Echo, Echo, Echo.....

An open letter to the Sports Editor of the Liverpool Echo

Dear John,

I've always felt that the Liverpool Echo have treated Liverpool as the number one club on Merseyside. I'd put that down to the fact that they've consistently been better than us, and my own bias in wanting more attention for my club.
The Wayne Rooney saga was nothing but a means for you to get back at The Sun, and we can justifiably be angry with you. But I didn't think you were hurting Everton just for the sake of it. There's also been the supposed investment for FFS, where the local papers have consistently towed the line as puppets for certain members of the Everton hierarchy. All these frustrations i've had with the Echo i've put down to poor journalism and lazy Editing.

This last week, however, it does seem to be personal. Contrast the two main stories written about the two teams from Stanley Park. On the one hand Liverpool play host to Juventus, in their first meeting since Heysel. According the The Echo, the whole city was repentent, and the people of Liverpool were sorry.

Two weeks ago, a story broke regarding racism on an Everton coach to an away game. and so for the West Brom match an reporter from The Echo travelled with "Everton fans" and witnessed cannabis smoking, drinking, and racist chanting.

The Echo had chosen not to run a story at the same match, where an Everton supporters group presented former Number 9 Kevin Campbell with a tribute DVD - I guess that wasn't good press.I see that this story was eventually printed, but only as a response to the complaints of geniune Evertonians.

They can't have it both ways. If you don't blame Liverpool fans for the charge that killed the Juve fans, and instead cite factors like "the hooligan climate of the time", "the Juve fans for provoking them", or "an old stadium not up to the task" then why single out Everton for a phenomena that exists at every club in the country?

I know that Liverpool were hurt by the European ban as well, but to claim they were as hard done by as us implied that Everton should bear responsibility for what happened in Belgium. Nonsense.

Well here's a challenge for the Liverpool Daily Echo. If you are an impartial newspaper, then act upon this:

At the recent Merseyside Derby, Everton fans were sat in the lower Anfield Rd, and complained to police officers that the Liverpool fans were throwing missiles from above. A 12 year old girl had her head cut open by a pound coin, her father pointed out the assailant but no action was taken. He's contacted Liverpool and Everton, and neither club have acted. This is the guy:

Do something about it.

Anthony Evans

Comments

[John Thompson]

I have copied and pasted the Sports Editor's reply to my email below. AJE

We've had quite a few complaints from Everton fans recently so please see
below a reply I constructed to one chap last week which I trust coves most
of the key points raised.

Also, it contains a response from the Echo's Acting Editor Jon Brown.

Regards,

John Thompson, Echo Sports Editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Let me refer you to the reply below which the Echo's Acting Editor Jon
Brown sent to a similar complainant.

It's hard for me as the Sports Editor to add anything really. Most of the
criticism we've received does pertain to articles on our news pages and Jon
is best asnwering them, as he has done below. I'll happily answer for
material on our sports pages or which my team generates.

I'm glad to see Jon acknowledges the so-called joke about Everton and
Torino was hardly appropriate - or at all funny as far as I'm concerned.

With regard to the Kevin Campbell picture, I understand from Dave Prentice
that it was sent to him and received by him Monday morning. He felt
(rightly) we'd be unlikely to use it Monday given our scheduling and the
fact that many of our sports pages are completeed overnight Sunday or
pre-determined. So he held it for use the next day.

There honestly is no bias here - in sport we honestly get the flak from
both sides - but I appreciate some Blues feel unhappy right now and that is
registered.

One final point to hopefully assure you and others of this.

If the Echo had not cared about Everton I would not have accommodated and
driven the summer debate last year about the state of the club and the
concerns for its future then. My view was that Everton's situation needed
some serious scrutiny and criticism, with the team having finished with
just 39 points and David Moyes apparently having very little money to
spend, while we had a small board privately but clearly divided.

I was not prepared to sit here as Sports Editor of the Echo and allow
another season to kick-off without some home truths being visited and told
about a truly great British Football Club which should have really high
ambitions and standards on behalf of its magnificent supporters and
followers.

It would have been terrible for Everton supporters to see their side flirt
with relegation again (let alone see it actually happen after 100 years of
top flight football) and I was not prepared to sit here and see that
happen without a necessary fuss being caused at the right time (ie during
the close season.) As I remember saysing to Bill Kenwright at the height of
it all, 'Let's hope some good comes of it all because that is all everyone
here wants for EFC.'

In other words, it was the Echo which took a public stance demanding the
club lives up to its famous motto. Tough love maybe, but all done for the
right reasons I believe.

We are very, very happy to see the Blues now lying so high up the table,
with a much more modern structure and business outlook off the pitch, which
I'll be happily discussing with Keith Wyness who I'm at Aintree with
tomorrow as the Echo's guest in our box.

Best wishes Eddie. Please share this reply with others who have written or
emailed us as I can't reply to them all!

See you at Goodison on Sunday.

John Thompson
0151 472 2508

>The ECHO does strive to be impartial so far as the competing football
clubs
>are concerned. Last week we did two sets of articles examining the
finances
>of both clubs and made sure, for the very reason of impartiality, that
both
>clubs' accounts and business arrangements were examined.
>The Barnes travel piece, as I'm sure you are aware, was sparked by an
>official complaint made by Everton fans about a previous incident (which
we
>reported at the time) so it was certainly not a case of us simply deciding
>to pick on Everton fans for this piece. The timing, in so far as the Juve
>match was concerned, was entirely coincidental. If a complaint had been
>received about Liverpool fans from one of their own number we would have
been
>on their bus instead.
>With regard to the piece on Page 9 and the translations, I tend to agree
>with you that it was unnecessary.
>Over the course of a season, the Echo tends to get stick from both Blues
>and Reds, with both sets of fans accusing us of being biased towards the
>other team. If we get that stick in more or less equal measure over the
>course of a season, then we tend to judge that we have managed to be
>achieve our aim of being more or less impartial.
>I assure you that we absolutely value the role of both clubs in the city
>(and Tranmere, of course) and the contribution which both sets of fans
make
>towards the city's cultural life.
>It just so happens that on some days the clubs or their fans will be
>criticised and on some days they will be praised.
>But to be honest, I am never happier than when both clubs are doing well.
>I hope this brief note goes some way towards reassuring you that we are
not
>rabid Reds or Blues haters. The Echo newsroom, in fact, is probably split
>more or less down the middle so far as soccer loyalties are concerned (and
>we even have some rugby league fans too).
>By the way, for the record, I'm a Carlisle United fan. An accident of
>birth...
>
>regards
>
>Jon
>
>
>
>Jon Brown
>acting editor
>Liverpool Echo

[Paul Gahan]

Tonights Echo [Monday 11.04.05] disproves his "we are split 50/50 in the newsroom2 crap. Hidden away on page 7, "Website threat to 'tear up Turin' " about the Liverpool Urchins. Meritorious of a front page headline don't you think, given all the steps at making amends the city and the club have made. Good job it wasn't those racicst bast@rds at Everton!!!

[ScouseKopite]

oh fuck off the lot of use!! liverpool fc Urchins!! r bk!!

[liverpools no1]

kill ani ova fan.

[kegers lfc youth urchins 5 times]

lfc youth urchins cummin to a ground near you !!!! huyton !!!! boys !!!!

[Cheap Jordan 1]

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