Much Ado about Palin

I’m a little disappointed that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was never really in the carwash business. I suppose that she was, technically, but in reality it was by name and name only (read “Sarah Palin Carwash Venture Never Broke Ground”). Depending on what happens this November or in Palin’s political career, Anchorage Car Wash LLC may go down as the carwash industry’s most famous or infamous carwash, even though it never washed or waxed a single vehicle.

If the Republican vice presidential candidate had actually run a carwash, it would have made for a particularly fun run up to the general election on Nov. 4. Instead, I am left with a bad taste in my mouth from how my profession and its hangers-on reported on this story.

Since The Washington Post broke the story Sept. 2, the report has been picked up and referenced by numerous respected media outlets and used to spew venom by dozens of bloggers.

The original story ran under the header, “Palin Scrubbing Turns Up an Undeclared Car Wash.” While the story itself is technically accurate, it also misleads readers to believe Palin owned and operated an actual carwash, even though the business existed only on paper. Statements like “... she was part-owner of an Anchorage car wash” will tend to do that.

Similarly, declarations that Palin “failed to report her stake in the company” and that “state records show the business ran into trouble” all start to sound significant to the reader. The report goes on to say that the carwash was more than a year overdue in filing its biennial report and paying its biennial fees. All true, but all overblown. Ultimately, we learn, the state of Alaska issued a certificate of involuntary dissolution on the carwash because it failed to file the report and pay associated fees.

Not surprisingly, bloggers have had a field day, both criticizing Palin for her executive skills (citing the carwash failure as a prime example) and insulting carwash operators by suggesting that running any carwash is easy. A sample headline from the Progressive Review: “Palin Couldn’t Run a Car Wash, Let Alone a Whole Country.” Similarly, in a post listing “8 More Shocking Revelations about Sarah Palin,” AlterNet writers placed as number seven: “Palin Can’t Even Run a Car Wash.”

In that post, the commentators write, “The least you can accuse Palin here is of mismanagement (of a car wash!); at worst, she was abusing her political clout by trying to cut corners.” Really? Wow.

In reality, she intended to be a silent partner in a business that never was. There was never an operating carwash, only a certificate of organization and an initial biennial report outlining the officers of the company. The partners, one of whom was Palin, bought a plot of land but sold it 18 months later. As Palin’s former business partner Carolin Wells told me, “We just sold the land and went on our merry way.”

The problem for Palin is the LLC remained on record in Alaska. As many business owners do when they walk away from a non-functioning business, Wells let the paperwork lapse and did not respond when the state sent out a 60-day notice requesting a biennial report and fees. The state then issued an involuntary dissolution of the non-operating business. According to the state, that’s a common occurrence and a fairly innocuous measure. More formality than damnation, in this particular case.

Wells informed me that I was the 17th or 18th person from the general media to call her looking for information, but I have been hard pressed to find any actual reporting beyond the original story from the Post or an article that sought to explain the circumstances behind that report or Palin’s involvement in the aborted project.

The truth is a non-story does not make headlines, sell newspapers or ad space, or entice readers to click on a link. If truth is the first casualty of war, then perhaps accuracy or clarity is the victim of online reporting, particularly in an election year. Both tend to suffer in this new media age, where speed to market sometimes means more than being thorough.

Source
The Washington Post: Palin Scrubbing Turns Up an Undeclared Car Wash

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• Sarah Palin Carwash Venture Never Broke Ground