Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

A Press Herald story about how the Angus King campaign posted an edited newspaper profile of the candidate on their website has caught the eye of some in the conservative press.

Campaign responses to The Daily Caller and Fox News say a web administrator edited the piece and the campaign has "corrected" the problem.

King spokeswoman Crystal Canney said Wednesday that the "corrected" statement meant that the campaign complied with a request from an editor at the Press Herald/Telegram.

For our initial story on the changes to the profile, we talked to Canney on Monday before the campaign removed the page. She told us a web administrator edited the piece for brevity.

"I think we took out some of the positive stuff and some of the negative stuff to try and reduce the length of the piece because it was a lengthy piece," she said then.

Then, she didn't say it shouldn't have happened. On Wednesday, she did.

"It shouldn't have happened and we take responsibility," Canney said. "It was the work of someone who is incredibly dedicated to the campaign and it won't happen again."

On Monday afternoon, the newspaper discovered a page on King's campaign website on that had the profile posted with all criticism of the candidate removed from the piece. Also scrubbed were references to his upbringing in Virginia and pieces of his business and lobbying experiences. 

Some edits were of more mundane material, like his appearance in a quiz show as a young man. The campaign didn't indicate edits with ellipses, but did post links to "the complete profile" on the Press Herald's website.

Steve Greenlee, the newspaper's managing editor, asked the campaign Monday to remove the article from their website, saying it would be more appropriate to quote a few sentences and link directly to the Press Herald's website.

They removed the page within two hours of Greenlee's request. Now, a link to the story is on their "news" page, with a few sentences from the piece.

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Open Season targets all of Maine's political wildlife, from Portland city government to the donkeys, elephants and independents stalking the Statehouse and U.S. Capitol.

John Richardson joined the Press Herald in 1990 after working as a reporter in New Jersey. He has covered a variety of beats, including marine issues, the environment and health care. He is now covering politics and focusing on Maine's U.S. Senate race.
John can be reached at 791-6324 or jrichardson@pressherald.com
On Twitter: @jrichmaine

Colin Woodard has covered politics and elections for more than two decades, from Bosnia and Bucharest to Washington, D.C., Augusta, and Portland City Hall. He has written for a wide range of national and international publications and is the author of four books, including "American Nations," a history of North America's regional cultures. He joined the Portland Press Herald at the end of April and covers political finance and lobbying, among other things.
Colin can be reached at 791-6317 or cwoodard@pressherald.com

Susan Cover has covered Maine politics for 10 years and worked in Kansas, Ohio and Rhode Island as a reporter. This year, she is focusing on covering the same-sex marriage debate for MaineToday Media.
Susan can be reached at 621-5643 or scover@mainetoday.com

Michael Shepherd joined MaineToday Media in May 2012 after graduating from the University of Maine in Orono, where he edited The Maine Campus, the student newspaper there. Until November he'll be writing the Truth Test, a recurring feature analyzing political statements and advertising.
Michael can be reached at 621-5632 or mshepherd@mainetoday.com

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