Ernest's assumptions anything but

OPINION PIECE WARNING

I wrote this week about being relegated to the kiddie media table after someone in the "traditional media" wrote a letter of complaint to city officials. The letter, which led to some research by city staff defined media in two forms as print or electronic wave-based media. I sought and obtained a copy of the letter from Jo Houser, utilizing the open records request form and paying my fee of sixty cents.

I received my receipt, forty cents change and six pages of paper which included a memo from the City Manager to city staff, A copy of Nebraska Statute 25-523, which defines a legal newspaper (for purposes of being a vehicle for public legal notices), and a letter from KSID radio GM Susan Ernest. What I did not get was the name of the city councilman who asked Gary to look into the issue of media definitions and I am still waiting that response from Gary Person. I have another dime, if necessary.
In the letter, Ernest discusses the recent changes for requesting public records information, including costs for copies of paperwork or DVDs of city council meetings, but expresses concern over so-called "equality and fairness that a blogger recently claimed."

She was talking about my request to be included in the media distribution of city council packets in order to prepare stories on upcoming council meetings.  Among her other complaints were that the policy changes were made to accommodate me, including the conversion to electronic media so I wouldn't have to go down to city hall to pick up the information anymore.

She says in her letter that she isn't complaining about the new rules as they are convenient and have worked well, but is upset that I am skirting the rules by emailing questions into city staff and receiving answers in the same fashion. She further complained that receiving emailed responses allows me to skew or distort the information by changing it and then forwarding it on to others. She complains that I have not filled out any freedom of information act forms and, "yet he screams inequality the loudest."

She writes further to complain about a request to obtain a copy of Jordan Ball's recent council statement, which was not part of the packet, but was of news value to this site. According to Ernest, Jordan Ball offered to provide a copy to the radio station and the newspaper. She appreciated the effort, but declined the offer. She further made the judgment that the request was foolish and pointed out the billable nature in time to the city for working on the request.  Once again she mentioned that I didn't fill out a open meetings information request and I didn't even pay for the postage as the requested information was delivered by MAIL.

The injustice of it all came to a head at the city council meeting two weeks ago, when I had the audacity to show up early and claim a seat at the media table with my laptop and camera in tow. According to Ernest's letter, "The grand slam was the fact that this "blogger" took the seat of the local newspaper reporter..." She went on to say that she wasn't trying to argue whether or not I should be there, but thought I should go through the proper channels to get a seat at the table.

Here are the facts.

I never screamed about inequality. Not once, not ever. I only asked to be treated as the other three outlets had been treated. If that meant paying for anything, I would have done it, if I had been told to pay for it. I never once asked for a fee to be waived, nor did I complain about paying any fees when told I needed to. Ernest's assertions to the contrary are false and baseless.

I did ask for copies of the media packets provided other outlets, which include the newspaper, the radio station and the SidneyStageCoach.com. I asked to be added to the list of media outlets as allowed by law and the city accommodated my request. Sometime after the first paper copy was provided, I received a new set of materials via email. Yippee.. Hooray... now I don't have to type as much. The conversion wasn't done to appease me or keep me from going to city hall to pick the material up. As Ernest stated in her letter, it did make it more convenient for everyone, but it wasn't done because of me. Again, Ernest's assertion that the city accommodated me above other venues is false and baseless.

For some six months, non-traditional media has been accommodated at the press table. Marva Elwanger who maintains the SidneyStageCoach.com, along with writer Tamara Nelsen, former editor of the Sun-Telegraph and current city council candidate, have sit beside the radio station and newspaper personnel, without a quip from either.

Ernest says that I didn't go through the proper channels before usurping the seat of a known and respected media outlet. The fact of the matter is that if there was a policy of signing up for a seats, it wasn't a publicly known one, and I did in fact ask for permission of Geri Anthony before the meeting if I could sit there for the purpose of shooting photography.  I was given permission by city staff to do so. Again, Ernest's assertions to the contrary are false and baseless.

I was given permission  and even Gary Person acknowledged the fact in his letter to me. Because I include photos in some stories, I wanted to get a good seat in order to have an effective vantage point. Sun-Telegraph reporter Klark Byrd did ask why I was in his seat, which puzzled me because I had never seen, nor been told that official seating was provided for specific publications. Byrd even offered to arm wrestle me for the seat, to which I good-naturedly replied, "Which arm?"


Truth be told, I have asked for information via email because it is a quick way to communicate in the modern world of instant messages, blackberry's and smart phones. I did receive a copy of Jordan Ball's statement as I requested, but I did not ask for it to be delivered via postal mail and I would have been happy to pay for the copy and would have gladly driven or walked the 5 blocks from my house to the city offices. No one ever said it was a problem and I am sure the research time for even this silly request didn't push the city over the top in its budget for Mr. Ball's services.

I am also not generally aware of one person making a request creating a need to offer the deliverable up to all media outlets, much less ones who deem it to be silly. No such provision exists under city ordinances or state law that I am aware of, but my knowledge on this subject is incomplete.

Speaking of state law, there are provisions which indicate that a charge for copies may be assessed, depending on the nature of the request. Sidney does charge a nominal fee of 10 cents per paper copy generated in furtherance of an information request. In requesting information from city staff, I unintentionally circumvented the pay-go procedure and I apologize to the citizens of Sidney for foisting an additional 1.3 seconds of debt payoff time for the two or so dollars my dastardly deeds have caused.

Ernest complains about the fairness and why am I allowed to circumvent the rules I apparently caused to come into being. I apparently did circumvent the rules, most notably because I didn't know there were forms to fill out and the state law says that localities MAY charge for copies, DEPENDING on the nature of the request.

In fact, no direction was given to me that the manner of my request as not per some standard and it wasn't until Jo Houser has explained to me, subsequent to my recent relegation to the kiddie table that  a form needs to be filled out for information requests. It is my understanding that such a form was brought about only recently I find it hard to believe that the small number of emails would lead to a change of policy. Houser also reiterated the cost per page for the copies requested. My first receipt for this was in obtaining Ernest's laughably funny letter. In case you are wondering Suz.... it was 60 cents  paid in cash with a not so crisp one dollar bill... a quarter, a dime and a nickel were provided in change... I have a copy of the receipt for your inspection if you desire, but I can't prove the distribution of the change since it has since gone into my piggy bank. Once again, Ernest's assumptions are false and baseless.

What this has all boiled down to is KSID is ticked off that someone other than Marva Elwanger dared to sit at her table. KSID is a media outlet and they have an FCC license. Their biggest claim to fame is that Paul Harvey did a fifteen minute newscast from its studio in.... 1955. Now, to be fair, Ernest says that KSID has also won 17 awards for broadcasting in Nebraska. They also have a sports guy with a reputation for occasionally putting the wrong name with the right number at high school football games.

Ernest asks, "Where are Mr. Rowland's credentials and why is he allowed to circumvent the rules the city has put forth?"  What rules were in place before the last council meeting. Based on the definition forwarded by Gary Person, The sidneystagecoach.com was in violation of the "rules," yet KSID radio didn't object once in her letter. I also didn't realize that we lived in a land where one had to show one's papers.  At what time in the history of this town has any media outlet, traditional or otherwise had to prove their credentials before being allowed in to city hall chambers?

She goes further to say that while she, "agrees that there is a large trend in blogging/journalism that should not be ignored, any media outlet/journalist or even a real blogger would not publish innuendo or hearsay, yet he does."

Ernest makes reference to a comment that was inadvertently posted to a story on my site as proof of her criticism above. The comment was not written by me, nor was it intended for publication. Although the comment was inadvertently published, it was also removed as soon as the error was realized and there was plenty of apology for the error. It was a mistake, and anyone who read my comments regarding the anonymous note would have seen that I told my readers that I would never publish such an attack. It was an accident, yet Ernest uses it in her letter to grind me like an axe against a stone.

Ernest makes the assertion that this blog isn't real news. To her way of thinking, it's a poke in the eye to 'legitimate' bloggers who are fighting for credibility in their own efforts. Whatever the mistakes I have made, I am sure the 'traditional media' have made as many or more in their storied pasts. New ventures take time to build credibility and I should be impressed that the radio station would take such note of a mere worm such as myself.

I am not impressed by her, her actions nor those of the radio station. Gary Person on the other hand would differ on his assessment of my approach. After the council meeting Tuesday night, while discussing the kiddie table and his email explanation, he mentioned he, "appreciated the objectivity in," my writing. I took that as a compliment as Gary and I have differed on a number of topics over the last few years. It was a vindication that I had wanted to be seen as someone on the right track.

Whether this is real news or instant pudding news isn't for Susan Ernest, KSID radio or even the Sun-Telegraph to determine. That is a matter of opinion to be decided by the readership. It is disingenuous for her to claim her facts and figures on circulation and web hit counts to say that my measly 5 thousand hits in a month is somehow unworthy of consideration, especially when she failed to lodge similar complaints against the SidneyStageCoach.com personnel who sat next to KSID for more than six months.

My hit counts are small, but I don't advertise my presence and it still equals an annual hit count of more than 60,000. In fact, I am sure that by sitting away from the grown up table, I may even get more readers who wonder what I am doing there with laptop taking pictures of the back of people's heads.  I might even have to get a shirt made that says "theguardiannews.blogspot.com: It isn't just for grown ups." I wonder what shirt tales charges by the letter?

I am sure as I grow up in the business, the hit count and credibility will likewise increase. The original intent for this outlet was to create a news outlet that people will value and participate in. With continued readership and guidance, it may come to pass that you don't have to have an FCC license nor a paid circulation and weekly printed count to get a seat at the big table. And by big table, I don't mean the one in the Council chambers. I can stand behind anyone and take a picture. Susan Ernest will have to go a long way to clean the grime from under her fingernails for her cheap shot attempt to protect her false sense of entitlement.

The actions of KSID radio manager Susan Ernest should be seen as a deplorable act. Are we not sincerely further down the road than to have such a well-respected media outlet seek to relegate people not directly at their level to roles they can badger and belittle.  It reminded me of the battles more appropriate to high school cliques than adult conversation. Wasn't the radio station the new kid on the block at one time?

People do things for a variety of reasons. Susan Ernest's letter of complaint wasn't about leveling the playing field or removing an unfair advantage. It was to mitigate and relegate a threat. Her attack on me and theguardiannews was a pathetic and largely stupid attempt to quell competition. It is only too bad that the City Manager decided to buy into the charade. As I indicated in a prior post, I think it is funny that the radio station would go to such a length to have all non-traditional media removed from the table they were all to willing to share with others.

Susan made many assumptions in her letter, none of which were earnest in nature.


Michael Rowland, Publisher
theguardiannews.blogspot.com