📧 “Submission for San Diego U-T”
On November 21, 2024 I pitched the San Diego Union Tribune an opinion piece on anti-military bias in the American Academy of Religion, which was holding its annual gathering the following weekend in San Diego, home of one of the largest military communities in the world. After receiving a positive response from U-T Opinion Editor Laura Castañeda asked for exclusivity. MIA followed up the next day to see if it would run the essay became untimely;
20241122-0930
Hi, just following up on this.
Also, is Sam Schulz is still with UT? I know there are not many veterans on staff, and she passed over military civil rights in the past so it's begninng to dawn on me that there may be a representation issue at the Union Tribune.
You asked if this commentary is exclusive but have not said if you want it so I will be shopping it around to other area papers that might have less bias against my community than UT has shown. If I hear that you want it before another outlet does, it's yours. But if the largest paper in San Diego does not see military civil rights as newsworthy, that itself seems kinda newsworthy.
20241122-1539
We will run the piece Issac but not until first or second week of Dec. Let me know if this works. Yes, Sam is still here.
20241122-1601
Sounds great Castañeda. If the Times of San Diego gets back to me, I will let them know it's spoken for.
If Sam [Schulz] wants a scoop on military civil rights, feel free to share my email. It may not be a 'feel good' piece for progressives, but it might illuminate California's part in the military suicide epidemic.
20241203-2011
Hi, just checking to see if there is a firmer publication date for this. Thank you!
20241211-2011
Mx. Casteñeda;
You told me in writing that my commentary would be published "first or second week of Dec." That leaves just tomorrow or Friday. Which day can I expect my voice to be heard as a veteran being deprived of my civil rights in San Diego under Cal. Gov. Code 12920?
According to current Census data, there are 1,386,932 San Diegans that make up your audience
According to the San Diego Military Advisory Council, your audience includes 230,507 veterans and at least 15,165 service members.
The military community makes up 17.7% of your audience, so why are you ignoring us?
Here's a better question: Does the San Diego Union Tribune employ members of the military community as reporters, or is it typical of SDUT to pay outsiders to report on other minorities, such as gender or racial minorities?
20241211-1502
I apologize but we had to shift some pieces around and I can't get yours in until Wed or Thursday next week. We used to have a full time military reporter, but we don't currently. To answer your question, no we don't pay for commentary. Does that mean you still want us to consider your piece or not?
20241211-1540
You have misunderstood my question. I was not suggesting you pay me for a piece I submitted according to your own Commentary Guidelines. Members of the military community like myself makeup 17.7% of your reader base, so,
What do military families have to do to get the San Diego Union Tribune to care about their civil rights?
On November 22, I asked you about Sam Schulz, the Union Tribune's self-proclaimed government and watchdog editor, because she ignored two February 2023 emails implicating Congressional Representative Mike Levin for anti-military bias.
In reply, you said my community's civil rights would be acknowledged within a two week period, "not until first or second week of Dec"; in other words, you had considered and accepted it. Instead of telling me in advance you wanted to push my piece, you waited until there were two days left.
Now I know why you are playing fast and loose with your employer's integrity, because the San Diego Union Tribune expects military families to accept second class citizenship. If you are no different than the American Academy of Religion, then it stands to reason SDUT may be violating California's anti-discrimination protections.
You can stick to the timeline I agreed to or I will take steps to assert my civil rights under state law. The fact that you have no military reporter covering one of the largest military communities in the United States says a lot about your priorities as it is.
20241211-1544
We will not be publishing your piece. It has nothing to do with your military experience. It has to do with your lack of understanding how this works and what is required to edit your piece.
Thank you for the submission but your hostility is not welcome.
20241211-1625
Thank you for making explicit that newsworthiness is not determinative for publication. What matters is how you feel about being held accountable. Civilian fragility and bias trumps service and sacrifice; the same equation used by Southern whites against black veterans in the 1940’s.
