Disqus - Latest Comments for 1deanradford1

Re: We must go after the 737 MAX for state, Gov. Gregoire - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 09:45:57 -0000

Mr. Hat
Thanks for the comment. Please in the future use your name as our commenting policy has changed and no long allows screen names.
Thanks
Dean

Re: Online commenting is no longer anonymous on rentonreporter.com | Our View - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 09:36:26 -0000

Myturn
Good morning.
I can say for sure the Renton City Council did not tell us to cut off the anonymous comments.
Dean

Re: Petition seeks citizen control over location of downtown Renton library - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 20:13:15 -0000

Stuart
Thanks for noting your email address. It's also in the story above, in the second paragraph. Your name is highlighted, just as we do with any other link to another site or to an email address.
Dean

Re: Online commenting is no longer anonymous on rentonreporter.com | Our View - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:57:09 -0000

I passed on your comment to our Internet guru. Here's the response:
The internet has dark corners and shady villains just like real life, some on Facebook. Though it has declined in the last year, there have been several well-known Facebook apps that were designed to steal users' information. I have no concerns about Facebook's security and the privacy controls they offer customers are well-developed.

*********
Here's an FAQ about the change: http://www.rentonreporter.c...
Dean

Re: Online commenting is no longer anonymous on rentonreporter.com | Our View - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:18:12 -0000

Why is Facebook not safe?

Re: http://www.rentonreporter.com/news/133662813.html

1deanradford1 — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 11:48:33 -0000

Ben
I removed your comment below. It was personal and inappropriate.
Dean

Re: Roodman to step down as hospital district superintendent; three public hearings set - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:43:11 -0000

We need to be careful about throwing around the word default. I started it. The hospital district is obligated to pay back the bonds, so no matter what that's a priority.

Re: Roodman to step down as hospital district superintendent; three public hearings set - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:59:23 -0000

(See above) Like the one above.
Those tax dollars are going almost exclusively to build Valley Medical Center. Take those tax dollars away and the hospital district likely will default on those bonds or at a minimum get into a real legal hassle with its lenders. I am sure there's a legal way to explain this, but you get the point.Dean

Re: Roodman to step down as hospital district superintendent; three public hearings set - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:09:56 -0000

Yep. I've never gone anywhere. So, it sounds like you don't really have an examples of closing down comments?
Dean

Re: Roodman to step down as hospital district superintendent; three public hearings set - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:47:21 -0000

Myturn
Please give me an example of where I have closed down or censored comments so I can address a specific concern. In recent weeks I have removed three comments because they crossed the line in terms of our commenting rules and I noted in the strings that those were removed.
But there has been no censoring of letters. You might be reacting to the fact that comments aren't showing up on our home page. That is being addressed as a technical issue.
Thanks
Dean

Re: Hazen football starts new homecoming tradition - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:48:17 -0000

Done.
Dean

Re: Robin Jones: Focus on the issues | An open letter - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 19:29:29 -0000

I am watching the posts. I just removed one from Reflex for his comments about Terry Persson.
Dean

Re: Naked woman in Hummer caught on surveillance camera | Renton police blotter - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 14:10:22 -0000

The most-read lists and the comments will return soon. Just some technical issues.
Dean

Re: Naked woman in Hummer caught on surveillance camera | Renton police blotter - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 14:06:20 -0000

Mr. Hat
Thanks for the response to Myturn. Let me fill in some gaps about how we get our police news. We see the daily police logs, which are basically a list of calls with few details. However, from experience we can get a pretty good sense of important items, rush as shootings, rapes, major burglaries, etc. We then make a records request with the Renton PD for those police reports. Names of those involved, including suspects and victims, are redacted by the PD. We typically wouldn't use any suspect names anyway because no one has been charged. We don't name the victim of a crime in the blotter and we use care in giving the exact location of a crime, especially the type in the blotter where it's a dispute among individuals. It's really important to say that any big crime doesn't wait for the police blotter to get reported. The blotter really is a sampling of the crime in Renton, as a way to give our readers a sense, and some details, about what's happening in their neighborhoods.
Mr. Hat, I disagree with you that the mayor reviews and approves any crime news that's passed on to the Renton Reporter through public disclosure requests. That would be a clear violation of the law. Yes, resources do limit the amount of crime reporting we can do, as well as all types of reporting. It's a commitment that we continue.
But resources aren't the only reason police coverage is limited. I've been around long enough to remember the days when I could go to the basement of the old Renton City Hall and go through actual police reports, without redactions. Or go out to the sheriff's precinct in Maple Valley to took at actual reports there. But laws have changed, which means police may delay release of information for a certain time, including when an investigation is still under way. Police took some heat,too, when someone called them up, usually a victim, wondering why it was a reporter showed up on their doorstep.
For sure, we do get press releases from the PD, mostly for breaking news. And those usually require follow up questions to get more details or at least to attempt to get more details. And we can talk to witnesses and others to flesh out a story.
Dean

Re: Ed Prince: Here is the truth | An open letter - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 11:55:17 -0000

There are two comments in this part of the string that crossed the line in terms of commenting on Cactusflower beyond just the facts. I have removed those, so RenateB's comment may seem out of context. I understand these are emotional comments and that Ed Prince has had to face having his life laid out for all to see. But please try to avoid making deeply personal comments about a person's character.

Re: Ed Prince is dedicated to city - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:02:19 -0000

I've already removed one comment from Working Ed about Edward Oneal Prince, because of the innuendo regarding cocaine use. Here's the truth: Candidate Ed Prince shares the exact name as his deceased father. His father was a heavy drug user, as candidate Ed explained to me, and even contracted HIV. So if anyone hears that an Ed Prince is HIV-positive, it's not candidate Prince. I hate to see a campaign turn dirty or at a minimum become filled with innuendo without facts being checked.

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 00:34:43 -0000

I am glad we were able to work through this.
Dean

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:54:08 -0000

Yes
That was an embarrassing mistake.
Dean

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 20:26:31 -0000

See below

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 20:21:15 -0000

No, none of the above, although the effort to get some online comment in print didn't work at all well. I've been averse to publishing online comments in print because I am old school – If you have an opinion to express, then attach your name to it. I don't run anonymous letters in the print edition for that reason; it's standard policy for I would hazard to guess all newspapers. And as stated on the editorial page I let everyone know I will edit letters for length and edit content in rare occasions and in consultation with the writer. I've returned letters to the writer for editing.

We have a use policy for commenting online and it allows for any name a poster wants to use. Online comments aren't edited, although if they violate our policy or are repeatedly flagged by others, I can take them down. So, where does that leave us? I'll think carefully in the future about whether to print online comments, which are often very long. I have published online comments in print in part because people thought the comments should reach a wider audience. But they would have to fit in the 250-word limit; I wouldn't make an effort to track down the poster to cut the letter to the word limit. And they would have to meet a much higher standard in terms of comment, since they are anonymous. I wouldn't edit them, I simply wouldn't run them. Really the problem is the length and often they are part of a thread of thought.

Still, there may occasionally be a time when a post really makes an important point and doesn't anonymously take a potshot at someone. (refer to above about anonymous comment). And, there's a standing invitation to any of you to write a signed letter to the editor. Otherwise, your online comments liven up the day and will use that anonymity to speak frankly.

By the way, Greeneyes, the Powers that Be at City Hall as you describe them have no power over the Renton Reporter. That's simply absurd.And for everyone I'll write it again that Mayor Denis Law sold the Renton Reporter and his other community newspapers to Peter Horvitz about a decade ago.

Dean

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 22:00:34 -0000

Ben
It's gone already. Bad idea.
dean

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 20:54:40 -0000

Pickles and Ben
Something just occurred to me. This column originally appeared in the print edition. All your comments have already appeared in online. The idea was to give a sampling of online comments to our print readers. They are edited for length (which we clearly state we will do for signed letters to the editor), intended just to give a sense of the comment. Is that idea flawed? There have been comments about wanting to see some of the online commentary printed in the paper to give the comments greater exposure. The problem is that most of the comments are much longer than I would allow for a letter to the editor specifically submitted for the paper. Any thoughts?
Thanks
Dean

Re: A view to downtown Renton’s future: A library, a farmers market, a dinner out | Editor's Note - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:48:46 -0000

Fixed.
Dean

Re: Make voice heard about library plans | Renton Reporter Editorial - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 13:52:01 -0000

Ben
Probably one is the annexation of Skyway and West Hill. West Hill is in one of Renton's designated annexation areas. The issue is complex and agreement is not as clear cut as you would like it to be. The mayor has expressed deep concern about the financial impacts annexation would have on the city and its taxpayers. I fall into the camp with some members of the City Council that at least let the voters of West Hill decide whether to annex. Urban areas need to be in cities or a city of their own. West Hill is tied to Renton, more so than to Seattle.Had my heart ruled, I would have opined in my column (as distinct from a Renton Reporter editorial) that the city should have continued to make a go of maintaining a city library system, thus preserving (tenuously, at best) the downtown library because of the city's tight budget. But my heart would have gotten in the way of ensuring that Renton had a library at all. We ask leaders to make tough choices about what to present to the public for their approval. Renton's leaders (mayor and City Council) opted to let voters decide whether to annex to KCLS. They said yes. The Renton Reporter, in a reasoned editorial, had supported that outcome.I have respect for those we choose to lead us, where ever we happen to live. They put in their time, out in front of everyone, to debate issues and make tough choices. If I or the Renton Reporter (a distinction) agree with Mayor Law or the City Council, it's usually because all sides were heard, a spirited debate was held and a vote taken. I say "distinction" because Ellen Morrison, our publisher who lives in Renton, myself and occasionally an editorial board set the editorial direction for the Renton Reporter.Our elected leaders do occasionally get something wrong.The Renton Reporter needs to point that out, too. But more importantly if they are wrong too many times (a distinction), then a majority of voters can do something about it.Hope that helps.Dean

Re: Make voice heard about library plans | Renton Reporter Editorial - Renton Reporter

1deanradford1 — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:13:15 -0000

RentonReader
I've said all along that I don't live in Renton. (I live in Kent.) No surprise there. Our editorials reflect a reasoned viewpoint based on research, many years on my part reporting about Renton and getting to know the community. The Renton Reporter would be abdicating one of its prime responsibilities as a community newspaper if it didn't offer an opinion and leadership on the important issues of the day. Still I respect your point of view. As far as being buddies with the mayor...Yes he will return my phone calls and I enjoy speaking with him about Renton. Our relationship was forged more so as fellow journalists. We don't agree on everything, but we do agree (if I may be so bold) on the value of community newspapers and the need to provide information to help residents understand their communities. By the way, Mr. Law sold the Renton Reporter and his other community newspapers years ago.
Thanks for the comment.
Dean