Breaking Away From Arnett

Last year, I did some freelance work for David Arnett of Tulsa Today.

  In October of 2014, David Arnett called to ask me to do a story on the state superintendent's race. I told him I would do the story provided I could write it down the middle in other words not take sides. David said that would be fine. I did write the story which you can see on the link below. One of the things he took out of my story was the fact that Linda Murphy, who was the 1994 Republican nominee for superintendent, had chosen to endorse Dr. John Cox the Democrat in the race because of his opposition to Common Core. Mrs. Murphy posted her endorsement on her facebook page. I submitted this story to David and he called and said, "Ted, I'm not getting PAID for what you have written." He then told me he would pay me $25 dollars instead of the $100 he promised me.
  I told him to take my byline off the story and he did.  In mid-December David called me to say he had my $25. I told him to keep it. He then hemmed and hawed about how he hoped we could work together again someday. I simply said, "Merry Christmas" and hung up.

  Last April tea party favorite Randy Brogdon was elected state Republican chairman. One of his first acts as chairman was to appoint libertarian activist T. C. Ryan to a position at the state party. It turned out Ryan had plead guilty to assaulting his former girlfriend in front of her child three years earlier. David Arnett did several stories about this, as did the rest of the media. David Arnett was one of the first to call for Brogdon's resignation.
After T.C. Ryan left his post at the state Republican party, I wrote a comment on The Oklahoma Constitution's facebook page saying since T.C. was gone David Arnett should lay off Randy Brogdon as I know too much about David Arnett. The next day Thursday, June 25, I received a phone call from David. "How nice to hear from you David. I would ask why you were calling but I know why you are calling," I said. In the course of our conversation I told David I would write about him should he go on jihad against Randy Brogdon because he (David Arnett) wants Brogdon out as chairman. He told me I should "be careful." I then said to him, "How much were you paid for that story on the school superintendent's race?" He paused and said, "I'll have to check my bank records on that."
  David Arnett alludes to the fact he's done paid consulting work for Republicans when he first wrote about Randy Brogdon speaking at a Republican luncheon in Tulsa:

  "Further and in the spirit of full disclosure; I have long been a Tulsa Republican Precinct Chairman and served on the Platform Committees for both the County and State during the recent cycle. My other company, HomeFront Strategies LLC, sponsored tables at both conventions as I am also a consultant for select candidates and one of the “old lions” of the Republican Party.

  I personally like TC Ryan and his current girlfriend. Prior to his Republican Club presentation, Brogdon first approached me to say he knew he “owed me a call” as I had reached out to him and Ryan several times before Ryan’s appointment became controversial to explore ways we could work together. That is now unlikely to happen."

OKGOP tempers up By David Arnett May 17, 2015

  On July 14th it was reported that the state Republican party's facebook page posted a comment comparing food stamp recipients to bears in national parks referring to not feeding the bears. David Arnett seized the opportunity to write another hit piece story about Brogdon even going so far as to mock the financial situation of the Oklahoma Republican party. David Arnett failed to mention as a "journalist" that Brogdon's predecessor David Weston left the state party in the red when he was ousted as chairman last April.
  It is my contention that David Arnett wants Randy Brogdon gone as chairman because he wants someone else in that post in the hope his consulting company, HomeFront Strategies, will be able to do work in the state Republican party after Brogdon is ousted. David Arnett is throwing as much mud as he can until he gets Brogdon out.
  I should add something. Randy Brogdon's hiring T.C. Ryan for a political post, paid or not, was dumb. Ryan assaulted his former girlfriend in front of her child. He plead guilty to this incident three years ago. It's not that a man must be pure as the driven snow, but three years is not much time to show you have amended your ways. I am also disappointed by the good, God fearing conservatives that were perfectly happy to look the other way regarding Ryan because Brogdon was their man and that's all that mattered to them. I do not fault David Arnett for writing about T.C. Ryan. Now that T.C. Ryan is gone, I do believe David Arnett is out to get Randy Brogdon for his own ends.
  On June 26th, I received an email from David Arnett informing me that he would allow me to write a defense of Randy Brogdon on his website - tulsatoday.com and that it could be up to 1500 words. This from the man who told me that if I were to agree to write a story on the superintendent's race, it could be down the middle and he'd pay me $100. I did not respond to his offer.