A pattern of restricted press access surrounding Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley’s campaign has now reached Waynesville, where local GOP officials denied a Citizen Times reporter entry to a publicly advertised event held in a town-owned facility.
When Haywood County Republican Party Chair Kim Genova and Waynesville resident Shannon Morgan — who said he’d signed the room rental agreement — physically blocked entry to a conference room at the Waynesville Recreation Center just before 2 p.m. on July 18, the reporter was told that it was a private event.
The event had been advertised at least nine times on social media by the Haywood GOP since June 30, with no mention of ticketing or an RSVP process.
The Citizen Times reporter immediately called Waynesville Town Attorney Martha Bradley and put Bradley on speaker, so those blocking entry could hear her explain the general policy that public events at town facilities should be open to all members of the law-abiding public. Genova and Morgan continued to interrupt Bradley, but ultimately did not agree. Morgan said he had called 911. Genova threatened to sue.
“Public events that are advertised as open to the public should be open to the entire public whether they are a reporter or not,” Anthony Sutton, a member of Waynesville’s town council told the Citizen times July 18. “You cannot be selective in First Amendment rights.”
Seeking to avoid dangerous escalation, the Citizen Times reporter introduced himself to the responding Waynesville police officers, explained the situation and left the facility without further incident.
A pattern
Smoky Mountain News Editor Kyle Perrotti was also present during the entirety of the incident. Although initially permitted entry by Genova, he refused — saying he “could not abide press restrictions.” Perrotti later posted on X that he was told “the directive to not allow (this reporter) in came from Whatley’s staff.”
Whatley had not yet arrived at the event, which appeared to have around 30 attendees.
Similar restrictions occurred July 9 at a Raleigh event where Whatley accepted the unanimous endorsement of the North Carolina Police Benevolent Association. Several reporters were denied entry.
Organizers called police on The Assembly politics reporter Bryan R. Anderson after he tried to attend, while NC Newsline reporters were told they would not be credentialed because they had missed a deadline in a media advisory the outlet said it never received.
Campaign spokesperson DJ Griffin declined to address the police response or make Whatley available for an interview.
“Left-wing activists, like you, posing as ‘journalists’ already have their narrative written. Whether they’re inside the event or standing on the sidewalk makes no difference. They’ll publish the same garbage and lies either way,” Griffin wrote to NC Newsline the next day.
This latest incident comes as Whatley’s Senate campaign faces broader questions about his judgment, his performance as Tropical Storm Helene “recovery czar” and his ties to North Carolina.
Among those concerns are recent reporting by the Citizen Times on FEMA reform recommendations issued by a subcommittee Whatley chaired that could boost his portfolio; Whatley’s support for Harvey West Jr., a convicted sex offender who held Republican leadership posts; that Whatley faced arrest in 2015 over repeated failures to appear in court for traffic citations; and a Carolina Hurricanes-related gaffe, reported by The Assembly, that Democrats seized on to challenge his familiarity with the state.
Whatley’s opponent, former North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, recently reported a second quarter fundraising total of $14.8 million, to Whatley’s $5 million. Polling in the race had suggested Cooper has a wide lead over Whatley, with recent reporting by NC Newsline saying the race was “no longer a toss-up,” however a July 13 poll showed Cooper leading 48% to 44%.
This story will be updated.
Reporting by Cory Vaillancourt, Asheville Citizen Times / Asheville Citizen Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
