Frederick County Councilman Kirby Delauter wrote on social media that he plans to sue The Frederick News-Post if his name or any reference to him appears in print without his permission.
In a Facebook status posted Saturday, Delauter said he was upset with reporter Bethany Rodgers for “an unauthorized use of my name and my reference in her article” published Jan. 3 about his and Councilman Billy Shreve's concerns over County Council parking spaces.
“So let me be clear............do not contact me and do not use my name or reference me in an unauthorized form in the future,” Delauter, R-District 5, said in a Facebook status update.
The post had garnered more than 45 "likes" and roughly 50 comments by Monday night. Rodgers responded to Delauter's post Sunday afternoon, stating she will continue to contact the councilman for comment as well as print his name and reference in the newspaper.
“First of all, there is no requirement to get a person's authorization in order to mention them in the paper, particularly if that person is an elected official,” Rodgers wrote in a comment below the original post. “It is not just our right but our responsibility to report on people like you, who occupy positions of trust in our government, and I make no apologies for doing that.”
Delauter said he would pursue legal action if his name or reference were published again.
“Use my name again unauthorized and you'll be paying for an Attorney,” Delauter wrote. “Your rights stop where mine start.”
Delauter did not respond to multiple calls for comment Monday.
Terry Headlee, The News-Post's managing editor, said the newspaper typically does not seek permission or authorization to publish a person's name or reference, except in the case of children.
"Kirby Delauter can certainly decline to comment on any story," Headlee said. "But to threaten to sue a reporter for publishing his name is so ridiculously stupid that I'm speechless. It's just a pointless, misguided attempt to intimidate and bully the press and shows an astonishing lack of understanding of the role of a public servant.”
Shreve, R-at large, told The News-Post in a phone interview he supported Delauter taking legal actions.
“I did not see his post, but I think The News-Post is extremely biased and someone should sue them,” Shreve said.
When asked if news media outlets should obtain permission to publish an elected official's name or reference, Shreve said, “I think media outlets are cowards and they hide behind the label of journalists and that's a bully pulpit to expand their liberal (agenda)."
County Executive Jan Gardner said she disagreed with Delauter's post, stating that news media outlets do not need elected officials' permission to use their name or reference.
“All public officials are really subject to the news and should expect to be written about,” Gardner, a Democrat, said in a phone interview. “Most of us would love to be written about positively all the time, but that's never the case.”
Freedom of the press is part of the democratic process, Gardner said, ensuring the public knows what their elected officials are doing.
Rodgers declined to comment.
Of course, the paper itself published a detailed reply in the form of an editorial. You can probably get the gist of their response from the title, which is "Kirby Delauter, Kirby Delauter, Kirby Delauter".
It all seems like a bizarre and idiotic lack of understanding regarding freedom of the press (especially when it comes to public figures) to me, but maybe I'm missing something. Is there a point here? Can we actually have a workable society in which public figures can request to have their names not used in stories, or is this as moronic as I think it is? What do you think?
