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Talk of the bay

Visitors Bureau chief offers script on gay pride issue

By STEVE HUETTEL
Published July 11, 2005

A recent entry from the "open mouth, insert quote" file.

This from Paul Catoe, chief executive of the Tampa Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau, to the agency's members, who are business and civic leaders from around the bay. The subject: media inquiries on the group's response to the Hillsborough County Commission's policy prohibiting government promotion of gay pride events.

"If you are contacted about our plans, strategies and views, you can respond appropriately by referring the matter to me or Karen Brand, who handles our local media.

"A suggested response could be: "Paul Catoe and Karen Brand need to speak for the organization since we trust their leadership. They are much more knowledgeable than I.'

"If you are asked about the CVB having retained the services of a PR firm to help the organization with this issue, an appropriate response would be: "We're an economic development organization and we consult with communications experts to help keep our business focused. It's the smart thing to do.'

"We trust that you support the leadership and executive team at the CVB to make the right decisions on behalf of the Bureau and the community."

[Last modified July 10, 2005, 00:17:02]