28 The Queens Courier • AUGUST 23, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com
28 THE QUEENS COURIER • AUGUST 23, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS WWW.QNS.COM
THE QUEENS
editorial
sun
PUBLISHER & EDITOR
CO-PUBLISHER
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
VP, EVENTS, WEB & SOCIAL MEDIA
ART DIRECTOR
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
STAFF REPORTERS
CONTRIBUTING REPORTERS
ASSISTANT TO PUBLISHER
CLASSIFIED MANAGER
CONTROLLER
PRESIDENT & CEO
VICE PRESIDENT
WWW.COURIERSUN.COM
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS
BOB BRENNAN
ROBERT POZARYCKI
AMY AMATO-SANCHEZ
NIRMAL SINGH
EMILY DAVENPORT
KATRINA MEDOFF, RYAN KELLEY, JENNA BAGCAL
SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
CLIFF KASDEN, SAMANTHA SOHMER, ELIZABETH ALONI
DEBORAH CUSICK
CELESTE ALAMIN
MARIA VALENCIA
VICTORIA SCHNEPS-YUNIS
JOSHUA A. SCHNEPS
Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361
718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441
www.qns.com
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Entire Contents Copyright 2017 by The Queens Courier
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SUNSETS AT THE UNISPHERE // PHOTO VIA INSTAGRAM @ktamadarasz
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STORY: Materials for the Arts in LIC invites educators to their fourth
annual supply ‘shopping spree’
SUMMARY: From Aug. 20 to the end of September, Materials for the
Arts will be hosting the fourth annual “Back to School” kickoff , where
public schools and nonprofi ts are invited to get free supplies for their
students.
REACH: 13,277 people (as of 8/20/18)
What were they thinking?
Th is last week, politics in Queens and New York state were fi lled with truly
cringeworthy moments from candidates who ought to know better.
Locally, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — the 28-year-old juggernaut who
ousted Congressman Joe Crowley and became a Democratic Party sensation
overnight — took fl ak for holding a town hall meeting in Corona that was
closed to the press.
One of our competitors reported on the matter and the story quickly went
viral. Ocasio-Cortez took to Twitter to, at fi rst, call the situation a “non-story,”
and then to explain that the town hall was closed to the press “to protect
+ invite vulnerable populations to PUBLIC discourse: immigrants, victims of
domestic abuse, and so on.”
Th at’s a completely understandable reason — but one that should have
been made clear from the beginning (the press ban went public just two days
before the town hall meeting).
Moreover, if a public offi cial or candidate is going to hold a closed-to-thepress
event for such a reason, then at least do something to highlight what
happened. Hold a gaggle with reporters aft erward or connect the media with
a willing participant or two comfortable with telling the press their story. But
don’t completely shut the press out.
Last week, we condemned President Trump for actively working to disparage
and diminish the press. We stand by those remarks, and add our belief
that no politician should constrain our ability to do our job.
In the aft ermath of this imbroglio, Ocasio-Cortez indicated that future
press events will be open. We’re going to hold her to that pledge to do better
— and the voters should, too.
Th e other frustrating moment was Governor Andrew Cuomo’s remark
that America “was never that great.” You may have heard that one soundbite,
but here’s the full quote: “We’re not going to make America great again;
it was never that great. We have not reached greatness. We will reach greatness
when every American is fully engaged.”
Immediately, Cuomo’s opponents pounced on his poor choice of words.
Th e stiff est critics, not surprisingly, were Republicans who supported
Trump, whose campaign slogan was “Make America Great Again.”
Th at slogan implies that the country had been great, was no longer great
and somehow needed to be made greater. Th at’s just as insulting as someone
saying America “was never that great.” Yet few Republicans have called
Trump out for that same ignorance which they giddily threw Cuomo under
the bus.
Right is right, wrong is wrong and (unlike what Rudy Giuliani said on the
Aug. 19 “Meet the Press”), truth is truth. We voters in Queens need to reject
the toxic brew of 21st-century politics (hypocrisy, soundbites, half-baked
explanations for wrongdoing) and hold our elected offi cials, regardless of
party, to higher standards.
And if they keep making us cringe, then they need to be shown the door
the next election.
Publisher & E ditor Victoria Schneps-Yunis
Co-Publisher Joshua A. Schneps
Associate Publisher Bob Brennan
E ditor-In-Chief Robert Pozarycki
VP, Events, Web & Social Media Amy Amato-Sanchez
Art Director Nirmal Singh
S ocial Media Manager Emily Davenport
S taff Reporters Katrina Medoff, Ryan Kelly, Angela Matua
Suzanne Monteverdi
Contributing Reporters Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni
Assistant to Publisher Deborah Cusick
Classified Manager Celeste Alamin
Controller Maria Valencia
President & CEO Victoria Schneps-Yunis
Vice President Joshua A. Schneps
Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361
718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441
www.qns.com
editorial e-mail: editorial@qns.com
for advertising e-mail: ads@qns.com
Entire Contents Copyright 2017 by The Courier Sun
All letters sent to THE COURIER SUN should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should
include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation,
indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Name withheld on request.
No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of THE COURIER SUN. The
publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by
the error. Errors must be reported to THE COURIER SUN within five days of publication. Ad position
cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication.
VIctoria Media Services assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes
all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold The Courier SUN and its
employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the
publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to any such advertisement.
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