A COUPLE OF STUDIES IN ACCOUNTABILITY in local politics this week.
First, to Kamloops city hall.
Ever since the COVID lockdown, Kamloops council has opened up the public inquiries section of its regular meetings to people on Zoom.
This week, some scoundrel, some dastardly reprobate decided to trick council by playing a clip of hardcore pornography instead of asking a question.
In their personal lives, everyone has a different level of tolerance for this type of thing, but in a business meeting, the tolerance level for all is zero.
That’s why it was more than a little eye-opening that there was such a range of reactions in the room. Some in the room laughed while other members of staff and council were quite disturbed by the episode.
The mayor, one of the former group, later explained his reaction by saying he mistook the video for a cartoon.
His explanation did not contain a personal apology, an apology on behalf of the city or city council, or a statement condemning this type of action.
Of course, the broadcast incursion itself was not the mayor’s doing, but it did go out to anyone watching, in the room or online.
Accountability means doing your best to clean up that mess.
Over at Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education, a lack of accountability takes another form.
The board has recently passed a policy that requires anyone who wishes to record board meetings to clear it with the chair ahead of time.
Recording, either for audio or video, is an important part of how media organizations report on elected bodies.
The board does stream its meetings on its YouTube channel, but at this week’s meeting, the chair was very clear that the board would not be happy if that video stream was used for other purposes.
In 2024, elected bodies cannot be blamed for taking measures to protect themselves.
Throwing barriers up for media coverage, though, only protects them from bring accountable to the media’s audience — the same people who elected them and who pay for their budgets.
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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.
