CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice is defending his appointment of a Republican Party operative to a public broadcasting oversight board, saying it will bring “balance” and “diversity.”
“I do believe there ought to be diversity to that board,” Justice told the Charleston Gazette-Mail on Thursday when asked about the appointment of GOP operative Greg Thomas to the state Educational Broadcasting Authority, which is the governing body of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
“Changing the board to be more balanced and everything, I don’t think the more liberal folks have total ownership of that board. I don’t think the more conservative folks should have total ownership of the board in any way. I think it should be balanced,” Justice said.