By Miki Mullor
Editor

Dear reader,

Eight years ago I began writing for the Sammamish Comment, investigating, reporting and engaging with the Sammamish community. Today I want to share an important update.

Writing for the Comment gave me an incredible opportunity to act on my passion for transparency and truth. I learned how to shed light on dark corners of our local government and how to hold power accountable. The internet killed the business of local journalism but it empowered the citizen journalist. It was an honor to be in that role in Sammamish for the last few years.

My guiding principle was simple: Inform the residents, always tell the truth and hold everyone accountable – including those who considered themselves immune due to a connection to me. That required a serious investment of time and energy to develop sources, watch public meetings and investigate thousands of documents from public records requests. It also took time to become an expert in the different areas of government in order to challenge the officials’ narratives and the experts’ studies. I have learned more than I ever wanted to know about traffic engineering and land use law over the years…

A few years ago my family and I moved to live part time in Spain and then to full-time living there. I reduced my involvement with the Comment as it proved to be difficult to maintain the same level of energy while being away.

Today, I’m stepping away and handing the reins to a group of people who showed they care about our community and believe in truth and integrity. Like me, they also believe in the mission of informing our community and holding power accountable with integrity and independence.

I also want to recognize Scott Hamilton, the founder of the Comment. Scott set the high standard for the Comment and became a mentor for me throughout these years on navigating the treacherous waters of local politics and being an effective journalist. What I learned from Scott about real life one cannot learn in school. Over the years Scott also proved to be a close and true friend – and that alone was worth the journey.

For me this is not the end of citizen journalism – it’s just a transition to focus my efforts on a blog I started in my new hometown of Hideout, Utah, a 800-residents town with more stories to be told than an 80,000-residents city…

Thank you for reading, engaging and caring about our community.

Miki