Costa Mesa : Teachers’ Union Accuses OCC Newspaper of Bias

The teachers’ union at Orange Coast College on Friday distributed flyers on campus accusing the student newspaper, Coast Report, of bias in coverage of the heated board of trustees election.

The dispute centers on a story in Coast Report this week about the incumbent, the Rev. Conrad Nordquist. The story, the third in a series about the three candidates, was boxed with a picture of the candidate, said Charles Henning, editor of the editorial page.

The paper had tried unsuccessfully to get pictures of the other two candidates, according to Brett Sporich, student editor-in-chief.

Sporich, admitting that the Nordquist story looked different from the others, said he had been experimenting with a new display for the paper. But he denied that the newspaper had shown favoritism and said it was making no endorsements in the election.

David Warfield, executive director of the union, the Coast Federation of Employees, said the union met Wednesday with college President Don Bronsard to express displeasure with the story.

The union, which backed Nordquist four years ago, this year is seeking his ouster. The union has endorsed Paul G. Berger, a former principal of Marina High School in Huntington Beach. Hal Roach, the third candidate, is an administrator at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Los Angeles County.