Cop in Charge of Convention on Minnpost

The Minnpost is a relatively new news source. It's put out by a former publisher of the Star Tribune and its list of writers reads like a who's who of people purged from local newsrooms in recent years. It does, however, seem kind of weird. It's like old media (newspaper) trying to be new media, with the same archaic format. At this point, there's very few interactive resources, and there's actually very few pictures. In any case, Minnpost is new, and for now it stands firmly on the quality of its writing and reporting.

MPD assistant chief Matt Bostrom, and his role in organizing security for the RNC next year, is reported on by former strib columnist Doug Grow.

The story starts by setting up the scene of a meeting between old school 60s peace and justice people and Bostrom, the kicker being that they give him a standing ovation. It goes into the lack of trust between cops and protesters (including the Ramsey County debacle of building pens for protesters). It goes into free speech issues, past anti-convention protests, and articulates a "Minnesota model" based on free speech and, perhaps, using "peaceful" protesters to inform on radical ones.

All in all it's a well-written piece. Grow could have, however, tried to talk to some younger activists. He managed to demonize them instead.

Maybe that's a metaphor for the Boomer dominated old-media of Minnpost. Sure they are covering that same demographic that still read the Star Tribune, but what about younger people and the non-traditional readers? Maybe, just like this story isn't a complete picture of convention protesters, MinnPost isn't a very complete prediction of the future of this 'new' media.