There are plenty of questions people in Geneseo would like to ask the people making decisions, running organizations and leading our community.
Sometimes the answer is easy to find. Sometimes it requires more explanation than a meeting agenda, social media post or short news story can provide.
That’s the idea behind Ask Geneseo, a new program from The Geneseo Current designed to create a direct line between community members and local leaders.
The concept is simple: You submit the questions. We take them to the people who can answer them.
We’ll invite local leaders and others with firsthand knowledge into the studio for recorded conversations built around questions submitted by Geneseo-area residents. Those conversations will be edited into podcast-style episodes and made available through The Current.
This isn’t intended to be a press conference or a debate. It’s an opportunity to slow things down, ask questions people are actually wondering about and give guests enough time to explain their answers.
What can you ask?
Questions can cover the issues, projects and decisions affecting life in and around Geneseo.
Some questions may be straightforward: When will this project be finished?
Others may require more explanation: Why was this decision made? How much will it cost? Who is paying for it? What happens next?
Ask Geneseo gives us room for both.
Will every submitted question be asked?
No.
We expect some topics may generate many questions, including several asking essentially the same thing. We may combine similar submissions or select the question that most clearly represents the broader issue.
Questions selected for the program should generally be:
Timely — connected to a current issue, decision, project or community conversation.
Widely applicable — something whose answer would be useful or interesting to more than one individual.
Relevant — connected to the guest's role, responsibilities or firsthand knowledge.
We will not select questions simply because they are provocative, and Ask Geneseo isn't intended to resolve individual disputes, complaints or highly personal situations through a public podcast.
At the same time, difficult questions aren't automatically off limits. If something is timely, relevant and matters to the broader community, it can be worth asking even when the answer may be complicated or uncomfortable.
The Current will make the final editorial decisions about which submitted questions are included.
What happens after you submit a question?
We'll review submissions and look for recurring themes and questions with broad community relevance.
When we schedule a guest who can address those topics, we'll use selected questions to help shape the conversation. We may also ask follow-up questions during the interview when an answer needs clarification or raises another relevant issue.
The finished conversation will then be edited for clarity, length and listening experience before publication.
Editing will not be used to change the meaning of a guest's answer.
Why are we doing this?
Local news shouldn't only tell you what happened. When possible, it should also help you understand why it happened, how it affects you and what comes next.
And sometimes the best question isn't the one we thought to ask.
You live here. You drive the roads, pay the taxes, send kids to school, use local services, attend community events and watch decisions being made. You have questions.
Ask Geneseo gives you a place to ask them.
We can't promise we'll ask every question submitted.
We can promise we'll be listening.
Ask Geneseo
You ask. We ask. Geneseo answers.