The stories we tell each other about ourselves color the way we see the world. This year, we learned a lot about the power in storytelling in Baltimore thanks to one very powerful man: David Smith.
Smith already serves as executive chairman of Sinclair Media. You are probably familiar with Sinclair-owned television station Fox Baltimore (it’s the television station that features reporters chasing down Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott or proclaiming that our city is in crisis). This year, he and conservative commentator Armstrong Williams purchased The Baltimore Sun. One of the first things Smith did after the sale was tell Sun reporters what he thought of it and the institution of journalism in general. First, he said, he hadn’t read a newspaper in 40 years. He then ranted about the school system, saying “If you knew the corruption and the designed failure of what goes on in the Baltimore City school system, you would shoot somebody. Unfortunately you can’t do that.”
As the year came to a close, the Sun’s union raised the alarm about how Smith and Williams were running the paper — using the dehumanizing term “illegal immigrants” and firing reporter Madeleine O’Neill for criticizing the organization. In October, they announced that Smith had made the decision to do away with the newspaper’s features department. Feature stories are often where people and regions are humanized. They are where we can learn about the work of artists, activists, organizers and organizations innovating the way things are done in the city.
“The Guild is devastated for the chefs, artists, musicians and business owners who are no longer considered worthy of coverage by their hometown newspaper — and for readers, who will lose information they can use to decide how to spend their money and time,” the Washington-Baltimore News Guild said in a statement.
That’s not the only way Smith has held sway over the city. He also financed Question H, an initiative that would shrink the size of the city council.
“Opponents, who included Mayor Brandon Scott and members of City Council, framed the proposal as part of Smith’s long-running effort to use his wealth and media empire to buy influence in Baltimore City,” journalist Jaisal Noor reported for us about the initiative recently.
Although he plunged over $400,000 of his own money into the effort, voters here rejected it. He had more luck a few years ago when voters passed legislation to enact term limits on elected officials here.
Here at Baltimore Beat, we don’t have anywhere near the funds that Smith has, but we work hard week after week to tell you all a more nuanced story about the city where we all live.
That’s why in these pages you’ve seen the photography of born-and-raised Baltimore photographers like Shae McCoy, Sydney J. Allen, and Myles Michelin. It’s why we highlight important stories like the closure of The Crown, the collapse of the Key Bridge, and the brilliance of Angel Reese. It’s why we also continue to hold powerful elected officials accountable — not because we want to humiliate them, but because we want the city to be better.
We also create space for you to tell your own stories because we know that journalism isn’t a one-way conversation.
In this issue, we tried hard to catch hold of just some of the things that mattered in a year where so much happened. We hope you enjoy reading our 2024 best (and worst) list. Please join us at 6 p.m. December 10 at Mera Kitchen Collective (1301 North Calvert Street) to help celebrate the best of the city, lament the worst, and congratulate ourselves for making it through a tough and eventful year.
We will see you again after the holidays on January 15!
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