Globe falls short in coverage of Joplin R-8 campaign contributions

After missing the 40-day-before-election campaign filings of Mike Landis and Veronica Gatz Scheurich completely, the Joplin Globe, the area's alleged paper of record, had a chance to catch up with the 8-days-before-election report.

Naturally, the Globe blew it.

The Saturday Globe, which has the largest circulation of any of the Globe's editions, carried a page one story headlined "3 Joplin School Board campaigns raise total of nearly $25,000."

That information is correct. The three campaigns cited by the board, those of Landis, Schuerich and Marda Schroeder, did raise nearly $25,000.

Here is where the problem comes in.

No reports could be found in the online filings with the Ethics Commission for incumbents Derek Gander and Jeff Koch, or for two other challengers, Matthew Robertson and Michelle Steverson.

Give Globe reporter Debby Woodin credit. She got three of the four correct- Koch, Gander and Steverson have not filed any reports meaning they have spent less than $1,000.

 Robertson, however, filed a report with the Ethics Commission six days ago and has even filed an amendment to that report since then.

Robertson's initial report, which included two contributions from former Joplin tornado mayor Mike Woolston and a contribution that was incorrectly attributed to the Jasper County Republicnn Committee, was featured in the Wednesday, March 29 Turner Report.

It's a shame Woodin didn't read that Turner Report post. Perhaps the mistakes in today's article would have been corrected.