Carefree Truth

Issue #1, July 23, 2009

 

    Hi.  My name is Lyn Hitchon.  My husband and I have lived in Carefree since 1991.  I have been involved in local politics and public issues for many years.  During the attempted recall of David Schwan I will address one issue at a time, via an email newsletter called Carefree Truth.  I intend to keep is positive and factual.

    However, I would like to start out with an initial caveat about our local newspaper, the Sonoran News, which is well known for its biased reporting style.  An erroneous and very critical article about Carefree was published in the Sonoran News a number of years ago.  When it was conclusively proven false, editor and publisher Don Sorchych refused to print a retraction, at which time Carefree Mayor Ed Morgan withdrew all Town of Carefree advertising from the paper.  Since then, the Sonoran News has become progressively more antagonistic towards Carefree.  Sadly, the news most people are getting is quite negative and one sided.

    Mr. Sorchych's attitude towards Carefree was clearly demonstrated in a cartoon which he recently published in conjunction with his My View column.  It is attached if you would care to see it.  It is a drawing of the back of a hand giving "the finger" to Carefree and is signed from Mayor Vincent Francia.  The name Bil Canfield, the regular cartoonist, is scratched out and above it is written "Unknown".  When I emailed Mayor Francia he responded that, while he firmly supports the first amendment rights of free speech and freedom of the press, he shuddered when he saw the cartoon and stated that he does not feel that way about Mayor Schwan, the Carefree Council or the good citizens of Carefree.

    The candidate/s most likely to run against David Schwan, should the recall election take place, have consistently been endorsed by the Sonoran News.  If one of them were to replace Mayor Schwan, the revised council would quite likely appoint Mr. Coady, who has been heavily promoted by Mr. Sorchych, as mayor.  Chances are overwhelming that Mr. Coady would award the Carefree advertising to the Sonoran News, providing the paper with a large infusion of cash.  So, please keep in mind that the reporting in the Sonoran News is often not written with the best interest of our town at heart.

Lyn Hitchon

 

This message was prepared by Carefree Truth