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Editorial: We need your help to do what we do

By Mark Chapman

NORWALK, Conn. – I enjoy watching a lot of what PBS has to offer. No, I don’t watch it every day. Nancy and I did watch every day when our son was a toddler enthralled by Cookie Monster and his pals. I do still like to settle in and watch their special musical offerings. And I always get impatient when the station is running a fundraising campaign and takes those long breaks to beg for donations.

So I apologize for taking this break from the news of Norwalk to ask you to reach for the credit card or checkbook, but the situation dictates that we get another cash infusion soon if we are going to continue our mission to shine a light on the city’s government.

There are those who would like to shut that light off, and are taking action to try to make that happen.  Not everyone wants you to know what the government is doing, or not doing, in your name. Those people are often involved in the very activities we are writing about – activities no one else deigns important enough to cover, stories that do more than just relay the party line – or they are supporters of those people.

If you want to keep the lights on; if you want us to keep alive the independent reporting – reporting free of partisan direction or advertiser control; if you don’t want to go back to having just one choice for your daily coverage of what is happening with your tax dollars, then please consider donating to NancyOnNorwalk. We are not a non-profit yet, so it is not tax deductible. We intend to try to remedy that situation, but we have to get over the hump and find support until we can get that status, until we can find the grants that support independent, hyper local watchdog journalism.

So please, go to that box in the upper right part of your screen and make a donation today. Our continued efforts depend on it. Or send us a check made out to Englewood Edge LLC to Nancy On Norwalk, P.O. Box 64, Norwalk, CT 06856

Thank you,

Nancy, Eric and Mark Chapman

Comments

5 responses to “Editorial: We need your help to do what we do”

  1. Daisy

    You won’t get non-profit status. You’re not shining any lights of anything. Your bias is obvious. You just want to elect Democrats/liberals to everything.

  2. Osprey’s Nest

    There must be a model that can susutain and even flourish this local valuable gem. This publication is needed, badly. We all agree? The dynamic duo journo team is the mom and pop and son kind of establishment that is what we want to promote. Lotta inteligent active folks in town. How about some type of fundrasing event that is actually, well, fun for everyone. A NON town, kinda, block party. Hayride around the beach? Pumpkin carving contest? A sports event? Bowling for Nancy? i like that, Bowling for Nancy. Has a ring to it. And sure would be fun to see some familar political faces battling it out on the lanes. How about a dunk tank. Was great for Rilling and we hope to see him back, soon, in that tank. Mark, wanna be the first in the tank, weather permitting? No colder than 40 degrees, we promise. Have to think out of the box. I know no one likes that cliche but its what we have to do. Intergrate events that involve, is fun and maybe even help folks and at the same time keep from losing a valuable very needed commuity resource that NON is providing for all of us. In the meantime, as ideas float to the surface, if you understand the importance of this service that NON is providing all, of us, than click the box and kick in what you can. There is much work to be done and we all have to come together and keep this absolute Norwalk gem we, somehow, by a quirk of life, have been bestowed upon us. Like a dove finding its home and building its nest, right here in historic, Norwalk.
    The Chapmans are good, decent, honorable, professional, regular you and I folks that take their family business and craft and integrity seriously. Values we need more of, round this town. So do your part to keep NON alive and even help NON thrive. And show them Norwalk apprecates what they are doing.
    If there ever was a time when we needed
    someone we can trust, looking out, its now.
    Your contribution supporting NON is even a more crtical and civically important duty than a political donation. No matter whose team your on, you want to know whats going on. So we all have to do are duty and click the box and take a moment to fill in the numbers with what we can and fulfil our civic duty to maintain an independent press in our town. Click now, do your part.

  3. Tim T

    Mark and Nancy
    I have stated many times that I am a life long democrat . I have also made it very clear that I do not support Rilling and am not a fan of Moccia. However with that said I agree with Daisy that the site does seem very bias. I see article after article that rightfully critiques Moccia, however I have yet to see one that critiques Rilling in his position as zoning , police consultant or his agenda as candidate for Mayor.
    I know we can joke that I pick up that slack however it would be nice to see both side of both candidates.
    I think we all appreciate this site and what it brings to the table and I will be sending a money order to help out.
    Thanks

    1. Mark Chapman

      @Tim. Et al…

      With the exception of some of the opinion pieces, which call people out for dishonesty, hypocrisy and bad behavior, the stories you speak of are generated from meetings or interviews. They are not filled with our opinion, but rather they are filled with what went on, what the city officials said, what the candidates said. If we see something that looks fishy, we check it.

      We do not take sides when it comes to platforms and philosophies, thus you will not read a story criticizing Rilling’s agenda as mayor. You won’t see us write one criticizing Moccia’s agenda, either. You will see others write and we will publish them within our guidelines.

      We could go back and questions all expenditures for the police department during Rilling’s tenure and open a debate that would deflect what needs to happen in the future. Rilling will tell you his reasons, and Moccia will tell you something else. Moccia fans/Rilling haters will line up, as will Rilling fans/Moccia haters, and we can watch the manure fly as past budgets are re-litigated. As for police discipline problems or legal problems, if we go back to those stories, which were fully reported at the time, we will need to open up the lawsuits against the city for racial bias, sexual harassment and wrongful termination that were also reported at the time. I’ve read the depositions…

      Finally, when it comes to putting forth agendas, shedding light on what candidates hope to do going forward, we can only report what they tell us, and we can ask questions. If they do not cooperate, if they do not fully answer, then their side of the story remains untold.

      There are things we have been told that we must verify before reporting. There are things we have been told that we have to make sure we are covered legally before we can report them.

      This isn’t easy. This is not Fox News, where they just toss out the latest rumor and see how many people believe it. Like the latest one about Obama funding a Muslim museum out of his own pocket during the government shutdown while keeping the national monuments closed. They reported that without checking and finding out it was a phony story from a satirical website. THAT is biased and shoddy reporting. MSNBC routinely reports on what the extreme right is saying or doing and makes it look like all Republicans are wingnuts. They are not. I will be voting for several in November.

      So you and Daisy and Espo can think what you want. After 35 years of this, I’m used to it. But we are cracking down on the vitriol and the innuendo, because we want to focus on the realities of the campaign that will affect Norwalk’s future, not the the personal pettiness and partisan mud-slinging.

      Respectfully,
      Mark

  4. Daisy

    Thanks Tim T – obviously they aren’t going to ADMIT to being biased. We all have our biases and we don’t believe we have them. I personally am not in a position to have mine do any damage, but it seems like there’s a certain segment of the Norwalk population who can be led like cattle to the slaughter.

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