WZZM 13 does more harm than good with their reporting on rental costs in Grand Rapids

A week ago, WZZM 13 aired a story which began by presenting the perspectives of two renters, both of which talked about the ridiculously high rental costs in Grand Rapids.

The channel 13 story then lets viewers know that Grand Rapids is the 11th toughest city to find an apartment in, according to RentCafe. GRIID reported on this same RentCafe data, especially how it was presented on MLive last week. The MLive reporter didn’t even both to speak with tenants who are deeply impacted by the unjustly high rental fees in Grand Rapids.

However, despite the fact that WZZM 13 did provide commentary from tenants, the rest of their story simply provided a platform for people who represent business interests and have no idea how tenants are currently being exploited. Right after hearing from tenants, the channel 13 story cuts immediately to Josh Lunger, a government affairs person with the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce. Lunger states: 

“Whether that’s land-use decisions, and talking about especially, how do we fill along corridors, which is a big priority for Housing Next, or if it’s responsibly and adequately over deploying the tools like housing tax increment financing and other things that the state has enabled or the locals have invested in or it’s just zoning and code obstacles.”

What the GR Chamber staffer essentially did was to dismiss the comments of the renters cited in the channel 13 story, blaming government regulation for the housing crisis instead of the outrageous cost of rent. 

WZZM 13 did a follow up story on Grand Rapids being the 11th toughest city to find an apartment in, but instead of talking to more renters or groups like the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union, they provide a platform for a Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce created group.

The group Housing Next is the only source cited in the October 13th WZZM 13 story. Housing Next, which was created by the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, represents business interests, not those of working class individuals and families that can’t afford the cost of rent in this market, primarily because they don’t make a living wage. 

Brooke Oosterman, executive director of Housing Next, is the only person cited in this channel 13 story, where she continues to blame government regulation instead of addressing the unaffordable cost of rent that thousands of West Michiganders face. Here is one of the innocuous comments from Oosterman: 

“It’s working with our local communities, helping them to understand the vision, helping them to rewrite their ordinances in favor of more residential development…And so there are some big challenges ahead of us, right? It’s going to take a very, very strategic, collaborative, intentional approach to get there, but the benefit is, we’re all going to be better for it.”

In the end, WZZM 13 does more harm than good, since they don’t center the lived experience of tenants in this city, they provide a platform for a GR Chamber of Commerce created entity that is committed to finding housing solutions with a market-based approach. Market-based solutions to the current housing crisis are a false solution, but that doesn’t matter, since the local news media has made Housing Next the darling of all things housing.