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Ad vote embroils politics, publisher

A commissioner says another's successful move to bid out county ads is in response to a newspaper's criticism.

By BILL VARIAN
Published July 21, 2005

TAMPA - Earlier this month, Patrick Manteiga took Hillsborough Commissioner Brian Blair to task in the political column he writes each week in the paper he owns, La Gaceta.

Now Manteiga, and at least one other commissioner, say Blair is firing back by seeking to change the way the county buys newspaper advertising. Blair wants to get bids for its newspaper contracts, and he won a narrow 4-3 vote of endorsement from fellow board members Wednesday.

"I think, commissioner, you're treading," said Commissioner Kathy Castor. "I ask you to be cautious."

"I just am terribly concerned that there's something else behind this," she added. "If people have been critical of you in the newspaper, you can't take it personally."

Moments later, Blair interrupted another commissioner to respond.

"I'm really insulted by Commissioner Castor's attack," he said.

Commission Chairman Jim Norman asked him to wait his turn.

When it was his turn, Blair continued: "I feel very insulted that you would slander me by saying this is (personal)."

The politics of the situation: Manteiga is a longtime Democratic activist, and Castor is a Democratic candidate for Congress. Blair is a Republican.

Blair opened his proposal by noting that the county spends roughly $500,000 on legal advertising in newspapers. Why not bid it out and see if the county can get a better deal? he asked.

The county does much of its advertising - for things such as meetings, bid solicitations, rezonings - in the Tampa Tribune. Historically, the commission has advertised in other papers geared toward minorities, including the Spanish, Italian and English language La Gaceta, and the Florida Sentinel Bulletin, which writes primarily on issues of interest to the African-American community.

When other commissioners expressed concerns about reaching out to minorities, Blair agreed to modify his proposal to seek pricing and circulation numbers, broken down by their circulation among racial groups.

Manteiga, meanwhile, wasn't buying Blair's pitch.

"I think that he wanted to send a message to myself that he's going to punish me if I continue to speak out against him," he said. "I think it's a really scary message for a lot of small newspapers."

[Last modified July 21, 2005, 00:56:18]