Alpine ISD Superintendent Michelle Reinhart’s monthly column is taxpayer-funded communication about a taxpayer-funded institution. Yet the district provides it only to the Alpine Avalanche, instead of treating it as public communication available to all media.
That kind of exclusivity is troubling. When government agencies write their own coverage and funnel it only through friendly outlets, it stops looking like public information and starts looking like a PR arm of the government. The role of an independent press—the “Fourth Estate”—is to question, investigate, and hold power to account. When government controls the narrative, transparency is lost and accountability suffers.
This isn’t just a principle—it’s the law. Under the Texas Public Information Act, government records—including written statements, press releases, and official photos—are public records. Taxpayer-funded content belongs to the public, not to one outlet. That means any media outlet has just as much right to republish district photos or columns as the Avalanche does. Courts have long recognized that government-generated materials are not private property—they are public domain, funded by taxpayers, and available for public use.
Just as the Agricultural Extension agent distributes his columns to every outlet that wants them, Alpine ISD should do the same with the Superintendent’s column. Anything less unfairly advantages one outlet, shields leadership from critical reporting, and undermines the community’s right to equal access to public information.
Public school communications should belong to the public—not to one favored outlet. Alpine ISD can and should do better.
