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Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Daily Times Kicks Off City Election Campaign

Is the Daily Times pulling a bait and switch, or can we expect moderately decent reporting during this year's city election campaign?  This is but one of the questions raised by this morning's article on the Salisbury City Council.

Rising a tad above the "he said, she said" reporting so typical of Gannett's local arm, city reporter Laura D'Alessandro provides what could be her best example of reporting since moving to the city beat.  While there is definitely room for improvement, it's almost difficult to find the bias in this piece.

Given that Councilwoman Louise Smith changes the rules on a regular basis, and seldom follows them in between, I agree with Councilwoman Terry Cohen as to the purpose of the article:
"I'm not sure why this incident of the council president trying to cut
me off from making comments I feel are important to our citizens and to
my decision-making process would be any more newsworthy than all the
other times she has done so," Cohen said.
Smith frequently interrupts both Cohen and Councilwoman Debbie Campbell.  Amusingly, she loves to interrupt them when they respond to attacks levied on them by Councilman (and Mayoral candidate) Gary Comegys.  Her claimed basis for interruption is that they (Cohen or Campbell) are attacking Comegys.  Smith has never, to my best recollection, EVER interrupted Comegys.

Why should she?  Comegys (along with Mayor Barrie Tilghman) is the man who put Smith in the center chair so that she can preen before the cameras as she rapes taxpayers and goes back on every promise she made during her campaign almost two years ago.

D'Alessandro did make one glaring error in her reporting.  She quoted an avowed and vicious opponent of Campbell's re-election while identifying him only as "a resident who regularly attends council meetings".  Perhaps D'Alessandro simply didn't know.

As a frequent critic of both the Daily Times and D'Alessandro, I believe that an improvement in reporting such as this morning's piece deserves mention.  Does this mark a trend?  I hope so.  However, taking a "wait and see" approach is definitely the prudent course.

G. A. Harrison is a frequent contributor to "Salisbury News" and publishes "Delmarva Dealings".




11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was just reading the daily times article and one of their blog comments was something like how will Jim Ireton (if elected mayor) control the council. It was never the mayor's job to "control" the council. Most of the problems now is how much control the current mayor is trying to maintain and it's not right. Before her the mayor was merely invited to the council meetings as a guest and to offer information as requested. The current mayor interjects her opion whether asked for or not. Her interruption... heck just her presence... at the meetings makes for a decent amount of disruption.

joe albero said...

Throw in the FACT that the Mayor and her Daughter came back to one Council Meeting after allegedly being at a local Bar and the Daughter, K.C. Tilghman actually got into a physical fight with Rachel Polk.

Anonymous said...

Mike Dunn was supposed to bring unity to the council. FAILED miserably.

Louise Smith was going to bring civility to the council. FAILING miserably. You have to first be civil to bring civility.

Anonymous said...

"They all have issues with one another -- I don't know why. That in turn makes things get personal in the meetings."

Give me a break. Pot calling the kettle black.

Anonymous said...

The one thing you can count on from the Times is one sided reporting. You can bet they will side with Barrie's cronies and try and ram it down your throat. This is why I have dropped my subscription. I am not going to pay for propaganda from a low rated news source with my hard earned money. This City government has been an embarassment for almost eight years now. Its time to get this City back on track with some good leadership and enjoy our hometown again. The Daily Times has no credability in my eyes and they will not influence my decision.

Anonymous said...

Put a wig and some lipstick on Mike Dunn and you couldn't tell the difference from between him and Louise. ame actions and style from where I see it.

Anonymous said...

GA- Whatcha smokin' pal.

That article was an obvious attempt to portray Louweasie and Bubba as good guys and those who differ with them as evil. And who is this "Jonathan Taylor" that's mentioned. It's reported that he hangs with Dunn, Shanie and Bubba like a fly on __hit (sorry, but I can't break Joe's rule).

The article has no news value -- it's clearly a scam.

Anonymous said...

Sweep them all out of office. Operation clean sweep is in effect!

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't give that reporter the benefit of the doubt yet. Take this one sentence:

"Council Presid♠ent Louise Smith frequently interrupts council members to keep them on track in the meetings, but is often met with disagreement."

No, Louise Smith frequently interrupts just Cohen and Campbell.

To keep them on track? No, usually because they are saying something she doesn't want to hear...or have be heard by the public!

If the reporter were being factual, she would have said:

"Council President Louise Smith frequently interrupts council members, mostly Campbell and Cohen. Smith says that she does it to keep them on track in the meetings, but is often met with disagreement."

Daily Times is just trying to stir the pot. All they ever write about is whether council members are getting along.

WHO CARES!!!!

I don't care if they argue all day and night as long as they pass good budgets and laws, which they aren't doing, and not because they don't get along but because there are three of them on a power trip, in control and making lousy decisions!

THAT's what that sorry paper ought to be writing about.

Anonymous said...

Weasal doesn't interupt shannie, she never says anything, cept hmmm,huh dats right.

Dunn was the first to start his hatchet job on Debbie from day one when she smelled a rat.

He was voting with conflict of interest for 3 years before somebody connected the dots, then he decides to abstain? Criminal IMO

Anonymous said...

if i was mr bota i'd watch his friend, two faced and proven under achiever, he will turn on you next. don't tell him anything you don't want the whole town to know

not that many liked his posts when he posted here. doesn't seem to know his place in this world, constantly confused on whom he is supporting