Can reporters quote your 2020 posts?

[Bill London <london@wsu.edu>]

An earlier posting about messages to the 2020 list being quoted in print by
reporters who subscribe to this list prompted this clarification by Rebecca
Huntington of the Tribune to me.  I asked her if I could forward this to
the list and she agreed.
	I don't recall any agreement by reporters not to use posted words from the
2020 list without the specific permission of the author.  If any one
reporter made that agreement, we certainly can't expect all reporters to be
bound by it.  So we should expect that our words could be quoted.
	Again, from my perspective, this use of posted words is appropriate.  We
should be willing to stand by our statements--and indeed, as John Teeter
noted, this way at least we won't get misquoted....
	With 150 subscribers, including reporters from several local newspapers, I
think we should look upon this method of communication as a community-wide
soap box or bulletin board.  We should expect that our words will receive
wide dissemination.
	Any other thoughts on this???
	BL

----


>I guess the deal for media not to quote from the list without 
>permission was made before I began subscribing. I didn't know about 
>it. But I completely disagree. It's a public forum. Besides, 
>newspapers can bring the debate to a forum involving more people and 
>I thought public involvement was the goal of Vision 2020. That 
>doesn't mean I intend to begin quoting willy nilly from the list. I 
>understand the need for open, unconstrained debate. Besides, not 
>every comment is newsworthy. Mostly I just sit back and listen. But 
>once something gains a great deal of momentum it may become 
>newsworthy, i.e. the swimming pool debate. Then it's fair game.
>
>Rebecca Huntington
>Lewiston Morning Tribune
>
>