Facebook Page Sparks Pre-Election Dispute
Officials say the 'Mahwah, NJ' Facebook page is not an official source of communication for the township
With just over four weeks until the election, a Facebook page is raising questions in Mahwah. At a town council meeting Thursday night, a resident questioned what the connection is between the township and the “Mahwah, NJ” Facebook page.
In April, Mayor Bill Laforet told Patch the page was launched as an official page for the township, and that it would be at least partially managed by Jade Gunver of Promin Social Media. The page was launched with a coloring contest, which offered the prize of being mayor for a day.
According to the Promin website, Gunver also handles social media for the “Team Laforet,” campaign.
At a meeting several weeks ago, resident Bob Lockwood asked who runs the Facebook page. Laforet responded that he did not know, and has no affiliation with it. On Thursday, Lockwood questioned the mayor’s response, pointing to the April article.
Laforet said that he is no longer associated with the page. “The township does not have a Facebook page,” he said.
According to Gunver, she launched the page in April, “on behalf of the mayor, and really on behalf of the people of Mahwah.” Gunver said she was not paid to manage the Facebook page.
“It was a volunteer thing, I did it pro bono,” she said.
Gunver said she gave up administrative rights to the page in mid-August to a group of residents.
“They are community-minded residents who have the time to volunteer and wanted to take it over,” she said. Gunver declined to identify the page’s new administrators, saying they wished to run it anonymously.
The Facebook page does have a disclaimer on its “About” section that reads, “This page is not affiliated with the Gov't of the Town of Mahwah and is not acting in any official capacity as a representative. We are simply fans of the great town of Mahwah, NJ.”
Lockwood said that disclaimer was added only after he raised a question about the page last month.
“This is nothing more than a political move,” Laforet said Friday morning. “This is a distraction from the real issues that our community faces, like taxes.”
Lockwood is secretary of the Mahwah Republican Club, which is endorsing Ed Sinclair for Mayor. Sinclair and Laforet are the only two candidates running for the position this November.
Lockwood denied his motivations for his comments and questions were political.
“My intent was to ask why residents were being told this was an official source of communication from the township if it isn’t,” Lockwood said in a phone interview.
According to township attorney Andrew Fede, the public dispute over the Facebook page should not carry any legal ramifications for the township. Officials “made it clear that municipal funds were not used to support it. And, if there was any confusion [about who runs the Facebook page], the disclaimer would take care of that,” he said.
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NDW
6:43 pm on Friday, October 5, 2012
This was a fraudulent FB page served up as an official page for the sole purpose of political propaganda by the Mayor who denied all knowledge of it. Transparency?? Once again he was caught in a deceitful act and then tried to blame it on the Patch for getting the story wrong. He was quoted in the story! The conversation here is not about taxes, it's about integrity and the complete lack of it. There has been a pattern here over the last few months and it is time for change.
ref
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
NDW, kind of makes one wonder what is going to happening to our town when the "Leader" can't give an honest answer to a legimate question and has the nerve to hang the Patch out to dry.I wonder who originally ask for a FB page to be made and who paid for it before it was found out to be a bogus Mahwah FB page? If Gunver is unwilling to produce the names of the "citizens" will she disclose the time and date it was turned over and when the disclaimer was added? The mayor is quoated as saying"He is no longer associated with that FB page,does this mean he was associated with it and used it to his benefit himself?.
JP
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
Sounds like a Mitt Romney answer to me.
Arthur Lott
5:05 am on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Lockwood - The Republican Club supports the union affiliated candidate for Mayor? Are you kidding? You and your cronies - suffering from severe identity crises - need to start reassaessing your ideals - or join the Democratic party. Tell us all, on the record, the basis for this support. What platform, stated goals, past performance, etc. are you all using for the support you offer? Please do not insult anyone here by making ludicrous statements about the motivation behind you obscure questions. Who is the puppet master behind this - another devoted Republican? You are all a disgrace to the Party. Your support for a candidate that is clearly not prepared for the job, and who's basis for support is - by definition - Democratic in philosophy - is an insult to real Republicans. What a farce!
Gottardo DiGiacopo
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Yikes Arthur, not a lot of wiggle room in there; one's either a traitor or a patriot.
Are 'ideals' a nuanced personal evolution, or strict obedience to a party platform?
And why would a 'town website' be managed anonymously? That's not transparency.
NDW
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Lott- Just tyring to change the conversation here. Your candidate for Mayor got caught lying in public with concrete evidence and has done nothing but obfuscate since. The central issues here are integrity and honesty not the unions. Thinking you work for Promin.
ref
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
easy Danny boy
ref
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
A H whether it was a ludicrous statement about and obsure question or not it should have been answered honestly by the Mayor and he should have shouldered the responsiblity,I will quote you by saying" Your support for a candidate that is clearly not prepared for the job" at least the Republican candidate is not affraid to admit he is a Repulican,your present Mayor was a Democrat and switched to independant for whatever his reasons were.
ref
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Sorry typo,should be A L
GRNM
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Play nice boys, you sound like children. A FB page, we're talking about a FB page, not political issues but a FB page. Seriously?
NDW
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Either the Patch is not posting responses here or Promin/TeamLaforet is pulling them down quickly. Arthur Lott you are simply attempting to change the conversation here. The subject at hand is Mayoral integrity and honesty or lack thereof. The Mayor was caught in a lie with substantial proof and all he and you can do obsfuscate. Someones pants are on fire.
Arthur Lott
4:04 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Willl someone - anyone - from the Mahwah Republican Club explain the rationale behind your endorsement of SInclair for mayor. Are you sleeping, hiding, confused, ????? An intelligent answer please. Explain how you endorse a candidate that is clearly Democrat in his support and views?????
NDW
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
AL: Your candidate, the current Mayor was a registered Democrat for 20 years. Nothing wrong with that BUT now he is running for re-election in a demographically republican twp, Simple solution; he re-registers as an Independent several months before the election. Obfuscation indeed mendacity...you decide. How dare you call upon the GOP to resond to your twisted/biased request!
Andy Schmidt
4:19 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
I don't quite get it. When I saw the headline, I was expecting to read some big township issue causing a major uproar between many parties.
Turns out, someone asked a valid question about a Facebook page that had been liked a mind-blowing 250 (or so) times. That person received an answer. The answer was confirmed two more times by two more parties. The township attorney also is satisfied that this is a non-issue.
Since when is asking a question, and receiving an answer and then confirming that response a "dispute". I feel like I'm standing at the check-out counter at ShopRite, looking at the National Enquirer!
If THESE are the major election issues - then Mahwah is in good shape <G>.
taxpayer
5:34 pm on Saturday, October 6, 2012
Let's talk about real issues. Are councilmembers still getting free health benefits. Didnt one of them claim it wasn't fair to take the free health benefits away. These are real issues taxpayers want to hear about not a facebook page.
NDW
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
So it is okay to lie? Where exactly is your moral compass.
JP
6:10 am on Tuesday, October 9, 2012
So what's wrong with giving council members, who serve this town (and have to put up with the likes of us), health care benefits? What is that? Less then $75,000? The president wants to make sure YOU get health care benefits!
NDW
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
Andy,
Usually you are pretty sharp here but......those mid blowing 250 likes, including mine, were because I thought I was supporting an official Twp FB page as the Mayor announced on Patch. Turns ou that was not the case, more importantly the Mayor lied about it and subsequently got caught. Then the head fake of trying to blame it on the Patch for getting it wrong. Shame on him for throwing th reporter under the bus. Andy, it's not about a FB page it's about integrity and honesty and that is a BIG issue for any candidate. There's been a pattern here.You're the link guru so check the Record story on the URL's the Mayor co-opted and when first confronted he denied it. Problem was reoporter had proof and once again and Mayor's memory failed him. The issue is INTEGRITY of lack of it! And you are too smart not to know that.
ref
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
Andy, your are an intelligent person,the problem here is not whether the question was answered its about your Mayor was caught in a bold face lie by someone and was not man enough to admit he was wrong,if he he is unwilling to admit he lied what is going to happen when and IF he gets elected,the leader of Mahwah should be a person of integrity and someone we can believe when he says something, you shuold have been to the meeting Andy,just because the town attorney says that the FB issue should not have any ramifications to the township is covering his butt with his boss the Mayor,the issue still is the mayor is not and was not telling the truth even though he was presented with the evidence to the contrary.
Andy Schmidt
7:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
"ref/NDW" - when I read it, I had surmised that it was an abandoned project.
Initially intended as a new township presence, the township ultimately decided not to fund it additional web-related expense - so it was turned over to volunteers. (Let me be clear - I do NOT know that this is what happened - that's just how I read the "news".)
Months later, a resident asked about the old FB page, is told that it's NOT the township's and the the twp is NOT involved. A while later he comes back because he just won't believe it - so he is told the same thing, and the Patch obtained confirmation by everyone involved and in a time of slow news adds a National Enquirer style headline for effect.
Maybe it's a matter which color eyeglasses the reader wears?
JP
5:10 am on Sunday, October 7, 2012
Kinda strange that a Republican club is supporting a public union based candidate, but I've seen stranger.
Gottardo DiGiacopo
12:54 pm on Sunday, October 7, 2012
JP, respectfully, you appear to be engaged in shaping public political impressions with small, crafted, inuendo. What does "public union based candidate" mean exactly? is that like "air breathing human"? or is it a knock on Ed Sinclair's job, and/or his possible loyalties to coworking Americans. should there be no publicly employed republicans?... and if such is allowed, are they not to be backed as political candidates? many of us are guaging Ed Sinclair's (a real republican) alliances to the Tea Party, and here you are suggesting that the mayor (a democrat turned recently indepenent for what reason?) is the realer deal. Let the race begin... Our candidates need to paint their own portraits!
JP
5:57 pm on Monday, October 8, 2012
On the contrary GD, I support Ed this time around. Normally a true conservative would never vote for a union guy no matter what the guy's personal affiliation. It's the principle of starving the beast and cutting off public spending and venturing into more and more privatization of public services. What our mayor wants to do. The mayor has let us all down by showing his true stripes after he was elected. I don't dig his antics at all. It's a real disappointment, but I must alter my choice now from last year. As to shaping political opinion by innuendo, guilty as charged. Vote Obama 2012!
joseph j guider
12:54 pm on Sunday, October 7, 2012
"It's just how local politics work" Mr. Schmidt that is so,so apathetic. For 20 minutes I've been staring at that line and wondering why are we all trying to cure the evils of politicing and finding the right solutions to our local societal issues.... Well now, for the rest of today( until my blood pressure drops) I'll be thinking of two phrases the latter from Jack Abramoff. " I'm Jack Abramoff and I work out every day"
NDW
12:54 pm on Sunday, October 7, 2012
Andy: Here is the announcement of the FB page that went up. http://mahwah.patch.com/articles/mahwah-launches-official-facebook-page
That page is still up. The only change made was in Sept '12 in the "About" section where they added a paragraph saying they were not part of the government of Mahwah. That was after a resident inquired and after they had their 250 likes and after the Mayor said he knew nothing about it. The lens you are looking through seems to be opaque when it comes to the Mayor not telling the truth. But you have a big hammer for anyone else that appears left of your center.
Andy Schmidt
1:07 pm on Sunday, October 7, 2012
NDW - btw, that Patch link was also included in the article itself. And yes, this and other FB pages about the town are still up. See - no disputing <G>.
However, I'm trying to decipher the second part of your message. Who is that mysterious person who appears "left of" my center that I've been hammering?
concerned taxpayers
7:53 pm on Monday, October 8, 2012
I just looked at the "Mahwah who cares" facebook page and although it describes itself as being about community news and not political it has entry after entry about Republicans and the administrator is none other than BL. Now lets discuss who is really being deceptive.
lori dorie
11:22 pm on Monday, October 8, 2012
concerned taxpayer, I just went on the "Mahwah Who Cares" facebook page and I sw postings about Laforet, VanDuren, Marcus, Sinclair, DiGulio, Roth and Sabarra. I think that covers the Democrats, Republicans and Independents!! Yes there was I think 2 postings about the Republican Committee meeting, inviting everyone to come meet the candidates.It did not say only Republicans could attend! 99% of BL's postings are about council meeting, planning board meetings and most everything else that is happening in our town. I find his facebook very informative and I don't find anything deceptive about it...