Rood Corrects Reporting Errors
Piedmont League of Women Voters forum statements –
A January 15, 2014 article in the Piedmont Post entitled “City Council candidates provide some answers in League-led forum,” contains two significant errors. The article both misidentified and misquoted me, and in doing so distorted the substance of my response to a question at the forum about fire department staffing levels.
First, I was not a member of the Municipal Tax Review Committee (MTRC), which completed its work in 2011. I am a member of the City’s Budget Advisory & Financial Planning Committee.
The direct quotation attributed to me in the article omitted, without ellipsis, the core of my response: that, following the recommendation of the MTRC to consider service efficiencies in all departments, including fire, the Council had later asked the then-fire chief for his opinion, and that he had responded that he would not recommend reducing fire staffing levels. That opinion by former Chief Tubbs is what I referred to when I said we had a new chief now but nothing had changed significantly.
Piedmont’s high-quality public services are essential to its high quality of life, and I deeply regret any confusion the Post’s misquotation may have caused among voters regarding my position on an essential public service at a time when many ballots are being cast.
I urge Piedmont voters to view the KCOM rebroadcasts or the online video of the candidate forum, which is available on the City of Piedmont website under KCOM/On-Line Video/Other Public Meetings, to hear my complete and unedited response to this and other questions.
Tim Rood, City Council Candidate
Editors’ Note: The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Piedmont Civic Association. The Piedmont Civic Association does not support or oppose candidates for public office. Information on candidates and their campaigns are welcomed.
The Post does a good job reporting community activities such as Sports, Real Estate and the Arts. Unfortunately in important governance issues the Post’s reporting sometimes contains misinformation. The Post would better serve the community by clearly marking its editorials as such.
Another sewer tax is likely to be presented to voters this year. I opposed the February 2012 Measure A sewer Tax and I spoke in opposition at the Jan. 12, 2012 LWV Forum. The Jan. 18, 2012 Piedmont Post reported: “Rick Schiller . . . claiming to have been in direct contact with EPA officials who said there was no timeline for the repairs and there would be no penalties levied if Piedmont did not comply. No documentation was provided.” In fact my comments state the final plan is “due July 15, 2012” and my “documentation” is stated as direct contact with “the EPA Compliance officer overseeing the 2011 Order.” The Post never contacted me for documentation and subsequently declined to publish two correction letters. The video is still available at the City website.
Rick Schiller
Piedmont resident
I agree with Rick, The Post conveys news on sports, real estate, the arts, and local social and club activities very well. It’s a community asset in this way.
However, I wish it did take its coverage on civic matters: economic, political, and legal much more seriously with a diverse Editorial Board in place, more beat reporters and, like most newspapers, included a section in the paper for “Corrections” to previous articles.
I’m hopeful the Post does wish to serve the complete fabric of life in Piedmont, especially the important governance issues. Denise’s suggestions of a diverse Editorial Board would be very helpful.
An editorial board is a good idea but simple fact-checking would be the place to start. And when a correction is printed in a newspaper, it’s SOP to convey the correct information. In this case, all the Post did was state that Tim was not a member of the MTRC. It seems the Post is deliberately going out of its way not to acknowledge that Tim is a member of the Budget Advisory and Financial Planing Committee.