Rocky's editorial page referenced Schaffer Facebook controversy; will its news section report on it?

Summary: The Denver Post, all of the Denver network television news affiliates, several smaller Colorado newspapers, and numerous local and national blogs have reported on the controversy over offensive material found on the Facebook page of U.S. Senate candidate Bob Schaffer's (R) son Justin. As of August 6, the Rocky Mountain News had referred to the controversy in Vincent Carroll's opinion column but had provided no coverage in its news pages.

Several Colorado media outlets, plus local and national blogs, reported August 4, 5, and 6 on the controversy surrounding bigoted and profane material found on the Facebook page of Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bob Schaffer's 19-year-old son Justin. But as of August 6, the Rocky Mountain News had not covered the issue on its news pages, publishing only a passing reference in editorial page editor Vincent Carroll's August 6 column. Moreover, the News failed to report on an August 5 public statement by state Rep. Rosemary Marshall (D-Denver) that condemned the material and called on Bob Schaffer to do the same.

After the blog ColoradoPols noted on August 4 that the website Schafferfamilyvalues.com had posted a mirror image of the Facebook page of Justin Schaffer, a student at the University of Dayton, The Denver Post on August 5 reported, "Opponents of Republican Senate candidate Bob Schaffer have found political fodder in his 19-year-old son's Facebook page, which shows a picture of Barack Obama over the caption 'High five ... who's gay' and another picture that reads 'Slavery gets sh-- done.' " Further, the daily political news website Colorado Independent on August 5 reported, "The day after Justin Schaffer's Facebook page was exposed as being littered with racist propaganda, officials at his college announced they are considering charging the 19-year old son of Republican Senate candidate Bob Schaffer for a violation of their Standards of Behavior." The article continued:

Among the items posted on Schaffer's social networking page was an image of pyramids with the slogan "Slavery Gets Shit Done," a picture of Barack Obama doctored to look like Osama Bin Laden, and a picture depicting Jesus holding an automatic weapon, standing in front of the Confederate battle flag, with the words "What Would Republican Jesus Do?" (WWRJD)

By the afternoon of August 6, all Denver's network television news affiliates -- KDVR Fox 31, KUSA 9News, KMGH 7News, KCNC CBS4, and KWGN CW2 -- had covered the issue, publishing either staff reports or an Associated Press article. Additionally, The Gazette of Colorado Springs and The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction published an AP article online on August 5, and the Boulder Daily Camera (which, like the News, is owned by E.W. Scripps) did so on August 6.

Further, the national blogosphere and online news media provided numerous postings about the younger Schaffer's Facebook page, including August 5 accounts on Daily Kos and the Huffington Post, and an August 6 post on Talking Points Memo. In Colorado, an online, user-submitted article about the controversy appeared August 5 on YourHub.com. The Denver Newspaper Agency, which publishes the News, produces and maintains YourHub.com, which provides reporter- and reader-produced content that appears in a print version that the News circulates as a section of its own print edition.

The Post's August 5 article reported:

Schaffer said he was prepared to talk about his campaign, not his children, but he did say that he and his wife had set out "firm punishment" for their son, Justin, over the issue.

Justin Schaffer attends the University of Dayton, and the page was apparently widely accessible to students there.

Justin Schaffer issued a written apology late Monday:

"The offensive materials directly contradict the values that my parents taught me and are forbidden in my parents' home. My Facebook page is my sole responsibility ..."

"It is clear that my actions were juvenile, disrespectful, and a mistake on my part," the statement said.

Although much of the material had been removed from the page by Monday night, a mirror image of an earlier version was posted on a website called Schafferfamilyvalues.com.

Critics tried to stress the contradictions between some of the items on the page and the family-values message of conservatives like his father.

In an August 6 article, the Post reported on Marshall's public call for Bob Schaffer "to condemn what she called 'racist material' on his son's Facebook Web page":

"Schaffer needs to take responsibility and immediately condemn the racist images on his son's Internet page," Rep. Rosemary Marshall, D-Denver, said in a statement.

Schaffer's son, Justin, who attends the University of Dayton, maintained a Facebook page with images that included a depiction of pyramids over the words "Slavery gets sh-- done" and side-by-side pictures of Barack Obama and cereal cartoon character Count Chocula over the words "Separated at birth?"

Justin Schaffer apologized in a statement Monday for the Facebook page, from which the images had been removed.

"It is clear that my actions were juvenile, disrespectful, and a mistake on my part," the 19-year-old said.

Bob Schaffer, while not commenting on the Web page, said his son had received a "firm punishment."

As of 5 p.m. Mountain time on August 6, the News' only mention of the controversy was in Carroll's column that day in the newspaper's opinion section:

Not funny

It's been a lousy week for GOP Senate candidate Bob Schaffer. And while parents can't be expected to answer for a 19-year-old son's offensive sense of humor (e.g., "slavery gets sh-- done"), as revealed on a Facebook page, Schaffer could at least tell his campaign manager, Dick Wadhams, to knock off the crude political war talk. Wadhams' refusal to express regret for his promise "to shove a bunch of 30-second ads up [Mark Udall's] a--" is, well, a little weird.

—C.H.