My media vs. The media. SB25-306 a minor nibble at regulatory reform. Shootout at the wolf corral.
My media vs. The media.
The American Press Institute piece linked below details a study done by the Media Insight Project (quoting the piece, this is "a collaboration of the American Press Institute and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research").
The authors present it as offering some insight into Americans' distrust of the media. Taking an extended quote:
"...public attitudes about the news media are more complex and nuanced than many traditional studies indicate, with attitudes varying markedly depending on what media people are asked about. The findings show that on many fronts, Americans are skeptical of 'the news media' in the abstract, but generally trust the news they themselves rely on. And most people mention traditional or mainstream news sources as the ones they turn to. As an example, only 24 percent of Americans say they believe the news media in general are “moral.” But that number more than doubles, to a majority of 53 percent, when people are asked about the news media they use most often. Just 17 percent of Americans give the news media high marks for being 'very accurate.' But twice as many (34 percent) say that about the news media they use."
Interesting results, but perhaps not for the reasons that come at first blush. I'm not at all surprised that people across all parts of the ideological spectrum do not trust "the media". Looking at numbers from other studies, you quickly realize that you don't hit the kinds of numbers they do without including more than just angry conservatives.
What interests me here is how well the fact that people trust their stuff more than they trust others' dovetails with other things in human nature.
We, human beings, are tribal. Always have been, I think we always will be. I don't think that we should nod at that and move on; I've long felt that one of our jobs here on earth is to rise above the (sometimes) unhelpful inborn traits we have, but nonetheless the tribalism is there.
It shows up in our trust of media, preferring ours over others'.
It shows up in medicine. I don't have data to back this up, but I bet you my lunch that many people trust their doctor more than doctors (or medicine) in general.
I know it shows up in teaching. I cannot count the number of times I've had to convince a parent that little Johnny is not the angel or conscientious student they believe him to be.
In keeping with what I alluded to above, I want to end by putting in a word for how to work around our natural tendency to trust one media above all others (I wouldn't touch the subject of trusting medicine with a 10 foot pole).
Read widely. Listen and watch widely.
I am not talking about consuming more news mind you. I'm talking about spreading your consumption out.
If you like to listen to news in the morning and evening, listen to NPR on the way to work and Fox (or talk radio) on the way home.
Read Colorado Politics one day and The Center Square the next.
Check out the Sun on Wednesday and Complete Colorado on Friday.
The point is less about schedule than it is about having a serving of meat along with a serving of grain. It's not about searching for the perfect outlet that gives it to you straight (such a thing doesn't exist).
No matter whether you agree with any particular news outlet or another, they all have (without any accusation made about intent to deceive) blind spots. They all inject their perspective into the news.
Be a responsible human and media consumer and make sure "your media" is all of them.
https://americanpressinstitute.org/my-media-vs-the-media/
SB25-306 a minor nibble at regulatory reform.
According to the Sum and Substance article linked first below SB25-306 passed the legislature with a rare 100 to 0 vote. Pretty remarkable for this state.
So what does the bill do that it could get this rare distinction? Screenshot 1 attached is from the bill's fiscal summary (the link to the bill proper is second below).
SB25-306 requires audits of (not the only though some of the worst) Colorado regulatory agencies--the Air Pollution Control Division and the Division of Unemployment Insurance. Long time readers will recognize those names; they've been frequent subjects of my writing.
These are not financial audits, however. As you can see in the second paragraph of the screenshot, the divisions' performance is up for assessment too.
Some quotes from the article give a glimpse into why this is needed.
"APCD [Air Pollution Control Division] is charged with implementing and enforcing most of the air-quality rules the state has implemented since 2021, and its average time for approving permits has risen from 165 days in 2019 to 459 days last year – despite adding more than 100 employees in that time. The unemployment-insurance division taxes employers and dispenses unemployment payments to workers who lose their jobs through no faults of their own, and efficiency in operations is necessary to keep down the fees on companies that are needed to fund it."
And
"Colorado Chamber President/CEO Loren Furman said that SB 306 is meant to examine two divisions that hold significant regulatory power over state businesses and determine if improvements can be made. Rep. William Lindstedt, the Broomfield Democrat who is cosponsoring the bill in his chamber, said it seeks to answer a basic but needed question — whether state agencies are following laws as written or are impeding business in how they choose to implement them."
Don't get me wrong. I celebrate this effort.
That being said, this is paltry compared with what is actually needed to turn this state around. It's like trying to steer a container ship with the rudder from a dingy.
Our state is in dire need of a serious overhaul and picking on a couple of the least-functioning and least-popular state divisions is a good start, but it ain't going to cut it long term. Even a complete overhaul in these two places would still leave Colorado in a decline in terms of its business climate, one where those businesses are not just complaining but acting on those complaints.**
While Democrats voted (and co-sponsored) this legislative effort, while the Democrat governor signed it, it is critical for you to remember amid the dissembling and attempts to distract that will be in our future that we got to this point with 8 years of Democrat control here in Colorado.
Plain and simple. End of story.
**If you want to see why in more detail, straight from the mouths of businesses and business organizations, look in the story under the headings "Job Losses Speak to the Need for Regulatory Reform" and "Businesses Now Looking to Expand Elsewhere".
https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb25-306
Related:
Now that the deadline to sign, veto, or pass is well behind us, we have final numbers on the bills that the governor either signed or let become law:
He signed (per the article below quoting our scrupulously honest and forthright governor) 476 bills into law. This, combined with the ones he merely let pass into law puts yet another nail in the coffin of the Polis = libertarian notion.
I think you could also reasonably claim that adding this much legislation kind of negates any sort of efficiencies gained in the woefully-inadequate legislation covered above.
More in the article, including some highlights where the reporter thoughtlessly scribes claims by the governor's office (not just his bills signed number either).
https://www.coloradopolitics.com/governor/governor-completes-bill-signing-tour-2025/article_b4e8aadf-603a-4117-9fc1-9ef676e6a7bd.html
Shootout at the wolf corral
I had a reader send the op ed linked below. The title, along with the following from the first line:
"A circular firing squad was not what I would have ever imagined for the stake holders, the ranchers, other animal producers, and sportsman and hunters groups trying to maneuver their way through the impacts of the Colorado wolf introduction process."
set the tone pretty well for what it's about.
At the risk of too much information, paralysis akin to what you face when you stare down the wall of toothbrush options at the store, I thought I would share it to help maybe lift up another corner of the debate on the proposed 2026 ballot initiative to stop wolf reintroduction.
Presented here for information without further comment from me (you are welcome as always to add civil thought to the comments if you feel moved to).
https://www.thefencepost.com/news/shoot-out-at-the-wolf-corral/
How do I actually get a petition for the initiative and go around to get signatures? I'd love to help stop the re-introdcution, but is it possible that some ranchers don't want to because they can get $300,000 payouts from the state for lost livestock and reduced weight at sale of their cattle?