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http://www.kgun9.com/Global/story.asp?S=12508838

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - If Gary Pierce wanted to send a message to Los Angeles, he’s succeeded. The Arizona Corporation Commissioner’s offer to assist Los Angeles with its Arizona boycott by arranging to shut off that city’s Arizona-based power supply received wide coverage in L.A.’s news media.

Los Angeles got the message and, by appearances, is scratching its collective head over it. NBClosangeles.com, the web site of NBC affiliate KNBC, posted a web story with the headline, “Power Play Over Immigration Law; LA’s boycott resolution sparks a threat over power the city receives from Arizona.” The article inaccurately described Pierce’s letter as saying that Pierce “would” ask Arizona power companies to “cut off the power supply to Los Angeles.”

The KNBC-TV posting quoted LA Councilman Dennis Zine as reacting to that by saying, “They are the ones who have to make the move, not us.” If Zine had an explanation for why he thinks it should be up to Arizona to take the first step in helping Los Angeles to boycott Arizona power, the KNBC posting didn’t give it.

In theory, before any contractually-obligated power could be cut off, all parties to the contract would have to agree. What Pierce actually said in his letter was that he would be willing to encourage Arizona utilities to do their part, should the city of Los Angeles have the “strength of its convictions” to carry its boycott that far.

Neither the Los Angeles mayor nor any city council members who KGUN9 News attempted to contact on Tuesday returned calls. But the KNBC article quoted a statement from the mayor’s office saying that Villaraigosa “will not respond to threats from the state that has isolated itself from an America that values freedom, liberty and basic civil rights.”

But that wasn’t all KNBC had to say about Pierce’s letter. KNBC’s website has a regular feature allowing users to register their reactions to stories, which it then reports as a rotating feature on the website’s masthead. On Wednesday morning one of those masthead messages read, “Locals thrilled about the Arizona power play.”

KABC-TV’s website ran the story with a headline saying “Arizona punches back, threatens L.A.’s power.” The article noted that the debate over Arizona’s immigration law had now reached a “boiling point.” It took Pierce’s letter seriously, writing, “Arizona’s corporation commission threatened to turn off the lights in Los Angeles if the city goes ahead with its boycott of the state.”

The headline for KCBS-TV’s web story read, “Arizona To L.A.: Boycott Us, We’ll Cut Your Power.” The article then stated, “Following Los Angeles’ decision to boycott Arizona, the Grand Canyon state is threatening to put us in a hole. Literally.” Like the other web postings, the KCBS-TV story, credited to reporter Dave Bryan, comes off as not quite knowing how to take the Pierce letter. The posting points out that the Pierce letter can be construed as “light-hearted” or “tongue-in-cheek,” and even questions whether it might be a “joke.” But it goes on to say there’s “no telling what would happen if the seriousness of the threat were to catch on.”

By Wednesday morning The Los Angeles Times had not reported the letter on its website. Nor had the Fox affiliate, KTTV.