Nydia Tisdale returns to city council where she was thrown out for videoing

Remember Nydia Tisdale, who got illegally ejected from a Cumming City Council meeting for videoing an open meeting? She’s back, in the front row, videoing.

Previously we called Cumming someplace worse than here. But look at this:

A city of Cumming audio-visual recording policy sheet was available outside council chambers.

“Handheld audio and/or visual recording devices may be used from any location within the public seating area,” wrote Gerald Blackburn, city administrator. “No audio and/or visual recording device may be set up in the aisles.”

Hm, that’s better than the Lowndes County Commission, whose chair Ashley Paulk famously said,

“The County Commission wishes from this day forward that any filming be done from the media area in the back corner of the room.”

The Lowndes County Commission formalized that opinion of the chair with a bill of attainder that it doesn’t enforce when other people video.

Why did the City of Cumming change its tune? Justin Gray wrote for FoxAtlanta.com 15 May 2012, Cameras allowed at Cumming City Council meeting,

Since then, Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens stepped in to make sure that the state’s Sunshine Laws, which allow videotaped recordings of public meetings, were enforced.

Another videoer, Brant Meadows, not only videoed the same Cumming meeting at the same time, he mounted a visual protest. Aldo Nahed wrote for Appen Newspapers 14 May 2012, Tisdale returns to City Hall, wielding camera,

Brant Meadows made a political statement by wrapping a video camera and tripod with “Caution” tape during the May 8 city of Cumming special called meeting.

It does seem like a cautionary tale.

-jsq