Ben Jealous, the Democratic nominee for Maryland governor, has vetoed a reporter from the Hagerstown Herald-Mail from being a panelist during Monday’s televised debate with Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, the MDDC Press Association said Tuesday.
Mr. Jealous vetoed Herald-Mail reporter Tamela Baker from the panel that will question the nominees during the hour-long debate, which will be videotaped and aired at 7 p.m. Monday on Maryland Public Television, WJLA-TV in Washington and WBAL-TV in Baltimore.
In a written statement, the press association said it was “outraged” that Mr. Jealous had singled out Ms. Baker and called on his campaign “to reconsider its actions.”
“By circumventing certain reporters, the Jealous campaign is feeding into the unfortunate idea that candidates and government do not need to be accountable to the public,” said the press association, which advocates for media outlets in Maryland, Delaware and the District.
Monday’s debate is the only one scheduled between Mr. Jealous and Mr. Hogan.
• Carleton Bryant can be reached at cbryant@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.