Inside City Hall: A more transparent Killeen government benefits everyone | Column

But before I could attend the meeting, I had to meet with Janelle Ford, Executive Director of Public Affairs for the City of Killeen.

I have no personal feelings towards Ford at all. She understands that she has a job just like me. But her first meeting really hammered into my brain what I was going to be dealing with.

For one thing, Ford addressed the Herald's past mistakes.

All news organizations make mistakes. It's kind of part of the job. But what separates good news organizations from bad ones is their ability to correct their mistakes and be transparent.

But my first impression was that we were not looked upon favorably by the city. And my reaction was just a shrug. Generally speaking, it's probably not a good thing if the city government you're covering likes you too much. Separation is required.

Another thing she said was that all communication with city officials had to go through her. That's when she realized the job was for her.

That last point is why Killeen is one of the most anti-media governments I've ever had to work with.

I'm not saying all aspects of city government are bad when it comes to transparency, but many are. This is especially true when doing something as simple as talking to a department head.

The simple act of calling a department head, say the director of public works, becomes a logistical nightmare because so much of the Killeen government has to go through Ford. It's not uncommon for clearly important deadlines to be completely ignored or simply ignored.

And while Ford is certainly good at what she does and it might somehow work out for the city of Killeen to have this kind of system in place, it really only gets in our way. .

And all this would be tolerable to some extent if Ford were more responsive to our demands.

That is, she reacts. In a sense. However, many of her responses lack content and context. There are a lot of weasels around this issue. Sometimes the responses she gets are so complicated that no one in the newsroom can understand what she's saying. For communicators, that's a problem.

“On March 4, the City of Killeen filed a Special Exception, Petition to Competent Court, and Original Answer, and Petition to Reduce this second action filed by the Attorney General’s Office on behalf of the State. There is already a pending lawsuit in which the City of Killeen, Bell County, and the State of Texas are parties to the same ordinances, policies, and statutes.''

This was something Ford sent to the media as the city's response to the recent Texas attorney general's lawsuit over Killeen's marijuana laws. There was no further explanation.

Also, it is impossible to contact the heads of departments without her intermediary, so the Herald is forced to work with what is available. In the end, the reader will suffer because of it.

Because Ford's job is to make Killeen the best it can be. But the Herald's job is to report the facts about what's actually happening, for better or worse.

Nevertheless, I believe that increased transparency will greatly benefit both parties.

City officials shouldn't be afraid to talk to the Herald. Things will improve if you know what's going on in city government. It will force you to improve things.

It is only by shining a light on the inner workings of government that our democracy can truly function.

Although Sunshine Week is over, the fight for government transparency will continue, so I think the city of Killeen should take a moment to reevaluate the way it conducts business. Because transparent government is better for everyone.