By Eli J. Ridder | @EliRidder

MLA office blames ‘miscommunication’ for Premier Danielle Smith’s town hall recording ban

Feb 3, 2024 | 6:31 PM

It was a “miscommunication” that lead to a recording ban on a sometimes raucous town hall Friday evening featuring Medicine Hat’s MLAs Justin Wright and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, CHAT News has learned.

Media organizations, including CHAT News, were told they would not be able to record inside the Medicine Hat Public Library’s 200-seat theatre during the public forum.

CHAT News followed the rules based on what was communicated by Wright’s office ahead of time and did not take a video camera into the town hall.

Wright’s constituency manager said in a statement to CHAT News on Saturday there was “a miscommunication between the offices whether recordings would be permitted at the town hall.”

When they became aware of the mistake later Friday, Smith and Wright both insisted residents and media should be able to record events like these “in its entirety, in the name of openness and transparency,” manager Teri-Anne Bowyer said.

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“This was not able to be corrected in an appropriate and timely manner due to when this was brought to their attention,” Bowyer said in a written statement.

“We apologize for any confusion and want to be clear that recordings are always allowed at our town halls and thank the many in attendance that did record and post the town hall online.”

The constituency manager acknowledged that many members of the public were unable to fit inside the small library theatre, with the lineup cut off with many dozens left outside.

“This is something we are working to remedy for the next town hall,” Bowyer said.

The MLA offices “are always open to engaging with residents and media, which is why we host these town halls in the first place,” she added.

“We look forward to organizing more town halls in the future while learning from mistakes and making appropriate changes for future Town Halls.”

Smith and Wright answered questions submitted by the public ahead of time and condensed by a moderator.

The topics varied between transgender policies, the Canada Pension Plan and regional drought planning, among others.

Several members of the public stood up at different times to voice their opposition to the MLAs and their United Conservative government during the town hall.

It was the second such town hall held post-election for Brooks-Medicine Hat MLA Smith and Cypress-Medicine Hat representative Justin Wright.

Smith is holding another public town hall in Brooks on Saturday.