Since September, the Portland Press Herald has published near-daily articles regarding Graham Platner’s campaign. If one of them offered a substantive critique of his policies, I must have missed it. 

The last article (regarding his architect grandfather and his chair design) is the latest in a long series of nonsense from Portland’s paper of record.

While Platner’s Reddit posts and his tattoo deserved to be addressed — they have been. In a time when we have people espousing actual Nazi rhetoric active in our federal government, I don’t think Platner’s posts and covered-up tattoo require nigh-daily coverage. If he believed in fascist rhetoric, he’d be running as a Republican — not advocating free health care or strongly supporting LGBTQIA+ youth. 

This brings me to the article published Sunday, Nov. 23. Regardless of whether the identity of Platner’s grandfather rises to level of “news,” having it run on the front page when national news pieces (such as Marjorie Taylor Greene’s resignation or the president saying it was OK to call him a fascist) are relegated to the second page or unreported is borderline journalistic malpractice.

For that matter, where is the coverage of Janet Mills’ father, Peter Mills, serving as an attorney to infamous psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich? That has as much relevance to her campaign as Platner’s grandfather has to his — none at all. The pursuit of these minor details while ignoring substantive policy issues is a disservice both to Maine voters and to the paper’s storied history.

Silas Leavitt
Portland

Correction (Dec. 1, 2025): An earlier version of this letter misspelled the name Wilhelm Reich.