tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post8696411250580880794..comments2023-11-18T08:59:54.598+00:00Comments on Carmarthenshire Planning Problems and more: MP Calls Carmarthenshire Council a 'Dictatorship'caebrwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17233902574832152764noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-33295590257950920152012-07-18T09:11:15.268+01:002012-07-18T09:11:15.268+01:00The Council's Spin (PR) department should have...The Council's Spin (PR) department should have no say at all in how advertising is done. The departments placing the adverts will know the best routes to reach the target audience - and doing this sensibly and properly is making the best use of our - the residents/council taxpayers - resources. That our resources are being used as a tool to control and manipulate the local press rather than achieving the maximum value for every £1 spent is disgraceful, and I would have thought of questionable legality.Tessanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-29929542874163968722012-07-18T07:49:23.644+01:002012-07-18T07:49:23.644+01:00Anon @ 22.06 - your comment raises a couple of poi...Anon @ 22.06 - your comment raises a couple of points which deserve clarification. Councils do have to place their legal notices (road closures, etc.) with local newspapers, but most of their advertising is discretionary.<br /><br />If you look through the Guardian online, I don't think anyone would consider the paper to be a rabid, council-hating publication. Quite a lot of the reporting of council stories is actually very positive from the council's point of view. The article the council objected to is pretty mild by anyone's standards, too.<br /><br />The aim of council advertising is surely to ensure that they get information across to local people as effectively as they can. Whether a paper is sometimes critical of the council should play no part in deciding where to place advertising. This is supposed to be a democracy, after all, where people are allowed to have different opinions!Cneifiwrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08767078276794410524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-6548985232054105992012-07-17T22:55:07.064+01:002012-07-17T22:55:07.064+01:00@anon 22.06
Thanks for your comment and understand...@anon 22.06<br />Thanks for your comment and understand your point but<br />the council is a governing body not a private company nor an individual. Local, and indeed national papers should be able to report freely on any matter related to the council, subject only to issues such as data protection. Local papers should be able to investigate and report without fear of being silenced by said governing body. You are correct, the council is not obliged to advertise in the papers but they do and it has given bodies such as Carmarthenshire Council a handy lever with which to exercise editorial control. It is a shame that local papers have become so dependent on funding through advertising, I am sure it is not a situation they welcome.<br />I, personally would rather read a constant stream of negative reporting, if it is deserved, than sterile press releases aimed to please the top brass at County Hall. Freedom of the independent press from political or government control is a sign of a healthy democracy, not a dreadful world.<br />As Cneifwr says, sinister is the only word for it.caebrwynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17233902574832152764noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-55147031307899808512012-07-17T22:06:01.358+01:002012-07-17T22:06:01.358+01:00I'm certainly not a fan of the Carmarthenshire...I'm certainly not a fan of the Carmarthenshire Council administration but I'm not sure why they should be obliged to fund this paper through their advertising.<br /><br />I don't read the South Wales Guardian and I'm not familiar with this particular issue but some local papers feed the public a constant stream of negativity that often seems designed to convince us that we live in a dreadful world. I happen to think that this has a destructive effect on society. <br /><br />If the (obviously flawed) Carmarthenshire Council decides to take their business elsewhere I think that is fair enough. Would you give money to a business if you knew the owner and staff hated you? If you chose not to, would you be 'blackmailing' them?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-16372842094842049732012-07-17T21:28:13.344+01:002012-07-17T21:28:13.344+01:00While what the county council is doing is disgrace...While what the county council is doing is disgraceful, there is a major problem within the county's three newspapers of lazy journalism and continuing demonstrations that they are more interested in selling advertising space than increasing circulation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-60828530592432530832012-07-17T18:05:02.594+01:002012-07-17T18:05:02.594+01:00There needs to be radical changes to the senior st...There needs to be radical changes to the senior staff at this council. The rot is well and truly established and serious cleansing needs to take place. The big question is, who is going to take this on?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-14801543287679076612012-07-17T14:46:21.297+01:002012-07-17T14:46:21.297+01:00Sinister is the only word for it. The Editor has b...Sinister is the only word for it. The Editor has been invited in for a chat? Is this Zimbabwe? And in his last sentence Burns appears to hint that there are circumstances in which criticism would lead to a complete loss of advertising.Cneifiwrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08767078276794410524noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-791817892794754996.post-88653417881339240912012-07-17T14:13:21.820+01:002012-07-17T14:13:21.820+01:00First they cancelled one advert but I did speak ou...First they cancelled one advert but I did speak out.<br /><br />apols to Martin NiemollerNospinhttp://www.walesopinionslive.freeforums.orgnoreply@blogger.com