Ex Chief Exec - Dave Clark

[Vik]

Anyone fancy a mass demonstration at the next full councill meeting to tell em the Shetland public is not happy to be tarnished by their ability to run things decently?

[Symbister]

Can you say 'Propaganda' .

 

Ve hav vays of telling you vot to think.

 

SHETLAND Islands Council is set to produce its own newsletter to communicate success stories after chief executive David Clark described the local media's reporting as "volatile"

.

 

So the 'Times' et al are "volatile", certainly a new description of SIBC's News reports anyway.

 

http://www.shetland-news.co.uk/2010/January/news/Good%20news%20for%20Shetland%20folk.htm

 

Seriously though, the 'Times' and 'Shetland News' do a fair job of digging the dirt, if the council themselves are now going to tell us the pretty stories, whats missing is something in the middle that just tells all the facts of how it is, good, bad, and indifferent without sensationalism of sugar coating. That might actually be of some use and interest.

 

I suspect this proposal for a newsletter will fail, as the first attempt (remember 'Council News'?) eventually did. Such initiatives tend to collapse because nobody in the SIC has responsibility for communications - it's always been added on to someone else's job and in Malcolm Green's day, when they did have someone nominally involved, all they were really allowed to do was allocate telephone sockets.

 

We employ people to advise us in everything from trading standards to child protection, road design to marketing, but we seem to think that (alone among local authorities) communicating properly is something that can take care of itself. Hence our failure, most of the time, to tell people about Council services in a coherent way, to celebrate some very real achievements and to give staff who achieve these things the credit they deserve. The occasional press releases that do appear are of a pretty variable standard. Not having someone to check the intelligibility of what the Council spews out has led, over the years, to such curiosities as the people of Fetlar having to prepare an understandable ferry timetable. It has also meant that, from time to time, very senior staff are taken away from their main duties to try to plug the gaps when it comes to getting information out, organising events and so on; that very tendency is observable right now. In this cack-handed approach, there are costs both direct and hidden. And the failure to come up with very much that's positive sustains a community mood that's often unreasonably (but understandably) negative and cynical.

 

This stuff isn't rocket science. But it does need someone to have responsibility for internal and external communications. It wouldn't rescue Councillors and the Chief Executive from the hole they've collectively dug in this particular case, but it might make them think a little more deeply about the impact of their actions and (perhaps more relevantly) inaction, maybe making hole-digging less of a spectator sport in the future.

 

A newsletter shouldn't be the first response. There are perfectly adequate channels of communication in Shetland and I know they'd all be genuinely pleased to have a steady flow of information that (a) helped them fill space and ( helped the electorate get on and make the most of their lives and opportunities. But, sorry, you can't do this in the lunch hour.

[JustMe]

Anyone fancy a mass demonstration at the next full councill meeting to tell em the Shetland public is not happy to be tarnished by their ability to run things decently?

Yes but I also fancy a mass demonstration at the next election where we can remove all the dead wood from the council using our votes.

[mainlander]

I wasn't aiming at Jonathan. And I don't believe for one nanosecond that JW was behind the Sun's involvement.

 

Hopefully not. Involving the Sun in Shetland matters could potentially open cans of worms for many people other than the individuals mentioned in yesterday's story, as the Sun's reporters will not necessarily stop with that particular story. Mr Wills' larger-than-life character and behaviour mean that he could well end up being a story himself.

 

The Sun's manner of reporting means that no one is safe.

[Infiltrator]

 

Hopefully not. Involving the Sun in Shetland matters could potentially open cans of worms for many people other than the individuals mentioned in yesterday's story, as the Sun's reporters will not necessarily stop with that particular story. Mr Wills' larger-than-life character and behaviour mean that he could well end up being a story himself.

 

The Sun's manner of reporting means that no one is safe.

 

I doubt the Sun are interested in anyone else. How long has this story been around, why publish it now, why have they ony focussed on certain aspects of the whole story, what happens on Tuesday?

[unlinkedstudent]

^^Because it is only recently that the Council commented as to why they were writing off the Judane dosh?

 

I know the new tourist bloke has only recently taken up post so I don't reckon he leaked anything to the press - there surely has to be better ways of getting tourists to Shetland (and not just a ferry/plane full of journalists from the press, Panorama or Despatches).

[mainlander]

I doubt the Sun are interested in anyone else.

 

Really? If I were the Sun editor spending money to keep a reporter or reporters in Shetland I would be more than interested in other stories to get best value from my investment.

 

And the mundanity of the current story (middle-aged man leaves one middle-aged woman and moves in with another middle-aged woman), and the manner in which it has been intertwined with another completely unlinked matter, shows just how easily the small dramas of people's everyday lives can be turned into a "scandal".

[Vik]

Mass demonstration at the last council elections brought about what we have now. I thought when I voted last time we would get some improvement but look at the mess. Funny thing is I have done my local & national voting duties for the last 40 years and I feel it always gets slightly worse.

 

In a local context though we seem to have floundered heavily in the seas of poor governance particularly the last 2 sessions

[unlinkedstudent]

I doubt the Sun are interested in anyone else.

 

... and the manner in which it has been intertwined with another completely unlinked matter, shows just how easily the small dramas of people's everyday lives can be turned into a "scandal".

 

I'm innocent! Honest guv, I had nothing to do with it whatsoever!!!!

[Infiltrator]

The Up Helly Aa squads and acts on Tuesday night are traditionally based on taking the mickey out of the well known local folks and events.

 

The acts can work well but some of the more local themes depend on the audience having some knowledge of the story and the characters being portrayed.

 

I also know the UHA committe can be uncomfortable about some of the subjects given they give the nod to the ideas.

 

Of the 50 squads, I'd guess at least half a dozen (at least) will feature some element of this whole affair.

 

To date, the 'romantic' element of the story hasn't been available in the public domain, yet this is likely to be a key feature in any of the acts as it's been local gossip for months now.

 

Now the story is in the public domain, it's had the widest coverage possible and the committee don't have to worry about getting involved in any legal battles.

 

Not the first time a squad have deliberately leaked a story to the press (albiet local) to give their act/suit a big boost on the night.

[JustMe]

Mass demonstration at the last council elections brought about what we have now. I thought when I voted last time we would get some improvement but look at the mess. Funny thing is I have done my local & national voting duties for the last 40 years and I feel it always gets slightly worse.

 

In a local context though we seem to have floundered heavily in the seas of poor governance particularly the last 2 sessions

Which of course leads to the question of candidates. If new people with something to offer Shetland do not stand then we will get the same sort of council with just a few new faces over and over again.

 

And neither was it me who tipped off the rag known as the Sun.

[Shoogler]

I wasn't aiming at Jonathan. And I don't believe for one nanosecond that JW was behind the Sun's involvement.

 

Hopefully not. Involving the Sun in Shetland matters could potentially open cans of worms for many people other than the individuals mentioned in yesterday's story, as the Sun's reporters will not necessarily stop with that particular story. Mr Wills' larger-than-life character and behaviour mean that he could well end up being a story himself.

 

The Sun's manner of reporting means that no one is safe.

 

Mainlander, I couldn't agree more re the Sun's ability to dig the dirt and 'create' a scandal from nothing. However, I don't know where the idea of 'Mr Wills larger than life character and behaviour' comes from. Getting back to the crux of the matter, if I had been threatened in the way that Mr Wills was, I would not exactly sit back and make no further comment. Wills is one of 22 councillors, all of whom hold equal responsibility for the selection and employment of their Chief officer. They also have the ability to judge that after a suitable probationary period he is not the man for the job. I agree completely that his personal circumstances and domestic arrangements, althougfh food and drink to the Sun, should have no major bearing on the judgement of his performance.

[mainlander]

I'm innocent! Honest guv, I had nothing to do with it whatsoever!!!!

 

lol

 

I don't know where the idea of 'Mr Wills larger than life character and behaviour' comes from. Getting back to the crux of the matter, if I had been threatened in the way that Mr Wills was, I would not exactly sit back and make no further comment.

 

Mr Wills certainly claimed to have been threatened. He was, of course, totally unable to prove that. I don't think it should be stated as a fact that he was.

 

I'm not sure why being a larger-than-life character should be taken as a criticism. My original comment on how his character appears was only given as a reason why I thought he was unlikely to have been responsible for bringing the Sun to Shetland, as I could think of several angles which the Sun could take to make very colourful stories on him. However, perhaps I am wrong.

 

If the Sun was indeed requested to come to Shetland, then my feeling remains that whoever that person is will be very lucky if their feeling that the white light of tabloid journalism should be shone on Shetland does not have unintended consequences.

[Infiltrator]

as I could think of several angles which the Sun could take to make very colourful stories on him

 

Pray tell then, you've said a few times all your info comes from the public domain like the Shetland News and the Shetland Times so there's clearly nothing you can't share. I can't think of anything that JW has done that's been publically reported that would make good reading to Sun readers.

 

I'm all ears, but let me grab a cup of tea and a biscuit first to sit and ponder your thoughts.

[mainlander]

All my imaginative flights into stories the Sun could run were indeed based on what was in the public domain.

 

However, I did not criticise Mr Wills, and I have no intention of being drawn into doing so.

 

My point was, and remains, that the Sun could make a story out of anything that any of us do.

 

Enjoy your tea and biscuit!

 

Edit: Your comment regarding "anything JW has done that has been publicly reported" has certainly got me intrigued though!