Dirty Dining, the Brookfield Perkins, and TMJ4 - Part Cinq

Something is very wrong here.

Allow me to explain why I am so ticked off at Milwaukee's NBC affiliate, TMJ4, and the Journal Broadcast Group, "a cornerstone of Journal Communications, a diversified media and communications company that has six other operating divisions throughout the country."

Specifically, I have a problem with Steve Wexler, General Manager of TMJ4, Brenda Serio, Programming, and Courtny Gerrish, "Dirty Dining" reporter.

Previous posts on the subject:

Perkins and Dirty Dining

Perkins, Dirty Dining, and TMJ4, Part Deux

Perkins, Dirty Dining, and TMJ4, Part Trois

Dirty Dining in Milwaukee, the Brookfield Perkins, and TMJ4

First, it must be understood that I'm no apologist for violators of health codes. Restaurants and other establishments that are putting the public at risk because of their poor food safety practices deserve to be outed.

Second, it must be understood that I believe in accountability. No special favors. No special treatment. As Barack Obama proclaimed, this is a "new era of responsibility."

Here's the story:

Shortly after TMJ4 aired a "Dirty Dining" segment about the Perkins in Brookfield on December 11, 2008, I noticed that the report had been posted on TMJ4's "Dirty Dining" web page and then removed.

I was able to capture the story via Google's cache.

This is Google's cache of http://www.todaystmj4.com/features/dirtydinning/36018029.html. It is a snapshot of the page as it appeared on Dec 12, 2008 05:55:49 GMT.

BROOKFIELD - A family restaurant not keeping food cold enough. Perkins on Barker Road and Bluemound.

An employee was cracking eggs and then touching customer's food, all without changing gloves. A cross contamination risk. When we stopped by the manager wasn't talking. "You don't want to comment?" "Not really."

Inspectors had issues with food temperature. Meatloaf and sausage were at 45 degrees. Rice was kept at 47 degrees. The safe cold temperature is 41. Also, inspectors found a cooler as warm as 47 degrees, and Hash browns were sitting out at room temperature.

Children's drink cups used as scoops, sitting in food. Perkins was ordered to use a scoop with a handle, so employees don't put their hands in the food. Also, there were open bags of flour stored on the floor. Dry goods must be sealed in a container and kept off the floor.

The manager did tell us Perkins was cleaning things up.

Pretty bad, isn't it?

I thought the deletion of this story may have been an honest mistake, so I waited to see if it would resurface when the page was updated.

It didn't happen, prompting me to contact TJM4. I alerted the station to the omission and asked why the Perkins story was removed.

After two e-mails, I received a response from Brenda Serio. She told me, "The news assignment desk is working on putting it back on the dirty dining web site." She claimed that "[t]hey weren't aware that [it] had been taken off."

She replied on January 5, 2009.

OK. Good.

No. Not good.

Although new stories were posted on the "Dirty Dining" web page in a timely manner, the Perkins story was still missing.

So, I started to contact TMJ4 again, with an e-mail to Courtny Gerrish on January 16, 2009.

Nothing. Yesterday, I followed up with an e-mail to TMJ4's GM, Steve Wexler.

Last night's "Dirty Dining" story (January 22) has already been added to the web page; and once again, the Perkins story has not been put back. "Dirty Dining" has been updated three times since I was told by Brenda Serio that the deleted Perkins story would make its return.

I think it is patently unfair that the inspection record of Perkins has been scrubbed from TMJ4's website while those of other restaurants remain.

I understand that mistakes are made and there can be technical glitches. I don't understand why the Perkins story has not been put back at this point, one full month after I first contacted the station.

What's so puzzling is that the story was posted on the "Dirty Dining" web page and then removed.

Although the TMJ4 staff is aware that the Perkins segment is no longer available via their site, nothing has been done to rectify that.

Why is Perkins being cut so much slack when El Rey and establishments like small Vietnamese or other ethnic restaurants are not spared the bad publicity?

That does not look good.

Granted, this could be a case of profound incompetence on the part of TMJ4, plain and simple. It could also be something worse.

In any event, it's inexcusable.

If the Perkins story isn't there, then the others should be granted similar treatment, and magically, completely disappear from the TMJ4 website as well.

I think it's reasonable to question the integrity of the entire "Dirty Dining" feature, those involved in maintaining the web page on the TMJ4 site, and those in positions of responsibility at the station.