In an admirable example of why local reporting is so important, the LA Times has counted up all the expletives thrown at the LA County Board of Supervisors since 2016. Up through 2017, board meetings were fairly clean and decorous, but in 2018 things started spiraling out of hand:
According to reporter Matt Stiles, “It’s a common problem in government proceedings across the nation, including for the Los Angeles City Council and even the Los Angeles Police Commission. At those weekly meetings, profanity-laced tirades and middle fingers regularly outnumber the officers assigned to keep watch.”
Hooray for the First Amendment?
