We had no control at meeting

You know that feeling you get after you speak to someone and you are left so totally flabbergasted that you are not sure what just transpired between you and that person?

I felt like that last week. It was the same feeling I had when I was reported to the Press Ombudsman for not publishing a story in the paper. I can’t really remember what that story was about, but this person decided he was going to report me for not publishing it.

Two weeks ago, in the Record, we published a small article to remind our readers that they could meet Mayor Herman Mashaba at the Roodepoort Civic Centre. The article stated that readers could discuss their most pressing service delivery issues with Mashaba.

We are usually informed about such meetings via press release from the Mayor’s office. We don’t dispute those press releases, nor do we call them to ask, “Are you sure? You are not perhaps misleading us or the readers?” Nope, we take it at face value.

However, a reader was terribly upset, because she felt the meeting turned into a DA campaign event and she blamed me for not doing my job. She felt that I should have checked the validity of the scheduled meeting with the Mayor.

The more I tried to explain that neither I, nor the journalists, nor the paper, had any control whatsoever about what is said at any meeting, political or not, the more she blamed me for not checking the facts before I published said article. It is like me blaming my neighbour when his dog uses my lawn as a toilet. No control.

I asked my journalist to find out what happened at the meeting and according to a councillor, they found it very fruitful.

It turned out that the reader was upset because she felt ambushed by the DA. I can understand that, especially if you are not a DA supporter, but if you attend a meeting held by the mayor, who is DA, be assured the DA will be there in full force.

Oh, and don’t blame us if you are not happy with how the meeting was conducted. We have no control.

Until next week, take care of one another.