Interim Portsmouth Police Chief Angela Greene.
Two days ago, I took the Washington Post and New York Times to task for uncritically publicizing the allegations of recently resigned Portsmouth Police Chief Tonya Chapman that the police department was riddled with racism. Both newspapers rushed to publication without any dissenting view or even a note of caution.
Portsmouth City Council has appointed an interim replacement, Assistant Chief Angela Greene. In her first public statements yesterday, Greene, who like Chapman is a female African-American, said she did not see a problem with racism in the department. Said she, according to WTKR TV:
I can’t tell you what [Chapman] felt, what she might have gone through. My experience here in almost three years, I do not see that. I do not see that as a perception. I do not see that as a problem here.
And this:
If there is an issue with any particular officer, that officer is addressed immediately. If I feel like there is a systemic issue or an issue more widely than one individual officer, that’s when we bring in training.
I don’t know what the truth is. Maybe racism is a problem in the Portsmouth police department. Maybe it isn’t. Maybe there is a problem but it’s complicated and cuts two ways. But here’s what I do know. The Washington Post and New York Times are only interested in one side of the story — the side that confirms the Oppression Narrative of endemic racism.
Why do I say that? Because neither newspaper has seen fit to follow up with stories about Greene’s remarks. The Times did run an Associated Press story yesterday, “Residents Ask What Led to Resignation of Black Police Chief,” but, so far, has nothing about Greene’s comments.
Gee, if the idea weren’t so outrageous, one might be tempted to think that white liberal reporters in the Mainstream Media want to fan the flames of racial animosity. Who needs Russian Twitter trolls or Neo-Nazi scumbags when you’ve got elite media?
Perhaps the newspapers will publish something tomorrow. If they do, I will update readers.
