You might hear on national news networks that “an inside source” gave them information. Or sometimes see in a news story by wire services or larger newspapers that “a source close to ‘x’ provided information based on anonymity.”

You’ll be hard-pressed to find such “sources” in The Kearney Courier. My own philosophy in my career has been that more often than not, the information is not that important if no one is willing to go on the record. It also hurts the credibility of the news organization putting out that information – especially if that information turns out wrong.

It also becomes an easy way out. Many people have a strong opinion about something or knowledge useful to a story, but for whatever reason don’t want to go “on the record” about it.

Occasionally we receive a news tip in the mail or in a voicemail that is anonymous. Most of the time there is not much we can do to follow up if we cannot get more information from the person leaving the tip. And sometimes we wouldn’t even use the person giving the tip as the source. We will not cite letters or voicemail news tips as sources without talking to those people directly first.

Also, we have received a couple letters to the editor unsigned recently. One was thanking the city crews for doing a good job clearing the streets after snow. It was never published.

This week we received another letter to the editor – signed only by “concerned parents and taxpayers” regarding the school district.

That letter will not be published in The Courier. Our letter to the editor policy on the commentary page each week in The Courier states that all letters must be signed and have a phone number for verification.

We will not publish anonymous letters to the editor. While The Courier staff feels it is important for everyone in the community to have a voice, it is not good practice to print anonymous letters or use anonymous sources.

Those who wish to contribute to The Courier are welcome to as long as they are willing to stand behind their statements and not hide behind anonymity. This better serves the community and our readers.

Bloomberg BusinessWeek has named Kearney as the “Best Affordable Suburb” in Missouri for 2010. The magazine named just one suburb from each state.

According to the magazine’s Web site, “…the focus is not luxury, but rather communities where families can live well for less and enjoy good schools, low crime, and reasonable commutes.”

You can read more about Kearney by clicking here and more about the magazine’s selection process by clicking here.

It was already abuzz across town as Superintendent Dr. Bill Nicely was touting the honor at Thursday night’s school board work session.

The first item on the agenda for the Kearney R-1 school board workshop at 6:30 p.m. March 4 is to hear comments from the public.

Ultimately, the board will discuss district patron survey results along with programs and services. This discussion will all lead to where to cut the budget.

“Please note that in an effort to use the meeting time in the most efficient way possible, each organization or ad hoc group should designate one speaker.  Patron comments and questions will be limited to three minutes each.  If questions arise during this time, school district personnel will work hard to provide answers during the remainder of the meeting,” Superintendent Dr. Bill Nicely wrote in a letter addressed district patrons.

School districts across the state know only one thing about revenue from the state for the
next fiscal/school year: there will be less money.

Decisions will not likely be voted on at this workshop, but there will be discussion on how to vote in the near future – possibly as soon as the March 18 regular board meeting.

The school board will meet tonight in the library at Kearney High School.

Check The Kearney Courier’s Web site Friday, March 5, for a summary of that discussion.

Jim Baldwin, a democrat from Holt, and T.J. Berry, a republican from Kearney, are on the “unofficial” list of candidates for Rep. Doug Ervin’s seat.

Ervin, R-Kearney, is term limited for Missouri House of Representatives District 35 in northern Clay County including Kearney, Smithville and part of Holt.

The primary election is Aug. 3. The last day to file is March 30. Both candidates listed on the Missouri Secretary of State’s Web site filed the first day – Feb. 23.

The filing is “unofficial” until the Secretary of State’s office verifies that the candidates meet requirements to run for the position such as age, residency, etc.

The general election in Nov. 2.

Despite not much to vote for on the ballot April 6, The Kearney Courier is having a candidate meet and greet event 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23, at The Courier office, 105 S. Jefferson St.

Ward 2 of the Kearney Board of Aldermen race is contested. Both candidates, incumbent Dan Holt and challenger Tom Patterson, are expected to be there.

After just a couple hours of flakes falling, there have already been numerous calls for accidents around Kearney and Holt on the police and fire scanner.

The calls have ranged from non-injury, vehicles off the road to rollover accidents.

The Kearney School Board is expected to learn the results of an online survey at its meeting Thursday, Feb. 18, at Kearney High School.

The district made the survey available online for about a week to gauge the community’s priorities. Superintendent Dr. Bill Nicely said this would be important as the board will inevitably have to make some budget cuts.

I’ll be at the meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday.

Check back on The Kearney Courier’s Web site Friday morning for results from the survey or pick up the Thursday, Feb. 25, edition.

My last blog post I told you about the line for help with taxes at the library and to pick up this week’s newspaper for more on tax help.

As it turns out we had a lot of other content to get in this week and I overlooked the fact I promised that in a blog.

So pick up The Kearney Courier next week (this time I’ll make sure I do a better job of getting it in) for more on tax help in Kearney – and even read about a cat who helps with taxes.