when I first saw the story- I thought, "Oh great, let's kick Saint Louis while it's down!". Upon further review, I began to see the story's value. I would hope that garage owners and the SLMPD see it as an impetus to do more to address the problem, and in my book, that's the definition of solid reporting.



One thing I would've liked to have seen in the initial report is someone that could attest to downtown's overall safety to counter the gentleman that boasted about avoiding the area, but at least Larry Connors and Kent Ehrhardt offered proper perspective in their segue to the weather report.



Overall, I think it was a solid and informative report. Thank you for shedding light on the problem, and for your willingness to sit in the forum's hot seat.



And FWIW, I find KMOV to be pretty objective in their coverage of the city. I've seen stories about rehabs, the downtown loft boom, and new construction, along with flattering pieces on larger projects like Ballpark Village. And Catherine Neville's "Sauce on the Street" feature focuses almost exclusively on city-based dining. KSDK could certainly learn a thing or two. :wink:
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PostNov 10, 2006#51

Steve, thanks for coming on here to discuss the issue.



As for the report, I watched on KMOV.com and have a few comments.



I think the basic idea behind your story is right on. Downtown is experiencing a revival and I think it is good that a local new outlet is focusing on an aspect that otherwise could/would drive away potential users if not addressed head on. Dealing with nuisance crime is an important part of making downtown better. The spots the report points out make all the sense in the world. Without people there is no crime and areas like Washington Avenue (though aided by the number of homeless in the area), Union Station, and the ballpark all attract large numbers of people.



If anything stands out, it is the number of crimes at the large underground garage on 4th street, as all the other "hot spots" are obvious destinations that attract crime, to my knowledge the 4th street garage is not part of any big destination. It stands out in the report as the obvious garage where security measures are likely insufficient.



The issue I have is perhaps the context of the report and its tone. Because the report does not reference crime for any other areas of the city or region as a whole, one watching the report simply is met with the notion of downtown as a lawless place. While I understand the purpose of the report was not to detail the car break-in hot spots for the St. Louis region, I can't fault you too much for that lack of comparison.



As for the tone, KMOV generally does a good job with their city coverage, presenting good and bad locally. People on this site are sometimes a bit sensitive of City criticism, since it seems that many local media outlets don’t do the research and critical thinking necessary to produce journalism that portrays the true nature of the city, recognizing that the city is more than just negatives.



I just felt the introduction left a bit to be desired, focusing on downtown and crime. I know it was designed to hook me into watching, but an intro that instead pointed out that with downtown’s increased population and popularity have brought some increased crime might have been better. Point out the reason for the crime. It is not just because it is downtown. It is not just because the city is crime ridden. It is because downtown is experiencing a resurgence and entrepreneurial criminals, just like anyone else, want a piece of the action and these are the spots they are looking to get some action.



I would encourage you to do similar such studies on other topics. Given the shopping season, maybe a report showing crime levels at local malls and major strip shopping centers. Given the number of people on this site who throw out that downtown is no more unsafe than your average suburban shopping mall, I think such a story would be really interesting and timely.



One other note. It is good to see that one member of the media is willing to openly show that they read this site. I hope you enjoy what you read and hope you participate more, because it is interesting to have the medias perception of St. Louis, since much of what we talk about is based on the perception of the city. And maybe you will find a few good story ideas on here too. :wink:
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PostNov 10, 2006#52

Welcome Steve,


We wanted to point out a problem so people may feel the urge to do something about it.


I hope this report results in some action.
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PostNov 10, 2006#53

I don't know who Steve is or watch KMOV so I wasn't directing anything at him. A story idea - I've heard that there is a large group of criminals (a cohort) preparing to be released from prison and a concern is what this means to urban neighborhoods in the large cities in Missouri. Next to nothing is spent on rehabilitation/socialization or drug and alcohol treatment in Missouri prisons. What will it mean to your neighborhood if say 10, criminals are released back into their old nabe within a 1-2 month period?
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PostNov 10, 2006#54

This is the first time I have seen a reporter identify himself and honestly debate his side. That shows class.



Just like us, I am sure he works within defined parameters. I have no doubt he too loves the city.



I still have an issue with any negative publicity, NOT because we don't have crime issues, but because DT gets a lot of bad rap in the burbs. Stories like these just make my family and friends go... "and you live there???"..... I understand this is an issue with the people and not the media. The media is a catalyst.



That said, I would still like a "happy news hour". Why not do a "night on Grand, or night in loft bars, etc" and cover some of the upcoming hangouts in the city?
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PostNov 10, 2006#55

^ or cover crime in the burbs? Every time a car gets broken into at Plaza Frontenac it should be the lead!
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