This blog is focused on civic affairs in Orange County’s largest city: city government, candidates and campaigns, issues and events, moving and shaking, etc. The opinions expressed in each post belong to the author alone, and represent only the opinion of the author.
About the editor of Anaheim Blog: Matthew Cunningham is a veteran of Orange County politico and a long-time Anaheim watcher. His public affairs firm represents both public and private sector clients, one of which is the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce. Anaheim Blog is owned and operated by Cunningham, and the views expressed in his posts are his own.
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December 20, 2012 at 12:11 pm
anaheimman84
Who is paying Matt Cunningham to write this blog?
December 20, 2012 at 12:39 pm
Matthew Cunningham
Jason Young: yesterday you falsely claimed on the OC Register that I am being paid by GardenWalk investors, and now you are tacitly admitting that your claim was false.
Here’s some free advice, Jason: think before you write. You do a poor job of keeping your lies straight.
December 20, 2012 at 3:34 pm
anaheimman84
Matt – I know SOAR is behind it for a fact via an insider. Who actually writes your check is the question. So who is? Is it Kris Murray, Disney, SOAR, etc. . .? You don’t do anything for free so what’s the truth?
December 20, 2012 at 6:47 pm
Matthew Cunningham
Jason, on one blog, you say I am being paid by SOAR. On another news site, you say I am being paid by GardenWalk investors. You make these statements as if they are facts.
They can’t both be true, so in at least one instance, you know you are deliberately spreading false information.
In fact, both claims are false.
The disturbing thing about you, Jason, is you tell these lies without even blinking,
December 21, 2012 at 8:33 am
anaheimman84
Matt – you still haven’t answered the question. Who is paying you?
December 21, 2012 at 8:47 am
Cynthia Ward
Matt, you are splitting hairs. Who is paying you becomes a secondary issue, and frankly one can pretty easily see who you are promoting based on the links in this blog’s side bar. The contention is that this blog appears to be more than simply a voluntary donation of time, in an effort to better a community you are passionate about. That belief is bolstered by the knowledge that you have collected checks from a variety of sources for years in exchange for your professional ability. This is your livelihood, it is appropriate that you be paid for your work, but disclose the fact and we will all move on. You never had a problem disclosing connections to the SunCal team, so the controversy is not so much your pay as it is your sudden need for secrecy.
It is appropriate and customary to disclose any consideration you might receive from those who benefit from your blogging. Whether that is a check from the Chamber or SOAR or free office space at Pringle and Associates’ luxury suite, or a VIP pass to Disney like the SOAR people get, one should disclose those connections so that readers can determine whether the views presented here are biased, or as Jason assumes, bought and paid for.
Heck I would think that this opportunity would boost your resume’ as one of the few people in OC political circles actually being paid for their efforts. While the rest of us are mere amateurs playing at citizen journalist, taking time away from our paying work to blog, you are the real deal, isn’t that something to proudly proclaim on this site or others that you run?
December 21, 2012 at 9:31 am
Matthew Cunningham
Cynthia, I doubt you have any intention of “moving on.” It’s amusing to see you pry into my business while being non-chalant about Jason’s serial prevaricating. You make disclosure demands of me, but have nothing to say about Jason’s habit of publishing unsubstantiated guesses but presentng them to the public as the truth. I find it surprising that a self-described truth-teller would not only shrug that off, but ally with that person.
I post my opinions, and make no pretense of being unbiased — which is why my biases are obvious to you and every other reader.
Finally, if anyone thinks I am going to respond to demands from a venomous character assassin like Jason Young, think again.
December 21, 2012 at 9:42 am
Matthew Cunningham
Jason paid for a full page ad falsely accusing Krs Murray and Gail Eastman of breaking the law. That isn’t true. The judge decided the agenda item wasn’t in full compliance with the Brown Act. Completely different. Are you OK with Jason falsely and publicly impugning people’s reputations — even if they are people to whom you are politically opposed?
December 21, 2012 at 10:30 am
anaheimman84
They voted on that item in violation of the Brown Act Matt. That means they broke the law.
December 21, 2012 at 10:57 am
Matthew Cunningham
No it doesn’t, Jason. Don’t act like a simpleton. It means it was, in the court’s opinion, improperly agendized, therefore the vote was void.
December 21, 2012 at 10:32 am
anaheimman84
BTW – that ad was funded by me and Brian Chuchua. Are you calling Brian a venomous character assassin?
December 21, 2012 at 11:00 am
Matthew Cunningham
I consider you a venomous character assassin based on pattern of your blogging, not on a single instance.
I would say that by helping the pay for this ad, Brian Chuchua is participating in spreading a lie and falsely attacking Kris Murray’s and Gail Eastman’s integrity.
August 14, 2020 at 4:13 am
djiipshfze
Muchas gracias. ?Como puedo iniciar sesion?
December 21, 2012 at 10:33 am
anaheimman84
Amin David has also contributed to ad costs. Is Amin David a character assassin? No. We are group of folks who oppose the crony capitalism that permeates the council majority.
December 21, 2012 at 11:04 am
Matthew Cunningham
In this instance, Amin David — like Chuchua and you — is engaging in character assassination.
Then again, this is the same Amin David who thinks Latinos in Orange County today are in the same situation as were blacks in the old Jim Crow South, so it is hard to take his opinon seriously.
Maybe it is news to you, Jason, but it is possible to oppose a policy without trying to personally destroy those who support that policy.
December 21, 2012 at 11:28 am
5150 Watch
Matt, I would be on guard if I were you. Reading Jason’s comments here and elsewhere, he gives off a really creepy, menacing vibe. He comes off like the kind of person who will lurk outside someone’s house.
December 21, 2012 at 9:23 pm
Cynthia Ward
Matt, I brought up a simple issue. Are you being paid to run this blog? It is a basic, simple premise. If one is paid as a consultant, or even granted non-monetary compensation from someone who benefits from your writing skills, it is customary, and in many cases the law of the land, to disclose that information. When are you going to answer this simple question? Are you being paid to run this blog?
December 22, 2012 at 11:16 am
Hip O'Crite
That’s rich coming from the lady who kept refusing to say who was paying for her lawsuit against Steve Lodge! You still haven’t answered that question.
Matt, just ignore her. She is a hysterical walking headache who has alienated everyone here in Anaheim she has worked with on civic causes.
But Cynthia, since you’re in the mood for questions, tell us if you are coordinating your activities with certain people at City Hall? From what I hear, your public record requests are very specific and detailed, as if an insider were telling you what to ask for.
And who did pay for the lawsuit against Lodge? Did you pay all or part of the legal bill? How much did the lawsuit cost? Did the OCEA pick up any of the tab?
You can answer those simple questions, can’t you?
December 24, 2012 at 3:58 pm
Biff
From what I hear, your public record requests are very specific and detailed, as if an insider were telling you what to ask for.
Unless you yourself process public record requests at City Hall, this is pretty rich — you’re using insider information fed to you to accuse someone else of having insider information fed to them?
But when you’re questing for JVSTICE in the comments section of a blog, you’ve got to do it by any means necessary, I guess.
December 22, 2012 at 12:48 pm
Love Anaheim
Cynthia, please go away and take your double-standard with you. You’re a drama queen, not a watchdog. That’s why so many of us in Anahem are just done with you. You attack enemies/former friends, but turn a blind eye to what people you like are doing.
December 22, 2012 at 7:48 pm
myheim
Oh my goodness, I so agree with the former comments…. Cynthia, you never answered the question about who paid for the lawsuit on the Lodge issue and you attack folks that were friends once ….you ally yourself with a scary guy Jason Sumague Young and expect the folks to read any credibility into what you have to say. We know that you have one or two connections at City Hall and you are being a mouthpiece for them but I’m so sorry you turned the wrong corner. Your claim of ‘truth’ in reporting went out the window a while back and I for one don’t see it returning any time soon. Answer the question before you start badgering Matt.
December 23, 2012 at 9:51 am
Cynthia Ward
Nice distraction, very “delphi” of you, but my life choices have no bearing on whether Matt Cunningham is obligated to disclose whether he is being compensated or receiving non-monetary consideration for his efforts on this blog and/ or commenting on specific issues on other blogs and media sites. lets stick with the main issue first, and then we can go on to my character assasination, conveniently presented as a “squirrel”.
I have answered that question repeatedly, nobody paid me for that lawsuit, in fact I lost my shirt on it taking time from work. Nor did I receive a reportable gift of legal fees, or compromise myself in any way. As far as my former “friends” are concerned, I will simply say that once upon a time I trusted a number of people who turned out to be untrustworthy, and I no longer associate with them. And while you unleash your venom you may note that while I avoid specific crowds such as ANA and SOAR, I not only have never betrayed their confidences in blogging about their incredibly trashy activities, I have often stopped others from covering stories because they would hurt the few decent people that still remain in those organizations. And yet, y’all go out of your way to demonize me anyway.
Name one thing I have done to backstab those former friends, other than occasionally voicing disagreement with policies I find abhorrent or harmful to the community. Dissent is seen as betrayal only by those arrogant enough to believe theirs is the only acceptable position, and frankly I find that mindset rather frightening. Agree with us or be labeled the enemy? Present an opposing viewpoint and be labeled as “attacking?” They run cults with that kind of mind control, not governments and community groups. Forgive me for opting out, and avoiding those who participate in that behavior.
The same tactics are being used against Mayor Tait, accusation fly about him being the source of division on Council, but I have yet to hear anyone give a specific example. He questions policies and procedures he thinks might not be as solid as they should be, but for those working to push through a predetermined outcome, he is the enemy. That only works on the easily manipulated who do not want to lose their seat at the popular kids table, thankfully we have a Mayor who doesn’t fall for it.
Now on to some public records requests. My Pastor used to say when you throw a rock into a pack of dogs, the one who yelps is the one that got hit. I suddenly hear quite a bit of yelping from the 7th floor, why is that? Recently I asked about the streetcar project, while the City claims to have posted all of the related docs to the website there are holes you could drive a truck through. So I asked for some specific records to fill in those holes, and I think I hit pay dirt, because while I have not yet received information, someone in City Hall is nervous enough to be gossiping to this crowd. So tell me, who has the inside source at City Hall? Because apparently you know more about what is in my records (which I do not have yet!) than I do. Now I really can’t wait to get them.
The only other items I have in the hopper ask about how press releases are created and issued, and the irony is that the request was based on an anonymous moron who sends me emails trying to get in my face about my support of Tait. They challenged me to look into the way he takes credit for all City Hall events and activities by doing press releases while excluding the other council members. I have ignored this jerk for a year, but in the interest of fairness I put in the request. Is Tait wedging the rest of Council out of the limelight so he can take the glory? Again, I do not have that request back yet, so tell me, what do you know about my request that I do not know? And why should that make any of you nervous?
Oh, and the Kris Murray hypocrisy of hiring Barrios and Associates ($100 an hour, discounted from the usual rate of $200) after she went on the warpath, erroneously claiming Mayor Tait’s assistant made $100k per year. I just got those forms, seems Arrianna and Justin had not filed them previously, so there had not been a record to send me until just now. Is that the request you were bugged about? Funny, if they had not waited to file their 700s until the last minute then disclosing their free tickets to Candlelight, a SOAR baseball game, and the Springsteen concert would have been buried until next year, instead of being fresh and new on this one. Procrastination has its disadvantages.
Interesting, as I have told nobody other than my husband about my recent requests, and I know he does not tell anyone. So the leaks inside City Hall are clearly coming from somewhere other than my side. In which case, yes, I guess I do (now) have some inside info. I was throwing out a baited line and seeing what I could catch, and clearly my boat is sitting in a prime fishing hole if someone at City Hall is this upset about the worm I put on that hook. Now I know where to keep looking, thank you.
Now, can we return to the topic? Matt Cunningham, are you being compensated or receiving non-monetary consideration in exchange for your work on this blog?
December 27, 2012 at 4:55 pm
Hip O'Crite
“I have answered that question repeatedly, nobody paid me for that lawsuit, in fact I lost my shirt on it taking time from work.”
Come to think of it, you didn’t answer the question “repeatedly,” Cynthia. Just the opposite. We all read your repeated REFUSALS to answer the question.
But since you’re so big on disclosure, how much did the lawsuit cost you? What was the final bill? An opportunity-cost like lost work time is a lot different than a bill from a law firm.
Walk the talk, Cynthia.
December 23, 2012 at 6:34 pm
Hip O'Crite
Dang, Cynthia. Are you ever short-winded?
I didn’t say anything about a public record request about streetcars. I had heard you’ve been submitting very detailed requests that sound like people are guiding you about what to ask for, but didn’t know what they were about specifically.
But thanks for all that unsolicited information, I guess.
December 24, 2012 at 11:42 am
Cynthia Ward
I was answering several people at once, figured i would cover all the info.
You made the assumption that someone who does research for a living could never figure out where the gaps appear in documents, and then determine what date range would cover the gaps, and who might be most likely to have worked on the project. Digging around at City Hall is no different from finding a house that was moved, or any other project I do every day. Sorry to disappoint, but there is no conspiracy here.
Now, I answered the charges against me, over-shared is more like it, but I did not want anyone accusing me of leaving anything out.
So let’s get back to the issue that began this conversation. Matt, are you paid or receiving non-monetary compensation for your activity on this blog or your efforts commenting on other media sites?
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October 11, 2014 at 8:50 pm
Leonida
Thanks for finally talking about >About Anaheim Blog | Anaheim Blog <Loved it!