News Tribune sucks up to the realtors

News flash: In case you didn't know it, the News Tribune is in the pocket of the real estate companies.

Want proof? Look no further than the article by Galen Moore in today's paper, Rogers named top real estate agent.

Is this news? Of course not! It's a fluff piece, written to appease one of the paper's biggest advertisers, local real estate firms. There's no substance, although the reporter, to his credit, has tried his darndest to play up the hometown-boy-done-good angle.

But the fact remains that readers will never see a story in the Tribune that profiles a crooked real estate agent (as the lawyer who handled my own closing remarked, "half these people are snakes") or details a homebuyer's unpleasant experience with a realtor in Waltham. If that were to happen, the News Tribune could kiss those page-sized ads goodbye for a time.

Also, we'll never see prominent articles about so and so named top librarian, or top convenient store owner, or top Indian restaurant proprietor. There's no business reason for the paper to do so, as the library and convenient stores and Indian restaurants seldom advertise in the paper. And thankfully, there's no news value either -- can you imagine seeing fluff pieces like this every week in the paper? No one would read it anymore!