Alachua County Commission selects Alford as Chair; former Sun editor Andrew Caplan announced as County’s Public Information Officer
BY JENNIFER CABRERA
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – During today’s Alachua County Commission meeting, the board selected Mary Alford as Chair for the next year, with Chuck Chestnut as Vice Chair, and Communications Director Mark Sexton introduced former Gainesville Sun News Editor Andrew Caplan as the County’s new Public Information Officer.
Selection of Chair and Vice Chair
After the board formally determined that Commissioner Ken Cornell could participate remotely due to the “extraordinary circumstances” of testing positive for COVID and not feeling well, the Clerk asked for nominations for Chair. Outgoing Chair Anna Prizzia nominated Alford.
Cornell nominated Chestnut, saying, “You know, this board has served together, except for a little brief stint when Mary had to resign, since 2020. And Chuck has really been a quiet leader… Over the next year, we’re going to be doing a lot of things that Chuck has had his fingerprints on for decades, with regards to East Gainesville/Waldo Road, developing SE 15th Street. Hopefully the… continuation of the Remembrance Project. And so, Chuck, if you’re willing to serve, I’d like to nominate you to serve as our Chair next year and have Mary as Vice Chair.”
Commissioners Marihelen Wheeler, Alford, and Prizzia voted for Alford; Chestnut and Cornell voted for Chestnut; so Alford was selected as the new Chair.
Alford nominated Chestnut as Vice Chair, and the vote was unanimous.
Prizzia suggested, “With regards to the pomp and circumstance of being a Chair and the opportunity to be a part of ribbon cuttings and groundbreakings, perhaps in those instances, when it makes sense for the leadership that he’s served, he can step in, in those situations.” Alford said she “would certainly be in favor of that.”
Alford said she was “excited about this opportunity. It’s one that I’ve thought about ever since I got elected, and I was initially worried about it. So somebody reminded me that I did chair the Utility Advisory Board for a couple of years, and if I could do that, I could do this without any problems. So let’s hope that’s true.”
Introduction of Caplan as Public Information Officer
Following the adoption of the agenda, Sexton introduced Andrew Caplan, the former News Editor of the Gainesville Sun, as the County’s new Public Information Officer. Sexton said, “You all know him. He is an award-winning writer and journalist… And I can’t tell you how excited I am that he will be helping us tell our stories.”
Sexton added that the County’s social media pages will now be open for comments from the public.
Nothing to see here….just more liberal BS designed to put us further in debt and Andrew Caplan is an experienced left wing propagandist.
“And I can’t tell you how excited I am that he will be helping us tell our stories.”
Collins English Dictionary:
story
>Word forms: stories plural
1. COUNTABLE NOUN
A story is a description of imaginary people and events, which is written or told in order to entertain.
>Synonyms: tale, romance, narrative, record
How fitting…
“Story” has multiple definitions. Here’s one: a report of an item of news in a newspaper, magazine, or news broadcast.
Merriam-Webster
Story (noun)
1a: an account of incidents or events […]
2a: a fictional narrative shorter than a novel
Anything is possible when you cherry-pick your definitions. Sometimes words mean more than one thing. If you don’t understand this, are you really in a position to comment on someone else’s writing?
“cherry-pick your definitions”. This is exactly what Mr Caplan and the Sun have done for at least this century.
No sh!t, Derek…take a joke! I was just telling my own story
It should be an easy transition for Caplan. The Sun just reprints the output from the county public information office, so he should feel right at home.
That’s just silly and unsupportable.
You do realize that the website you’re making this comment on literally shares full press releases from the county and city, right? The Gainesville Sun doesn’t. Just thought you should know. And that’s not a knock on the chronicle either, I’m just saying. You should probably look at his past county-related coverage.
But this site clearly identifies the source of the press releases. The Sun repackages the press releases as their own reporting.
I will indeed look past his past work at the Sun. His new position as a propagandist for the county is far more honest than the Sun’s fake ‘we speak the truth to power (except the local progressive/green power structure)’.
It’s an easy transition because he has plenty of practice pushing an agenda
That’s… how the news works. Information from many sources come together in one paper or program so it’s all in one place.
Not in the Gainesville Sun, at least not in this century. Biased, incomplete, one sided, blatant disregard for the whole truth all come to mind.
Roger’s right…that’s the only way for the Sun to get its only decent source of revenue, via advertisements. If you don’t play ball they’ll take your big ticket ad revenue away. No way you can report simple truths and get paid easy money!
WTF they need two spokesmodels for?
A: payback to the Sun for so many years of loyal service. 👹🤡🍦🍦🍦D
Was there a normal hiring process (advertising the position for a certain length of time, interviewing different candidates, etc.)? Or did they create a position just for him?
The position was advertised for a few weeks and it would have been required to interview several candidates.
so they interviewed him, and then they pulled 1 of the many unhoused citizens that hang out around city hall in to interview them as well? 😉
The left just got even more left. What a surprise.
I get that he’s looking for another job given the circulation issues with his former mullet wrapper paper but couldn’t the county hire him to fill in some potholes or something more beneficial to the community? That’s all we need is another far-left propagandist peddling their “save the planet” from Alachua County.
Have to think of a nickname…Herr Sexton is already taken. Commie Caplan?
Far left? Commie? You clearly don’t know him. Inching toward defamation here …
He’s a public figure, and his reputation is already one of being an incompetent laughing stock, just like the Gainesville Sun. Of course he’s a leftist. Bert should have found a different Ernie, if that’s what he thinks he needs.
Defamation? Just think of all the “names” people have decided to use to refer to politicians over the years…both sides of the aisle.
Fairly easy to determine which side of the political fence you fall.
Andrew Caplan, who refuses to admit when he screws up in his reporting, is a great choice! He has plenty of experience twisting reality and pushing an agenda.
Slice seems to have the best pizza in town.”
These so-called progressives have been ramping up their “COMMUNICATIONS” departments at the city and the county, ever since the real progressives, for over 15 years now, started pushing back/speaking up AGAINST the financially disastrous biomass/tree burner debacle, at public meetings that are aired LIVE on Cox Channel 12 and replayed.
That is why they had to ramp up their so-called “COMMUNICATIONS” – their bamboozle machine – in order the combat all the information/data the PUBLIC was receiving from devoted concerned citizens speak at meetings aired on Cox Channel 12.
Their plan is to morph Information with the Elections offices. To more directly instruct gullible voters in time for ‘24. I bet it’s funded by DC and/or leftist dark money NGOs.
I’m confused. I thought Mark Sexton was the Public Information Officer. Does he have a new job or is he retiring?
Probably needs to justify the “Director” in his title. What’s the Public Information Office have, 3 or 4 employees?