As you know, I have written about the Southern Boone County School District’s Board of Education and its handling of Covid-19 several times in the last few months both as a reporter and as an opinion columnist. Although I’ve tried to keep my personal opinions off of the Journal’s front page, I believe I failed in that regard in a news piece I wrote a couple of weeks ago.
In the story I wrote about Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s cease and desist letter to the District that threatened legal action if the District were to require masks or quarantines following a Cole County judge’s order that called for a halt to such safety measures, I did a reasonably good job of laying out the facts and documenting the Board’s handling of the tricky situation. However, I made a mistake when I added two paragraphs about the behavior of district parent and board candidate Brad Bartow.
Unlike my son Alex, I didn’t go to journalism school. If I had, I’m sure they would have taught me to wrap up a story when the facts have been thoroughly and accurately presented and not to add irrelevant material to the end of a piece that could have stood on its own without such an addition. That particular story was about the AG and the Board, not about parents or board candidates. Although I stand behind the facts of what I wrote, the superfluous material about Mr. Bartow’s behavior at board meetings and mask protests did nothing to improve my story.
Bartow himself had warned me this might happen. When I asked him for his opinions about masking requirements for an October news piece, Mr. Bartow said, “It’s always risky answering questions for a biased journalist. Media without biased opinions are something that appear to be quite rare nowadays. Southern Boone definitely deserves an unbiased media in times such as these.”
I wholeheartedly agree with Mr. Bartow. This community deserves unbiased journalism and nothing less. Therefore, I would like to apologize to Journal readers and Mr. Bartow for turning an unbiased news piece into an opportunity to publicly and unnecessarily shame one person. Although I disapprove of Mr. Bartow’s interruptions at board meetings and his decision to stage a rally against mask mandates on school property, my opinions on the matter should have been strictly confined to the opinion page.
As a former teacher and as a devoted friend to administrators and staff members trying their best to survive the stress of teaching during a pandemic, I take any threats (real or perceived) against their wellbeing extremely seriously. In my opinion, the Board’s decision to go against CDC and DESE masking recommendations threatened the safety of my teacher friends. I felt that Brad Bartow’s outspoken opposition to masking and quarantine mandates influenced the Board’sdecision, therefore he was also a threat to my friends’ safety, in my opinion. Had I chosen to share those sentiments only on the Journal’s opinion page, then I would have been fine in terms of journalistic ethics. Because I am so close to the situation, having personal relationships with so many people whose lives are affected by the Board’s and Brad’s actions, I should have refrained from allowing my personal biases to influence my reporting. I am sorry for failing to maintain a professional distance from the subjects of my reporting.
Finally, after reading Mr. Bartow’s account in last week’s paper about his time in the military, I realized that I have made no effort whatsoever to get to know the real Brad Bartow. I made the mistake of seeing him only as an adversary on one particular issue, when in truth, Mr. Bartow is a devoted husband and father, a well-loved member of this community, and a military veteran who served his country honorably during two tours of duty in the war in Iraq.
This is a mistake I think many of us make. We become focused on identifying and attacking opinions we disagree with, and we forget that those opinions are held by living, breathing people with whom we have more in common than we realize. Mr. Bartow was born and raised in small-town Missouri. So was I. Mr. Bartow is a husband and father. So am I. Mr. Bartow volunteered for military service. So did I. Mr. Bartow is trying his best to serve his community. So am I. Mr. Bartow has made a few mistakes along the way. Lord knows, so have I.
Brad, if you’re reading this, I hope you will accept my sincere apologies. Although we won’t always see eye-to-eye on everything, we both want what’s best for the people we care about. I hope that one day we can meet face-to-face, shake hands, and perhaps even become friends. I mean that. And by the way; you, sir, are one hell of a writer. The piece you wrote about your military service that appeared in last week’s paper was beautifully written. I look forward to reading more in the future.
As we look forward to the new year and make our annual resolutions, let’s figure out a way to devote more energy in 2022 to finding common ground with one another. Let’s resolve to be better to each other. Let’s be better parents, friends, allies, and supporters. Let’s come together to affect positive change in our community and in our world. Along with being a better reporter, those are my New Year’s resolutions.
Happy New Year.
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