| | The Rest of the story..........March 16, 2010 - Pat BeckThe rest of the story….. The Leader-Herald published a story on a contentious email that was sent by Broadalbin-Perth school board member Ed Szumowski to his fellow board members and Superintendent Stephen Tomlinson. It basically was an email directing what should be taught in a classroom on American liberties. Read the March 16th edition of this newspaper for the complete story. Many will say that we got “beat out” on this story by another local newspaper. We didn’t get “beat out.” What we did get was the bum’s rush from Szumowski and Superintendent Tomlinson when questioned. Two weeks ago, I personally received an anonymous letter. Ninety-nine of the time, these letters go into the basket but this appeared with a copy of what looked to be an official email from Superintendent Tomlinson forwarded to others. Managing Editor Tim Fonda, assigned a reporter to “get the facts.” And that is where we hit a wall. Our reporter did his homework, went online and watched the YouTube video in question. Yes, it did exist. Mr. Tomlinson was contacted. When questioned over the incident, he refused to comment. He refused to answer any questions regarding his forwarding of the email, never said he didn’t and to paraphrase, told us it was not our business. Not our business? Now, it is my turn: “no comment!”. The public should be the judge of whether this is our business or not. Why, you might be asking, did we not publish the story prior to all of this becoming public at a board meeting? Because we could not get anyone involved to be honest and open enough to own up to the facts presented. If Mr. Szumowski believed so strongly in what primary values should be taught to BP students, that he gave it out as a directive, that the superindent followed his request by forwarding the email, why on earth would he not stand behind his actions? The fact was and is that they both did do it, but apparently just felt it was ok to apologize after the fact. We could not get those contacted to be accountable for their actions. You may question the fact that we had a copy of the email from Mr. Tomlinson. Why didn’t we report that right away? That was the problem: it was a copy, and in this day and age it is possible to make a facsimile of any document. We needed verification. As a newspaper, we are obligated to verify authenticity. Let me say, that it all would have helped tremendously if the individual, who did the right thing, would have identified himself or herself, so that we could have started from there. It takes time to report accurately, time that we will continue to take, and yes it can result in being “beat” with a story. It also takes elected or appointed public officials responding truthfully when asked a question. And that is an expectation that everyone should have, not just this newspaper. Article Comments(8)ivebeenthereiMar-22-10 10:49 AM Anyone could agree or disagree with the blogs on here.. I think what makes them irrelevent is the fact you have a few voicing there opinions behind a screen name... I know for fact there were some of these people at the public meeting and did not hear ONE person at the meeting DEFEND Joe or Ed's position on what core values ment...could it be they didn't have the coviction or a screen name to hide behind...?? DiscobulousMar-21-10 12:07 PM Oh let us have an Ed Szumowski Day over at Perth! Let us have a parade, beat the drums and honor this dictator of nutcracker political attitudes and his loyal sidekick, the stuporintendent. And then, let's reward both of them with a free year's subscription to the Leader Herald so they can continue to read about how our citizens love their taxes and our free press watches their antics. Stay on ths, Leaderfolk. I bet it's not over yet. pbeckMar-18-10 2:57 PM William, please feel free to call me, identify yourself and I will be happy to talk to you. I am no different than others, when it comes to being called a liar, I would welcome an actual two-way conversation. WilliamMar-17-10 5:52 PM "It also takes elected or appointed public officials responding truthfully when asked a question. And that is an expectation that everyone should have, not just this newspaper." I guess it's good you're not an elected public official, given how you lied to the Gazette about layoffs last year. pbeckMar-17-10 11:34 AM I understand that someone was concern with my writing skills ,or lack of, on this blog. I apologize if it offended anyone to read my blog that did contain errors in grammar or punctuation. I can honestly tell you, it will happen again. When writing an editorial or the cheers and jeers, I do use the expertise of our great editors. For this blog, I will take the full heat for any errors. Sure there are some here, already. nyboliMar-17-10 10:24 AM Ms. Beck - I commend the Leader Herald for their integrity in how they moved forward with this story. I only wish whoever sent you the letter and email communication was forthright enough to reveal themselves. If they had, the story would have broken and perhaps both sides of this situation would have been more evenly represented. I was fortunate enough to have been sent the email and video and attended the community meeting. The situation is troubling to say the least. Thank you for your honest reporting. nyboliMar-17-10 9:29 AM Discobulous - Simply can't believe I'm saying this, but I actually agree with part of your statement. Your comment regarding Mr. Szumowski (I assume Mr. Z is Szumowski) being well intended. Ed Szumowski is a very nice guy but has forgotten that he represents ALL members of his community and that his political ideology should not impact his position as a member of our board of education. DiscobulousMar-16-10 10:09 AM Mr. Z is perhaps a well-intended but over-zealous victim here. He meant well even if he is a little well-done. From one who has seen Tomlinson 'in action' at various meetings in his expensive suits and blase manner, I say, good work. The mighty need to be taken down a peg or two. Since the Perth people always vote down the budget and the broadalbin people who have more voters always approve it, Mr. T has developed a God complex. A lot of us are waiting for him to stub his hypocritical toe. Good work Leader! Post a Comment | in: News, Blogs & Events Web |
