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The right word to describe how I feel about canceling the Branch Herald Candidate Forum for the Farmers Branch City Council candidates doesn’t seem to exist.
Indignant may be closest. Frustrated, perhaps. Disappointed certainly doesn’t touch it. Angry is wrong as is disheartened, because if anything, this encourages me to work harder to figure out how to bring a sense of unity to our community.
As a linguaphile (someone who loves language and words), I find it fascinating that disapproval falls just beneath disappointment in The New Roget’s Thesaurus, because I feel community members’ disapproval and even knew I would receive it as I was weighing my decision to cancel the forum.
I likely surprised the only person who wrote and blasted me for this decision. I agreed with her, because I don’t feel like canceling the forum was in the best interest of the community. We, the people, of Farmers Branch deserve the opportunity to see our all candidates for elections. In the good, old days before electronics and video, we all would have shown up in the town square or the community building that held all the local meetings and wouldn’t know who would show up to stump until we all got there. Had we gone with that format, Omar Roman, incumbent city councilmember and candidate for District 1, and Elizabeth Villafranca, candidate for District 4, would have attended just as they did Thursday’s Branch Herald meet and greet and Candidate Forum for the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District.
However, in all my communications about this forum, I have stated that I was following the rules set forth by the League of Women Voters, and very seldom have I ever not, for better or worse and despite the consequences seen and unseen, followed through with what I said I was going to do. It was very easy for me to see on Monday and Tuesday when one of the candidates did not respond to any of my communications in three different forms (email, text and phone calls, from which I had previously received responses) that no matter what I did, I was going to upset someone and be seen as having a bias. Both Roman and Villafranca have questioned and criticized my decision to invite their opponents, Isabel Romero for District 1 and Deborah Bowe for District 4, to attend the meet and greet after they’d declined to attend the forum, saying I was showing bias in my attempt to make it fair and unbiased.
Looking back, I should have contacted the League of Women Voters and followed their recommendations, which included a strongly worded letter to the Dallas Morning News and other news outlets, when I didn’t receive a candidate questionnaire from all candidates in all races. Needless to say, I will meet with community leaders to consider other ways to run candidate forums in the future as well as see if there are other organizations who may want to do it.
Also, it should be known that part of being “the press" or "the media” is the fact that me or my organization will write something, or not write something, at some point that will upset someone. If you are somewhat prominent in the community – an elected official, the city manager, a business leader, maybe even the leader of a non-profit organization, the chances are high. It’s been happening with almost every issue of the Branch Herald for a while and occasionally includes people who were my friends or neighbors long before the Branch Herald started. Writing about subjects that others wish would just go away is part of what a local news organization is supposed to do: Inform the public. Sometimes we don’t perceive matters in the same context.
So, while I’m even less comfortable writing first person than I am in getting in front of the camera for a YouTube video, I wanted to talk directly to the community of Farmers Branch, and also our neighbors Carrollton, Addison, Irving and Dallas. The mission of the Branch Herald is unchanged: To be a trusted source of community news so all Farmers Branch residents feel seen, heard and represented within our community.
I truly strive to keep the Branch Herald an unbiased source of news. I am NOT registered with any political party, which means that I have never received an invitation to any activity by the Republicans though people affiliated with the Democrats do invite me to attend events and activities. If I have the physical wherewithal, I try to attend as many as I can. Now that I have freelance help, I’m able to attend more, and though I have reduced the quantity I write, build relationships is a high priority to me. It's one of the reasons I've been so disappointed with this city council election season. I've never met either candidate, and it's not because I'm not out in the community. I'd be delighted to rectify that situation if either of them wishes.
All that to say, the Branch Herald will not endorse any candidates for any of the races in this municipal election. However, I wrote an article that included comments from city councilmembers about the commitment it takes to be a city councilmember. Their words may be worth considering.
Again, I extend a heartfelt apology to the community of Farmers Branch for failing to provide a forum so we all could meet our candidates for city council.
