Pat,
I understand “it ain’t a perfect world,” I would respectfully disagree that friend and superior at the place of employment are quite different. Ed Wyatt has contractual obligations with the county government regarding the WFB. He also stands to be the biggest winner on the road to nowhere. Those dealings were no more private than your newspaper printing the list of who donated to what campaigns (those are private citizens too).
Why no comment on the Hofrichter and Howard ads mentioning candidates without permission as well? There’s not a whole lot of difference, but your piece was one-sided. For that matter, were all the candidates consulted about Dan Langford’s Facebook rants as well.
If you want to be fair – and I read your column – do both sides. Your telling me that Harold Bost’s mailing is somehow different than Hofrichter and Howard’s ads is just plain wrong.
Steve B.
—— On Thu, 26 Jul 2012, Pat Cooper
(pat@fayette-news.com) wrote:
Steve-
I think it was pretty clear that Langford and Wyatt are friends. He said so and I quoted him as saying so. At that point, if anyone thinks he wasn’t a little biased about his opinion, then they’re not thinking clearly.
As far as Take Back Fayette County is concerned, the article wasn’t so much about the truth in the flyer, it was about two other things –
A — Langford’s articulation about how private citizens are being brought into political wars and
B — that most of the candidates mentioned in the ad didn’t get any input into what was printed even though their names were used in it. That was the point of the article.
Truth or no truth to the newsletter itself wasn’t even mentioned — merely what some people (the candidates included) thought about it.
And the times I’ve mentioned you in a story have been in connection with county commission comments — I was there — I didn’t have to call you. I even call you when Herb says something about you. Or, at the minimum, email you for your response. I do the same when you say something about someone else. I call or email for a response. And believe me, I’ve taken plenty of flack over it too when you say something confrontational. It’s part of the business, and quite frankly that doesn’t bother me.
But I’m not Langford or Wyatt and they were upset and so, really, were the candidates I talked to. That is NOT my OPINION — it is fact as evidenced by the candidates’ comments.
Pat Cooper
Managing Editor
Fayette County News/Today in Peachtree City/ East Coweta Journal
Fayetteville, GA 30214
pat@fayette-news.com
On Jul 26, 2012, at 8:22 AM, Steve Brown wrote:
Pat,
Do you know that Dan Langford works for Ed Wyatt?
Wyatt is on the Board of Directors where Langford works as the business manager. Why wasn’t that disclosed in your article?
I think the one thing you missed was Dan is no different that Take Back Fayette County — the only difference is Dan uses the Internet instead of the US Postal service. Harold Bost’s group is using the same tactics that Dan Lanford uses.
For the record, I read the mailed flyer and the information regarding the county commissioners is true.
Just to remind you, there have been plenty of times you have run a story with me in it and not bothered to call me.
Thanks.
Steve Brown
