last good country

Did Vincent Gray just lose the blogosphere?

Today I received an invitation to attend a blogger roundtable with Vincent Gray, the Chairman of the Council of District of Columbia and candidate for Mayor. This would be a good thing, to have some time to hear Gray’s thoughts and get a feeling for his campaign. I appreciate that. The invite also went out to many other notable DC bloggers, and shows that the Gray campaign understands new media, all of that. I’ll note I have not received anything similar from any other candidate.

The problem, however, is that the invitation itself was patronizing and insulting to all of the hard work many of us do. Here’s a snip, written by Ian Koski, Gray’s New Media Director:

Unfortunately I have to make one point about expectations — this isn’t an opportunity for activism. We’ll expect the same level of decorum and professionalism exhibited by full-time journalists so that everyone who has a question gets the opportunity to have it answered.

I’m glad to hear about your expectations, Ian, as if I would expect any less from myself or any of my fellow bloggers. Furthermore, why would you invite someone you didn’t expect this of? This isn’t an 8th grade field trip, where I need to be lectured about how to handle myself in the city. This attitude—that bloggers should be grateful that Vincent Gray is willing to take some time to go to Ben’s Chili Bowl and talk about talking points is completely ridiculous.

Furthermore,

Assuming this one goes well and is productive, we’ll have a few more availabilities exclusive to bloggers before Primary Day. We’ve tentatively planned them for the morning of July 31, the evening of August 16, and then the final one on the morning of September 4.

Goes well and is productive? So, if we surprise you and don’t act like the animals that DC bloggers are known to be, we’ll be able to do it again? I don’t need to spend some time chit-chatting with Vincent Gray to write about the campaign. I don’t need to attend this event to remain a blogger. On the other hand, Gray’s campaign could stand to benefit significantly from having a positive relationship with bloggers.

Surely there are bloggers that are known to be less-than-serious in their writings. However, I have attended many events along with many of the people who were on this invitation. We know how to act. You reached out to us because we are the people you want to communicate with. If you respect us enough to read our articles and contact us, you should respect us enough to not lecture us.