Saturday, November 7, 2009

Crowdsourcing: Help us review e-mails

We examined some 1,100 emails from public officials to report our story on misspending at the Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services.

Now you can, too.

Use the links below to view emails sent by top administrators related to DSS.

Let us know if you spot something that you think deserves further scrutiny. You can leave a comment below or send an e-mail.

The buzzword for this is "crowdsourcing."

But the concept is as old as the notion that two heads are better than one.

(Collective wisdom is illustrated this way by author James Surowiecki: On the game show "Who Wants to be a Millionaire," the lifeline to an expert friend yielded the correct answer about 65 percent of the time, while the studio audience was right 91 percent of the time.)

Here are the links:

Click here for County Manager Harry Jones.

Click here for DSS Director Mary Wilson.

Click here for Finance Director Dena Diorio.

Click here for auditor Cornita Spears.

Click here for administrator Beverly Hinson.

Click here for supervisor Cindy Brady.

Here's a link to an e-mail highlighted in our story, in which Wilson says a senior fiscal administrator has left directors "frustrated with her inability to explain the simplest concepts of revenue and expenses."

- Doug Miller

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like the one that said, "Dear Staff, Anthony Foxx is a up and coming African-American Politician. Do you think we can find a cushy position for his wife and allow her to skip the normal hiring process? Remember, watch you back and keep it black" Sincerely, Mary "Yo-Yo" Wilson.

Anonymous said...

I personally like the one from Cindy Brady. She is complaining that Marsha and Jan got all the love.

Anonymous said...

Obama is up and coming, Foxx is up and coming, blah blah blah ...

Funny how the front story on the missing DSS money comes only after Foxx wins.

Lets bet 50% of the missing millions is in Jones freezer and the other 50% in Foxxs freezer.

Anonymous said...

On a lighter note we would like to know why bigger city newspapers nationally dont practice what they preach?

Why do 100% of the nations largest newspapers only have white editors and white editorial page cartoonists? Is this the good ole boy white media network?

We know there are black editors around but where are all the black editorial cartooists? Is there racism in this sector or a failure to hire or to promote minorities as cartoonists? This is shameful.

Its difficult to believe that in the past 150 yrs of the local newspaper there has NEVER been a black editor or black cartoonist. Incredible. Do we need affirmative action for editors and cartoonists?


In spite of the economic depression affecting large newspapers nationwide we belive hiring minorities as editors and cartoonists is a long time coming to say the least especially locally.

Anonymous said...

The real issue is how Harry spent tens of thousand on a NATIONAL search for a new DSS director only to hire a crony from his church, who in turn hired another crony from that same church as assistant director, which in turn led to more crony hiring from Harry's church. Are you idiots at the Observer so blind as to not see where the money went?

Anonymous said...

There should be a black editor. I think the government should regulate this. The government should force The Observer to hire a black editor. This is a very simple issue.

Anonymous said...

These emails bring a lot of questions to bare. Was there documentation of Ms. Wilson's allegations against Ms. Johnson? When new Directors are hired there is a tendancy to clean house and get your own management in place.
Is this the case with Ms Wilson?

How in the world did the Commissioners give Harry the $38,000 bonus with all of these problems? Not only with the DSS issues but with the threat of losing the coveted AAA bond rating and his complete failure of being prepared for the economic flatline. He reacts after the fact and never before.

Also the Commissioners said the bonus was just to keep him at what he got paid last year. Every employee is getting paid less then THEY did last year (with benefit changes).

Harry emailed BofA when a citizen sent an email about his concerns due to the DSS funding issues. Not the man but the head of BofA, his employer. RETAILIATION anyone? But then he supports retailiation in his management team so it stands to reason.

The issues about Mary Wilson hiring without going through the normal procedures happens throughout the organization. New employees are fast tracked to promotions while long time employees are told they need to interview.

Where is the accountability? Harry wasn't held responsible for the DSS mess and no one else was either. Why are people surprised by this? That is standard practice in the County.

Anonymous said...

why would any blacks apply to a newspaper when they can run governments and charitable organizations and make millions.

Anonymous said...

So now readers are expected to do the work the reporters should be doing? Would that knock you out of contention for a Pulitzer if your readers are doing your job for you?

Cedar Posts said...

What a great idea! Could you do the same for Rodney Monroe and the CMPD?

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Mr Rodney Monroe he needs to take a lie detector test on his phantom college degree that his pals at VCU gave him when he didnt even come close to earning it. He has played dumb and lied.
Anyone in college knows what courses to take and if you have taken them that qualify for a degree or been fixed up by special favors. Quite frankly we never heard of a scam like this before Monroe came to town.

Anonymous said...

Does the Charlotte Post have Anglo Saxon Editors?

College Research Paper said...

I appreciate the work of all people who share information with others.