Hayward’s new television plan would not be allowed under county public access tv policy

On Monday, former Pensacola City Councilwoman Maren Deweese accused Mayor Ashton Hayward of using city dollars to promote his re-election campaign via a weekly television program that would be paid with city funds.

In the documents supplied by Deweese in an email sent to the city council and the media, Hayward’s communications director, Tamara Fountain, described the show as a 30-minute BLAB show where the mayor visits city departments. The program would run during prime viewing hours on Sundays and repeated nine days during the week. It would begin in May and end on August 15, nine days before the city primary.

The cost is $23,555, according to Deweese.

She wrote, “Of all the alleged corruption and inside deals at City Hall, this misuse of taxpayer funds to pimp the Mayor using city employees at city expense is the most disgusting.”

By that afternoon, Mayor Hayward responded using the city’s digital newsletter, “Upwords.” He wrote that the show was designed to “keep citizens up-to-date about what’s going on at City Hall.”

Though he didn’t mention Deweese by name, he did address her attack: “Unfortunately, some in the community have tried to paint this as a political effort–but they’re the ones playing politics here. Television has long provided a platform for government agencies to inform and educate the public. All five County Commissioners have programs on Escambia County’s public access channel, and Sheriff David Morgan also has a program on BLAB.”

The Independent News checked with County Attorney Alison Rogers about the county’s television channel, ECTV. According to Rogers, the ECTV policy manual prohibits any commissioner on the ballot to be on the channel, other than in broadcasts of commission meetings, 90 days before the election. See ECTV Policy

Therefore under county policy, Hayward would not be able to appear on the city-paid show beyond May 28.

The paper also made a public information request of the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office about its BLAB contract. Sheriff Morgan has been running shows on the station since he was first elected in 2009. The agency also has a “Wanted Fugitives Show” that is paid through sponsorships and recently added a cold case show upon which he doesn’t host that show.

Morgan’s call-in show runs two or three times a month at a cost of $500 per live show. Hayward’s cost will average around $1,470 for each show and its repeats.

Kathleen Dough-Castro, Public Information Manager for the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners, told the Independent News that ECTV has been made available to other constitutional officers and the city of Pensacola at little or no cost. The City of Pensacola could use ECTV for its marketing campaign, but Mayor Hayward would not be allowed to be on the shows about the various city departments after May 28.