Monday, Corridor News was sent two emails from a local activist who threatened us with coercion due to a (political) statement we ran in August on the subject of Senate Bill 4.
Over the last few months, Corridor News has run articles and statements reporting on both sides of the SB 4 battle.
Statements made by a state lawmaker have come under scrutiny as “Factual Errors” by another publication. Corridor News was asked to amend a statement provided to us on official letterhead to “placate” a local activist.
While Corridor News has reported on the topic of Senate Bill 4 and reviewed the bill ourselves, it is not Corridor News or our reporter’s place to tell readers what we think it says. Everyone interprets things differently. We believe it is better for us to provide the information and source material, in this case, the actual bill signed by Gov. Abbott, to you rather than tell you how we interpret the information.
Despite implications of being attacked as a “rightwing propaganda mouthpiece,” Corridor News will not be altering a political statement published last month further than supplying readers with a link to the original document on official letterhead.
Corridor News would like our readers to know we are committed to living, working, and delivering you news from around Hays County, with High Standards, a Code of Ethics, and a Mission.
The Mission of San Marcos Corridor News is to provide our readers with accurate, informative reporting, as well as an outlet for community engagement, discourse, and integration while promoting a strong sense of community. We believe the information that affects your daily life should not come with a price tag or subscription costs.
This mission backs our values and guidelines in our Code of Ethics, which can be read HERE.
Corridor News will not allow any individual, business, or group, political or not, to intimidate or coerce us into publishing, or not publishing, any story, editing selectively for any political purpose, removing any story, or re-writing any story, period. Much less with one with a political agenda.
We have a moral obligation not only to our readers but also to Corridor News and ourselves personally, and we truly believe that people, principles, and ethics come before profit.
We will not be bullied, intimidated or coerced into doing anything that differs from our core beliefs stated above.
Sincerely,
Terra Rivers, Managing Editor, and Melissa Jewett, Publisher
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Thank you! A news source with integrity. Don't ever change ??
Never considered you right-wing! LOL. Keep up the good work.
since you're accusing me of "coercion" & "intimidation", why not publish our email exchange and let readers decide if that's accurate?
Hello Jordan,
I have been caught up and made aware of your concerns regarding the representative's press release in question.
We have released a statement identifying your concerns and the piece in question, which you have found by your comment on our website. We have left out names only because we do not want to drag other individuals into the middle of this discussion.
We acknowledge your concerns. However, you will note that we published an article on SB 4 with the official interpretations of the bill from the Texas Legislature and included both the enrolled bill and the research report we referenced for our readers to review themselves.
I have read the article in question as well as the one you referenced from the other publication. But I am afraid I cannot take the latter with the journalistic value you are asking me to. Here are a few of my reasons:
In the opening statement, Senate Bill 4 is identified as the "most draconian anti-immigration legislation." Whether this is true or not, it is up to readers to conclude--not the reporter. The quoted statement above implies this is either an editorial or a news article, which contains clear bias.
Secondly, the reporter goes on to state that SB 4 will "most certainly" increase deportations. This may or may not be true. However, the bill was halted by a temporary injunction and has not gone into effect as of yet. Therefore, there are no statistics to support this statement; this may change in the future, but until then, it cannot be taken as a fact.
As I have no diplomatic way of saying this, I will simply say it. His closing statement, "If Republicans wanted a limited, more moderate SB 4, they held their peace when it mattered," is clearly his opinion.
I appreciate your concerns, and I admire your passion on the topic. However, as a fellow journalist, it is clear you and the author of the op/ed you directed me to are too close to this issue.
It is not our job, as a journalist, to tell people what or how to think or even how to interpret a law. It is our job to provide them with the facts and materials, such as the enrolled bill and the legislature's official document detailing the bill's official interpretation, the comments and concerns of the supporters and the opponents, and allow them to read the documents and interpret them for themselves.
We have published and reported both sides of the Senate Bill 4 battle since the regular legislative session began. We have even published several of your own articles about the impact of the U.S. Immigration law has had on a family in the Hays County community.
We did not publish any of these emails for the sake of your privacy. However, if you would like us to share them on our website, we will do so but only after having written permission via email for our records.
We have released a statement. We will not be altering the representative's official statement and interpretation of Senate Bill 4 or providing a link to an article, which several individuals inside and outside the journalism field have read for themselves and shared concerns in regard to its bias.
If there is any other matter I can help with now or in future, please let me know. However, there will be no further correspondence on this particular matter.
Sincerely,
Terra Rivers, Managing Editor
Good Job Terra!