Council debates whether Blue Newsletter should reprint crime and first-responder data; residents urge keeping printed stats

Antigo City Council members debated whether the quarterly Blue Newsletter should continue including local crime statistics and first-responder call data or instead direct readers to original sources via web links or QR codes.

Council member Mersh introduced the item and said staff was seeking direction on what the council wanted in the newsletter. "Part of what we do there is educate the residents, which allows us to meet that mandate," a staff presenter said, describing recent additions to the newsletter that summarize legislation and public-safety information.

Council member Lee (speaking in favor of links) said the sheriff's department and first-responder agencies publish the primary statistics and suggested the city could include short links to those sources rather than reprinting data: "I would suggest that a better way to handle this is we educate our... residents that it's going to be coming away from the newsletter... put links on the city's website where they can go directly to the sources that produce this." He argued this would free space in the newsletter for content specific to the community.

Other council members and residents pushed back. One council member said, "The residents love the Blue Newsletter. They like the crime statistics, and I would never vote for that," noting the printed newsletter reaches readers who do not use web links. Resident Melissa McNabb, president of a local women's club, told the council many residents do not follow online sources and she strongly supported keeping the statistics in the printed newsletter: "I support it a 100%." She said her members often lack the technology or confidence to find online reports.

Staff noted the newsletter already includes short URLs and QR codes for some items and that those tools could be expanded. Council did not adopt a formal policy change at the meeting; the discussion concluded with staff taking note of preferences and an agreement to continue using QR codes and short links in addition to printed content where appropriate.

No formal vote was held. The council asked staff to keep residents' access needs in mind and to weigh how much data to include directly in the newsletter versus linking to primary sources.