Put It In Writing!
POTTSTOWN, PA – It’s nice to see that local newsworthy stories are actually being reported on within 48 hours of their occurrence. Guess that’s better than the typical week long incubation period we’ve become used to.
In today’s print and online editions of The Fishwrap, we see an article spotlighting the secret meetings that Pottstown School Board member Thomas Hylton has been conducting in regards to official school district business…without the knowledge, nor permission, of the district.
Evidently Tom Hylton is running around town trying to find a buyer for the district’s administrative annex building on North Franklin Street. He’s also working on some kind of crazy covert mission with the library (where Hylton’s financial PAC sugar momma Frances volunteers).
The next official school board meeting, the committee of the whole, is scheduled for July 7. At that meeting, school board president Rick Huss is expecting (as demanded during Thursday’s board meeting) that Hylton give a full report on his sneaky meetings to the entire board.
Maybe Hylton can prepare some flashy and colorful charts and graphs to explain exactly what he’s been up to. How about a 32-page supplement to explain his actions to the community and why he continually ignores district protocol?
Once again, we see that Tom Hylton refuses to be a team player as well as refusing to conform to the rules and regulations of the Pottstown School District.
According to item 1230.3 of the Pottstown School Board’s 563-page Policy Manual:
“No member of the Board shall have power to act in the name of the Board outside a regular or special Board meeting, unless authorized by official Board action.”
So let’s see how transparent Tom Hylton is with the illegal actions he’s been committing by falsely misrepresenting himself as an authorized representative of the board.
Why should Hylton put his misdeeds in writing? Writing helps people remember pertinent information. Writing helps us evaluate information and think critically. It forces us to organize our thoughts and provide reasons for our decisions. Writing makes us accountable. Once you’ve written something, you can’t deny it later. If we want honest, professional government, we have start by putting things in writing.
So here’s a memo for Tom Hylton. Put it in writing!
Once again I am amazed at the bias of The Mercury toward Tom Hylton’s point of view in what seems to be every single issue faced by Pottstown. I’m afraid the bias is so much a part of the very fabric that is The Muckery that its writers and editors can’t separate themselves far enough from it to see it.
Look at the headline of the article questioning Reed Lindley’s transparency in exploring innovations in education:
“Email Trail Shows Behind-the-Scenes Lobbying.”
Now look at the headline of the article questioning Tom Hylton’s transparency in exploring innovations in education:
“Huss Wants Full Report on Hylton Inquiries.”
The first headline most definitely implies wrongdoing. “Email trail” indicates evidence left behind by those attempting to do something nefarious. “Behind-the-scenes lobbying”… when was that ever used in a positive context?
The second headline brings none of those biases to the article. It’s clinical: a report on inquiries. It also offers the names of two public figures who are known to have differences of opinions on issues, so it suggests this is one man making demands of an adversary. There is none of the nafarious content. And the article itself most definitely suggests that Huss is unreasonable (slamming gavels and refusing to allow Hylton to speak) while painting Hylton as some sort of victim.
I’m not even touching the fact that The Mercury rushed to editorialize against Reed Lindley (and in support of Tom Hylton’s position) or the follow up report to the article attacking Lindley in which Evan Brandt’s opening line is “Know the enemy,” which he attributes to Polly Weand but which never appears in any direct quote from Mrs. Weand in the remainder of the article.
Talk about bringing baggage to a “news” story.
I feel sorry for the whole sad staff at The Mercury. It must be painful to wake up and realize you have lost all sense of journalistic integrity. Then again, ignorance is bliss. Maybe they really haven’t got a clue. But they will be a perfect case study for a course in Ethics in the News Industry one day.
From the sublime:
-Wandering around talking to attendees at board meetings.
-Holding his head and rolling it in his hands when he hears something he doesn’t agree with.
-Making every effort to provide leading descriptions of his foes, in his advetorials, while taking care not to leave himself vulnerable to a lawsuit.
To the ridiculous:
-Placing himself on a credenza ABOVE his colleagues.
-A few days prior to the council vote to end the Tree Commission, Hylton was spotted attempting to call attention to himself, (posturing), as he feigned interest in the uplifted sidewalks along a busy street. Ostensibly, taking measurements and notes on each broken section. He was grandstanding he would peek around to see if anyone was paying attention to him. By suddenly “appearing” to be concerned about their trees and walkways Tom Hylton thought he could secure the support of the homeowners. But years of neglect, unreturned phone calls, emails and outright disdain for the taxpayer, sealed that deal. It was odd that the Fishwrap didn’t send a crew to cover that one, it was a gas, naturally their spin on it would have far afield from the obvious.
If those who have made Tom Hylton into their demigod, firm in their belief of Tom Hylton’s genius and his abilities, then I don’t really understand why they also believe they need to buttress his behavior like rabid dogs.
The antics of Tom Hylton and The Fishwrap have definitely got the stench of machiavellian tragic/comedy.
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