NOW Urges Advertisers to Drop Reader

The North County chapter of the National Organization for Women sent letters to 32 major advertisers Friday, urging them to pull their support from the San Diego Reader because of the anti-abortion activities of Publisher Jim Holman.

At the close of business Friday, a spokeswoman for the longtime weekly newspaper said that Cutler’s Cupboard, a cutlery shop in Horton Plaza, had been the only company to pull its advertising in response to the NOW request.

“They’re pro-choice and Jim Holman, our publisher, is pro-life, and they just disagree,” said Janis Walsh, the paper’s advertising manager.

Meanwhile, Holman was sentenced Friday to 30 days in County Jail after being found guilty of trespassing during an anti-abortion demonstration last fall at a La Mesa medical clinic.

Walsh said Holman intends to serve the duration of his sentence without posting bail.

She conceded that his involvement had been “disruptive” to the Reader’s operation and added: “We have had calls from a lot of people wanting to know what’s going on. We do have loyal advertisers, and what I tell them is that the publisher’s views do not necessarily represent the views of the salespeople. I would say that 99% of us feel the opposite way, meaning we’re pro-choice. But Jim owns the paper, and he can put in whatever he wants.”

Richard Coppa, the manager of Cutler’s Cupboard, said he and the owners of the shop decided to pull their ads after reading newspaper accounts of an ad in the Reader that promoted the concept of “jury nullification.”

The ad, from the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue, attempted to school potential jurors on how to acquit anti-abortion protesters accused of trespassing, even if the evidence points overwhelmingly toward conviction. The ad, which appeared Jan. 25, was one of several anti-abortion articles and advertisements that have appeared in the Reader in recent weeks.

The press release from the Carlsbad office of NOW referred to the ad:

“In protest to nullification ad by anti-choice in the San Diego Reader, we have sent letters from North County NOW to all major advertisers, urging them to pull support from the Reader, and also a mass mailing of thousands of post cards from individuals to mail to advertisers.”

“We think Jim Holman is doing something self-serving as well as threatening to our legal system,” said Ann Russell, a board member of North County NOW. “It’s our responsibility to be watching this, to get the word out to other people who support our positions.”

Russell said she had contacted 32 major advertisers, including the San Diego Hilton, the Comedy Store, the Wherehouse and the Belly Up Tavern. She said response so far has been positive.

“We pulled our ads because we feel the position of the paper is no longer representative to the public as a whole,” said Coppa of Cutler’s Cupboard. “Holman would rather be pro-life than qualify of life.”

Coppa said he and the couple who own the store are pro-choice, adding: “We don’t believe in what these people are doing. Choice is what America is all about and always has been. It isn’t one guy’s opinion of what he thinks ought to be done. We’d rather pull the ads than pay for having a litany of views foisted on us by church fanatics who bomb clinics.”

Walsh said the loss of Cutler’s Cupboard would not be devastating to the Reader.

She acknowledged some concern over the way other advertisers were leaning, and, when asked if NOW’s efforts were a threat, she sighed and said: “It’s hard to say. We do want people to know our views.

“The misconception is that we don’t print both sides of the issue. We do. Jim accepts all political ads and viewpoints. He’s hoping that people from pro-choice organizations understand that.”

However, when pressed, Walsh said the paper would not publish ads informing readers of where and how to obtain abortions.

“If the Womancare Clinic wanted to run a political ad about pro-choice, we would accept that, but not, ‘We perform abortions at this location Monday through Friday from 9 to 5.’ No, we would not accept those.”