PoP Appoints an Ombudsman

Yesterday’s post about Bloods in Adams Morgan really got me thinking about the diversity of the comments. So I wanted to take the opportunity to explain why I posted the story. But before I do that I wanted to announce the appointment of a new Ombudsman who, hopefully, will uphold PoP’s level of blogging to the highest standards. Since I am the only “full time” employee of Prince of Petworth LLC I had a small pool of candidates to chose from. So without any further ado, allow me to introduce myself as PoP’s new ombudsman.

Firstly, I’d like to be clear: I don’t think I’ve ever tried to portray this site as a replacement for the Washington Post or any other reputable main stream media outlet. I see the Prince of Petworth blog as a mixture of opinion and observation sprinkled with a bit of reporting. But obviously what makes the site so special is not me at all, rather it is the unbelievably knowledgeable community of commenters that has emerged. Believe it or not, I also have a full time job so I am not always able to respond to comments or fact check (or copy edit for that matter) everything I write. Having said that I do understand that I have a certain responsibility not to spread baseless rumors. Which brings us back to the Adams Morgan post from yesterday.

I did not overhear this incident while I was at the grocery store nor was I told third hand by my mom’s cousin’s chiropractor. I heard it from someone who witnessed the event firsthand, who has proven himself a reliable source of information in the past. So I felt confident enough to post about the incident. Perhaps, I erred a bit by using the exclamation points. Additionally, in hindsight, I should’ve waited until I received official comment from MPD. I say this because I really appreciate your comments and advice. Obviously not everyone is going to agree but that is ok. What I have accepted is that I am far from perfect and I count on you, the community, to keep me in check when I stray off the straight and narrow. This blog is constantly evolving and growing and I’ll continue to count on you to tell me when I’ve gotten off track. Now, I have lived in the city for over 10 years and I have contacts all over the city who work in a variety of capacities. Additionally since working on the blog certain people feel very comfortable sharing “inside” information with me. I will not apologize nor do I see any reason (with their permission) why I should not share this information with the community. Now I recognize crime is an incendiary topic so I will do better in the future in verifying those posts like the one from Adams Morgan. If you continue to have concerns or have concerns in the future I urge you to email the ombudsman directly, ([email protected]) while I may not always agree I certainly will listen to what you have to say.