Editorial, 7/19: Lincoln Police briefing change about more than tradition

But it's more than nostalgia that creates unease as the Lincoln Police Department abandoned this week its century-old practice of daily police briefings with the media. 

While police and media have very different roles, they share a common goal of making Lincoln safer. The daily meetings were a chance for reporters to inform readers about what happened overnight or over the weekend and a chance for both journalists and officers to build relationships — something that doesn't happen scouring a website.

At a Friday news conference announcing the change, LPD Chief Teresa Ewins told media representatives, "You guys get an incredible amount of access, an incredible amount of information. More than any other city in this country, practically ... So we’re doing our best to continue that. We want to improve it. We want you to have access. Because we do feel there’s a responsibility — on your side as well as mine.”

It's unclear how Ewins assessed LPD accessibility versus other departments. But what is clear is that three days a week is less than five. Ewins cited the department's officer shortage as one reason for the access changes, though the department pays a civilian public information officer $109,000 annually.

In his story, the Journal Star's Andrew Wegley noted that this came after the removal of public incident reports from the city's website — a change made in 2021 before Ewins' arrival — in a effort, the police said, to protect victims mentioned in reports from potentially being re-victimized.

Ewins, from the candidate forums before her hiring through Friday, has spoken often of the importance of transparency. But these changes send a different message.

If the police have made improvements to accessibility and transparency, it's not apparent. There is no list of changes illustrating progress like there is, compiled by Wegley, that shows the opposite.

If there are good reasons — and minimizing harm to a crime victim might be one — the police can lay them out. 

If they are reducing access — and they are — they can be honest with the public and say they are trading transparency for another desirable outcome. And the public can decide if that's a good trade. But telling the public — via the media — that making public safety information harder to get is somehow an effort to maintain or improve access serves only to diminish trust.

The safety of the community and the safety of officers are unquestionably the top priorities. We believe accurate information received in a timely manner from a trusted police force ensures safety for all.