MEDIA WATCH

When it comes to open government, Henrico County is tepidly entering the yesteryear of radio while Chesterfield has blown through the cable television age and is eyeing the Internet. And the editorial page of the Richmond Times-Dispatch (RTD) has its eyes shut.

In a July 14 editorial, the RTD "cheered" the Henrico Board of Supervisors for a "trial run of audio recordings of the board's official sessions." Chesterfield has audio recordings of county board meetings going back to 1983, the same year it made audio recordings of the Planning Commission available. Chesterfield's School Board started audio recordings in 1991.

Henrico doesn't broadcast its meetings live on cable because it lacks the capability. That includes the Planning Commission and School Board, too.

About 18 months ago, Henrico gained the capability to audiotape its board meetings and last week began an indefinite trial period, though that county's Planning Commission has been audio taping its meetings for some time.

Chesterfield broadcasts its board meetings live on cable and rebroadcasts them a week later. In fact, you can go to Chesterfield's Central Library and watch archived board meetings all the way back to 1983. Chesterfield also broadcasts its Planning Commission meetings (video archived back to 1992) and School Board meetings (video archived to 1991).

Next year, you may be able to watch board and commission meetings in real time on your computer. It's being done elsewhere in Virginia, and Chesterfield is investigating the potential and the cost (under $100,000). Better yet, the archive capability will allow you to click on an agenda item and go directly to the video you want, skipping the rest of the meeting.

Since no one is asking for video streaming, we asked Public Affairs Director Don Kappel why Chesterfield was looking into it. "Better customer service," he replied simply.

Almost 17 months ago, the RTD eagerly trotted over to the Chester campus of John Tyler Community College to hold one of its town meetings. The topic was open government, and Chesterfield was in the spotlight. The RTD helped create that pressure, but now it appears the RTD pursues a different tact with Henrico. Nudging, not criticizing. Very gentle nudging at that.

Leaders in Chesterfield have long complained that the Henrico board gets favorable news coverage by the daily paper while Chesterfield is judged harshly. It's hard not to believe those complaints on the open government issue. (To view a comparison of the counties of Chesterfield, Henrico and Hanover and the city of Richmond developed by the county's Public Affairs Department, visit www.chesterfieldobserver.com and click on "special.")

Clearly, Chesterfield has a better model of open government. And isn't it the job of the RTD's editorial page to push Henrico to open up its government process so the citizens can more fully participate? It starts with information, and that's the newspaper's business. Will someone please wake up the people who write editorials for the Richmond Times-Dispatch?