Rantz: This reporter’s ‘hot take’ makes literally no sense

I defy you to make heads or tails of this meandering, muddled, contradictory feature report by Q13’s resident Progressive activist/reporter.

The report claims there’s “A changing of the guard at City Hall — older, whiter faces getting out of politics, and a council starting to look more like the town it represents.”

His evidence? Council candidate Teresa Mosqueda may take the seat of white Councilmember Tim Burgess. I’m not sure what other “whiter” faces he’s referring to on the council (or at City Hall because the two candidates vying for the office are white faces). So it’s not “faces.” It’s one face.

So, if one non-white face replaces a white face on the council, it will begin “to look more like the town it represents,” according to Jon Humbert. He’s demonstrably wrong and he actually knows it.

Seattle is overwhelmingly white. In fact, the city says it’s 69 percent white. The Hispanic population? Less than 7 percent. So, no, if Mosqueda is elected it wouldn’t “start” to look more like Seattle, it would look less so.

In fact, the reporter even acknowledges his claim is wrong at the end of the story, pointing out that “the projected City Council would be more diverse than the city at large, which is 70 percent white and only 6.5 percent Hispanic.” His opening point and then conclusion are in diametric opposition to each other.

Now, of course, a diverse council is fantastic (though it should be noted a very important kind of diversity, ideological, is non-existent here). But why make a claim that is so demonstrably false that you contradict yourself in your own story? I legitimately don’t understand. But maybe it’s because I’m viewing it in terms of this being a news presentation.

The fact is, the story isn’t a news report; it’s virtue signaling and a chance for a reporter to talk to his Progressive friends in the accompanying video piece. He so desperately wants you to know he values diversity, that he’s willing to look like a dope if you actually read his piece.

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