TAKING NOTES:

One of the knocks I’ve heard from some of the louder voices in Costa Mesa is newspaper staffers who don’t live in the city can’t possibly know the issues Costa Mesa faces and really should just shut up about it.

I remember even being told this by someone who is now a member of the City Council, who took me to task for not living here, saying I really didn’t have the right to comment on Costa Mesa issues.

So I find it amusing there are whispers on blogs and e-mails to me about one of our most recent reporter hires, Alan Blank.

“Is he related to Chris Blank?” one e-mailer asked me.

Yes, he is. So what?

Well, that would explain his “slanted” reporting, the e-mail writer noted.

Sorry, but I don’t see any evidence of that. I’ll let the readers make that ultimate call, but I will tell you a little bit about our latest hire covering Costa Mesa.

Alan Blank was born at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian and grew up in Mesa Verde attending Adams Elementary and later Edison High School for its Gifted and Talented Education program. He’s been a Costa Mesa resident his entire life except for the four years he went to college at UC Santa Cruz to get a degree in physics.

You’d be hard pressed to find a more native Costa Mesan. But those who say living here should be the precursor to employment, are now changing their argument.

They hint Alan is tainted because his dad supported Return to Reason. So not only does someone have to live here, they argue, now they have to be in lockstep agreement with everything they believe. That’s kind of how they did it in Russia, Iran and Iraq, isn’t it?

I didn’t realize Costa Mesa aspires to be like those totalitarian states.

Even still, I asked Alan to tell me about his dad’s beliefs and his.

“My dad was a part of Return to Reason,” he said. “I am not and never have been a part of Return to Reason. I wasn’t even living in Costa Mesa when the whole Return to Reason movement happened. I’m not sure what my dad’s exact involvement was.”

And Alan said he does his level best to be fair and balanced in his reporting.

“I try to understand the viewpoints of all sides involved. I look at it a lot like a science problem [remember he’s a physics major]. Everything happens for a reason,” he said. “I think that in a fair and balanced story, both sides should be able to read it and think that it makes their side sound good … I think that clear communication and a commitment not to try and catch sources saying outlandish things is the way to keep all of your sources talking to you.”

Well put. One of the lessons I teach my students at OCC is that nobody can enter into a topic without bias. We all have our points of view. But if a reporter does his or her job right, then both sides will get a fair hearing and the story will be balanced. Seems Alan understands this concept well.

But let’s look at the absurdity of the “you don’t live in Costa Mesa so you should not work here argument,” on its face. Does that mean Costa Mesa residents who work in other cities in journalism, teaching or law enforcement should just quit now because they can’t possibly understand those other communities?

Obviously not.

In an e-mail (that went unanswered by the way) I pointed out to the council member mentioned above that as someone who has worked in Costa Mesa for the better part of two decades, I probably know this city and Newport Beach better than many who live here.

I know the politics, the pressing issues and the political players.

I spend my money here constantly through buying lunches and gas, dry cleaning, Christmas shopping, car repairs (I’ve been going to Bay Auto since 1991), and most recently golf.

As a member of this newspaper, I’ve been deeply involved in community events and spend a good amount of my time organizing the annual Daily Pilot Cup soccer tournament, something that doesn’t benefit my community.

I volunteer my personal time to be on the board of the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce.

I also noted to that council member that where I do live is no different than Costa Mesa.

Like most cities in Southern California, the community I live in also feels the effects of illegal immigration.

The city I live in is not immune from crime, blight or schools that need to deal with limited or non-English speakers.

My children’s school just got awarded with Distinguished School recognition, largely based on the growth of the limited English students, who are a large faction at the school.

The effects of immigration are just a fact of life and Costa Mesa is hardly the exception. The exception is how some in Costa Mesa have chosen to address problems, like making silly arguments about where someone lives.

TONY DODERO is the director of news and online for the Daily Pilot. He can be reached at 714-966-4608 or via e-mail at [email protected].