In the corporate world, situations which occur
internally are not discussed with the media
We are discussing our city's government here, not the corporate world. Free, intelligent media - like the one we are participating in now - are a requirement for a healthy democracy. The media have a right to expect access to the city government players in a news story. Individuals with something to contribute to a story - be they city employees or not - have a right to talk to whomever they choose (be they reporters or not).
Discussion about centralizing the city's communications functions have been going on for quite a while at City Hall. I did not know when, or how, this was going to be rolled out. I also did not know that the mayor was going to propose limiting access to police officers. And I do not support this.
This action raises many questions: Who will craft the unified message that the centralized communications department delivers? Is it valuable to have ALL city communications uniform and unified? Does this mean that the mayor's own CIO, Laura Sether, will now report to the city's Communications Director? How is this reform to the city's communications functions formalized by city council action?
I am a reform minded person. I am always interested in thoughtful, responsible improvements. I hope that we can use the mayor's proposal as a starting point in the discussion about how to find efficiencies and cost savings by integrating some of our city's communications.
Yours,
Robert Lilligren
Ward 8
--- Begin Message ---I do not see why Mayor Rybak's idea of having a unified front is merely putting a "spin" on the issues coming out of city hall. Right now, when the police force is under extreme scrutiny from the media and public, instead of letting the police "hang out to dry," the Mayor has chosen to solidify himself and his office with the police force and make sure that everything coming out of the office has been examined and reported in a valid nature.In the corporate world, situations which occur internally are not discussed with the media until either the situation is resolved or a majority of the investigation surrounding the incident has been completed. If a unified message is not given before an issue has met resolution, then the media will drag out premature conclusions and blow them up all over the 5 o'clock news. Lets let the decision makers make their decisions and report in due time. We have elected these officials, its about time we start showing our trust and appreciation for them in this city's time of need. Ryan Hagemeier Minnetonka Message: 11 From: "Lisa McDonald" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: RE: [Mpls] Rybak orders police not to talk to media Date: Fri, 07 Feb 2003 08:42:33 -0600 I must say I'm curious about the lack of response on this list to the Mayor's latest effort to try to spin news out of City Hall. As someone who has been both a reporter and an elected official I have found that the best way to have a relationship with the media is to be open, available and honest, regardless of whether it is good or bad news. In fact I think the media is often fairer with those folks who are, than those that aren't. Case in point...how the media often treated past City Council President Jackie Cherryhomes, who was generally unavailable to the media. I'm bewildered that the Mayor and his chief of communications and the communications director could all make such a bonehead move with the media, especially since two of the three had been reporters themselves. And clearly from the amount of backpadeling in today's paper by the Mayor in an article and a letter to the editor, indicates that this wasn't a well thought out decision. Quite frankly reporters will report the story of the day and you can't ask them to sugar coat it by giving them some goody, goody news to print at the same time. Good public relations folks know that. You try to push the positive stories as stand alone articles highlighting the accomplishments of the police department. And this new city communications policy in no way makes that happen, any more than the previous policy. In fact it might cause reporters to not pick up positive stories because they figure it is an attempt by the Mayor's office to control the news. If the Mayor is so concerned about controlling what the media gets, than why in a recent Strib article, when asked what he though about the incident in the Native American Community, did he say no comment and direct reporters to the police chief. That's hardly consistent with this new policy. Secondly his comment in today's paper indicating that reporters should asked the police chief why he disagreed with the change came across as petulant. Yesterday's article indicated that the Mayor instituted this change to give people the reality... the good, the bad and the ugly. Unfortunately I'm afriad this latest policy is an attempt to give only the good, and hide the bad and the ugly to the detriment of citizens. If the current administration is concerned about the bad and the ugly then they need to do something about those problems. What I currently see is an administration that one week is involved with mediation and the next week shoves it off on the chief. One week they want better relationships with the Native American community and the next week the refuse to talk to the media and direct them to the Chief. Perhaps this schizophrenic approach is part of the problem and probably equally as confusing to the police department. If reporters can't talk to the rank and file about some of the policy stuff going on city wide eventually the public will lose out. Changes will be made that we aren't going to know about because the administration will try to control the flow of information to us. It's ironic that the open door policy is closing fast. Witness this, the mediation process and the recent council action on a five year budget plan with no public hearings. The Mayor's public relations skills and his desire to tout the city's good points are appreciated by the populace, but this job is more than just a spin game. The Mayor needs to realize that this job involves taking the heat as well. Lisa McDonald East Harriet __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Send all posts in plain-text format. 2. Cut as much of the post you're responding to as possible. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls--- End Message ---
