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* From the AP…
Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn’s corrections chief is reconsidering requests from The Associated Press and other media outlets for tours of state prisons.
Corrections spokeswoman Stacey Solano said in an email Wednesday night that prison director Tony Godinez is working to determine “a manageable and appropriate way” to conduct media visits.
It was not immediately clear whether Godinez could still decide against allowing tours.
This has been a ridiculous charade from Day One. They let community college kids tour prisons but not reporters. It’s insane.
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 9:40 am
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This entire administration is insane. I never thought I would miss Rod Blagojevich, but I do.
Comment by Just Me Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 9:57 am
Yes, they’ll cave.
Comment by wordslinger Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 10:01 am
Just me at 9:57…
You don’t have to miss Rod. His spirit lives on. Quinn is surrounded by Blagophiles.
Comment by Past the rule of 85 Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 10:04 am
They probably think “Better on the outside guessing than on the inside seeing!”
Comment by WhoKnew Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 10:08 am
Where’s Pat “Mr Transparency” Quinn when you need him?
Comment by reformer Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 10:37 am
Sure, Quinn should let media in prisons in a reasonable way, and the public should acknowledge security issues, lack of staff and also how annoying it is to have “gotcha” reporters start public scares about issues they don’t understand.
(Like the previous MGT Push reporting that was later analyzed to be an overreaction.)
http://www.progressillinois.com/posts/content/2010/10/28/inside-early-release-scandal
Most reporters don’t know how to analyze prisons, and don’t care. It is a myth that the media provides a needed balance to the issue, but it’s a myth we hold on to.
Comment by Dan Bureaucrat Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 10:56 am
Insanity? “You betcha”, When has the Quinn administration last “encouraged” media attention on it’s facilities and programs or for that matter what has been the public’s interest? Closures? Pensions? Sure, but interest in the people needing help and the efforts of those public servants both union and nonunion who are trying to meet their needs and are trying to help to more with dwindling resources? The safety net is in shreds.
To the subject at hand, yes they will cave, it was never to IDOC’s advantage in the first place. Transparency!!!
Now Rich the snark wasn’t necessary in saying “community college kids”. Community Colleges educate ADULTS of all ages and hasn’t had “kids” sitting in classes since you graduated from highschool! Many of us are taking advantage of developing or retooling our skills at Community Colleges, afforable and quality education is the salvation for “promoting our “General Welfare”
Comment by orlkon Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 11:48 am
Community Colleges take kids as young as 16, maybe younger. The snark shorthands the larger point that the prisons are apparently safe enough for a field trip, but not safe enough for reporters doing a job?
Have the reporters bring a permission slip from mom, and let them in!
Comment by Happy Returns Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 12:25 pm
unannounced visits, let the union officials do the tour, eat the same chow the inmates eat. haha, won’t happen.
Comment by Tobor Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 12:51 pm
This entire fiasco has been botched by the governor and his administration. It is just 1 more in a long list of missteps by PQ. Why people are suprised is beyond me. The man is incompetent!
Comment by southern illinoisan Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 4:32 pm
Buckle up for all the sentence credit programs coming to replace smgt and mgt. Follow the rules DOC.
Comment by Really? Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 5:18 pm
Before Blago, every agency had their own Press person, someone who had been with that agency for a long time and often actually worked in some of the jobs that agency did, before working their way up to press spokesperson. So those men and women were content experts you could tap for background on a story, and they knew their topic intimately.
Blago changed all that and re-organized those PIO’s into a centralized office that was transparently a state-paid arm of the campaign, designed to turn any agency event into earned media opportunities specifically for the governor. Not that previous PIO’s didn’t have a set administration viewpoint, of course, they had a “party line” they had to adhere to. But here’s the difference:
Once Blago centralized the press pool, they became interchangeable cogs: this week you’re a spokesperson for IDOT, next week, you are the press face for DCFS. But you don’t know a truck from an adoption form. There’s no deep background of experience and no continuity any more. The agency press people re all just Governor’s Office People now, and no matter what agency you contact, you’re just speaking directly to the Governor’s Office.
There’s nobody left to tell the gov’s people what’s what from the agency’s perspectives, to weigh in on policy matters and methods of telling their side of the story. Just like the agency directors are now tightly controlled surrogates of whatever the governor wants to do this week. This creates the echo chamber that makes bad, ill-informed or considered moves like the over-reacton to MGT Push or the mixed rules for press and student prison tours.
All of this, Quinn inherited. And he’s left it as-is.
Comment by Newsclown Thursday, Oct 25, 12 @ 8:48 pm