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<br /> "Concerning the focus groups as potential conflict, I guess anything could have potential <br /> conflict. But the way we ran the focus groups and the way I imagine they should be run in <br /> the future is, we made choices the same way an ad agency would choose its people. They <br /> were done at random according to a consistent random method of picking people out of the <br /> phone book, so that they represented Redwood City. But there was no selection by us <br /> other than every 8th or every 10th person in the book. <br /> "Mention has been made about conflict, I am kind of disappointed and kind of stunned by <br /> Councilman Leipzig's implication that somehow we have decided that somehow <br /> Councilwoman La Berge's desire to have focus groups every two years is somehow <br /> connected with reelection desires or reelection concerns. First of all, Councilwoman La <br /> Berge is not running for reelection again, and secondly I would like to see them more <br /> frequently, so it is not some conspiracy to time them with elections. I don't feel that is <br /> reality at all. <br /> "As for newspapers in the town, I certainly value every newspaper we have, the Tribune, <br /> the Times, the Almanac, the Mercury, the Chronicle, but everyone I talked to, or most <br /> people I talked to, say we need more newspapers. We are having a problem because <br /> Redwood City is not covered enough. We don't have a daily, and TV stations don't cover <br /> us. So, I don't think that newspapers are sufficient right now. <br /> "As far as other kinds of implications of conflict, we have done a good deal to try to avoid <br /> any kind of conflict. For instance we've made a policy that the newsletter will not <br /> mention in any story, any Council Member's name. We made one exception for that, and <br /> we will probably do it every year, and that was in the State of the City speech given by the <br /> Mayor and the Vice Mayor. I think it is obvious that if we describe the State of the City <br /> speech without mentioning the names of the Mayor and Vice Mayor it would seem quite <br /> awkward. But other than that, our policy is no Council Member's name should be <br /> mentioned in any article anywhere in there. <br /> "Also, as far as the fact the editor of the paper worked on people's campaigns, I do not <br /> know other campaigns that he may have worked on, but he did work on my campaign. I <br /> think most people know that when the process for choosing an editor was done, I removed <br /> myself from the committee, and took no part in the process. Councilwoman Buchan took <br /> my place. When the editor was chosen, Councilwoman Buchan removed herself from the <br /> committee and I came back on to serve in my editorial capacity. So there was no conflict <br /> of interest there." <br /> Councilman Leipzig said it was understood that not everyone would like the press <br /> coverage Redwood City received all the time, but "there is a difference. It is objective <br /> reporting. This (the Connection) is not objective reporting.... If the Legislature in <br /> Sacramento tried to get away with this, there would be an outcry from the people. It is <br /> pure potential for politics. The people objected to the newsletters that the Congressional <br /> representatives used, the franking privilege, because it was pure politics. I don't think the <br /> ADJOURNED REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTE BOOK NO. 55 JUNE9,1997 <br /> MINUTES Page No. 392 PAGE 6 <br />