Of "ridiculous" reports, and meetings

We read with interest today the story in the Aspen Times by Carolyn Sackariason about Aspen City Manager Steve Barwick sending an e-mail to the Aspen Rotary Club complaining about comments from Barwick’s fellow Rotarian Andy Modell.

Barwick’s use of the phrase “another ridiculous newspaper ‘report’” seemed to reveal how he regards local journalism. Here are the two stories about the meeting in question that were published in the Aspen Daily News, one on Feb. 5 and one on Feb. 11. Judge for yourself if they are “ridiculous.”

Barwick is adamant that a closed-door executive session was held with the Pitkin County Commissioners about the Burlingame housing project, but none of the commissioners who were supposedly there can remember the meeting and there is no public record of such a meeting being held, despite the requirement under state law that such a record be produced and kept.

The stories suggest several possibilities: that there was no meeting and Barwick is mistaken that there was; that there was a meeting, but the both city and the county mistakenly violated public records laws by not recording a notice of the meeting or the votes to go into the executive session; or there was a closed-door session held by the city and the county and that it was conducted in secret on purpose, with no attempt to adhere to public notice or public record requirements. We suppose there could be another possibility as well, but we haven’t heard it yet.

According to the Times, the basis of Barwick's complaint to the Rotary Club is that Modell's comments don't meet the standards of Rotary's Four-Way Test, which is as follows: " Of the things we think, say or do:

1. Is it the TRUTH?
2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?"