In trying to convince embattled supervisor of elections, Buddy Johnson to sit down for an interview, I offered this:
-A chance to talk about whatever he wants in addition to answering the unpleasant questions about his alleged lapses in judgement.
-A promise that I would not edit his comments in any way.
St. Petersburg Times
Pretty fair deal, I thought, but Johnson still had reservations about consenting to an interview. After all, St. Petersburg Times reporter, Jeff Testerman has spilled a barrel of ink writing about the Hillsborough election chief's professional and financial missteps, none of which can be easily explained in a few sentences. Johnson also must have calculated that most citizens never read the Times and would therefore be completely unaware of the mini-scandals until hearing them discussed on television. My counter-argument was that most Flashpoint viewers do read the newspaper and have read the editorials that question Johnson's competence and trustworthiness. This is a rare chance to present his side of the story unedited and uncut.
You can see the result on Flashpoint this Sunday Morning at 11:00 on ABC Action News. Or you view the interview segments here and let me know what you think.