Today’s edition of the Long Island daily, Newsday, has an article about critics of Monsignor John Alesandro, pastor of St. Dominic’s in Oyster Bay. Some parishioners have lost confidence in his ability to lead the parish, while others have rallied to his side.Newsday is now running a poll on its website asking the public whether Msgr. Alesandro should be removed as pastor.
Catholic League president William Donohue responded as follows:
“We are asking the public to go to our website at catholicleague.org and cast a vote on the question, ‘Is Newsday anti-Catholic?’ Our poll, like Newsday’s, is open to everyone. Since Newsday has now broken ranks with virtually every newspaper in the United States by inviting non-Catholics to stick their noses into the internal affairs of the Catholic Church, we think it only proper to ask people from Maine to California what they think ofNewsday’s foray into journalistic voyeurism.
“When users click on our website, they will be drawn to our special report on Newsday’santi-Catholic columnists. It is a useful guide that details the nature and extent of the newspaper’s hostility to Catholicism.
“Newsday continues to write about alleged instances of priestly abuse that occurred many decades ago. But two can play the same game. For instance, how many people know that Newsday continues to employ a columnist, Jimmy Breslin, who made obscene and racist remarks to a Korean-American woman reporter in 1990 in front of other staffers; she was guilty of criticizing him for one of his columns. Breslin, according to a friend, called the woman a ‘yellow cur, slant-eyed and a female body part.’ And for this he was suspended for two weeks! In short, because Newsday doesn’t have the courage to police the obscene bigots in its own newsroom, it has no moral standing to invite the public to question the internal affairs of the Catholic Church.
“In our latest annual report, I dubbed Newsday the most anti-Catholic newspaper in the nation. Now vote and let us know what you think.”
