TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An official recording of a Kansas legislative hearing that appears on a Legislative website and YouTube was edited to remove profanities directed at a journalist.
Justin Speihs was testifying Saturday against mask mandates before the Special Committee on Government Overreach and the Impact of COVID-19 Mandates when he began using profanity to criticize Sherman Smith, editor in chief of the Kansas Reflector.
Spiehs had previously asked Smith to provide coverage of his complaints against Lawrence school officials’ directives on masks. Smith declined Spiehs’ request, The Kansas City Star reported.
When the audio resumes, Sen. Renee Erickson, a Wichita Republican and chairwoman of the committee, is heard telling the audience the committee will not tolerate “that type of language or behavior.
J.G. Scott, director of the Kansas Legislative Research Department, said in an email the audio was edited “in an abundance of caution.”
“We now have the professionals working, after the Saturday meeting, to provide the legal perspective regarding (the) situation and a decision how to proceed will be made shortly,” Scott said.
Smith said he wasn’t concerned about what Spiehs thought of him. “But as a journalist, I think it’s important to preserve the public record,” he said.