Nassau, Bahamas – When appointed to the Deputy Director position back in July 2007, a press statement read, “Veteran journalist and former radio and print news editor Mrs. Sharon Turner has been named Deputy Director for Bahamas Information Services.”
Back then we all were sure this was a strange appointment. Here is a 31 year old, whom had never broken a single headline story in her entire life. She had not worked in the media business for more than five years prior her appointment, but yet announced to the public as a “VETERAN JOURNALIST.”
Just a little over two years ago, before Election 2006, a new face appeared in the FNM. This face came from out of Grand Bahama supposedly to be a part of the Public Relations “team” of the FNM. Soon after there was no “team”, plans were changed and this new face had a name Sharon Williams-Turner, the Public Relations Officer and Webmaster of the Free National Movement. She wore many hats, even the hat of photographer and many could see her at EVERY rally conducted by the FNM taking pictures from every angle.
The FNM won the government, knocking the PLP out after only one term. Every one watched to see where this new Grand Bahamian face would end up and to their shock and amazement, she ended up as the Deputy Director of Bahamas Information Services and continues to hold the positions of Webmaster and Public Relations Officer of the FNM. Who is this girl and what is her claim to journalism fame that would entitle her to the position of Deputy Director of BIS. Also is she a double dipper like her boss why she continues to hold paid positions in the FNM?
Speaking of the position of Deputy Director of BIS, why is it that this Sharon Williams-Turner person continues to trek around the world foot in foot behind the Prime Minister shooting pictures of him. Surely Anthony Forbes, another Deputy Director of BIS, is never called upon to follow the PM around the world to shoot pictures. Surely such a job is for a photographer and to everyone’s knowledge the official photographer for the PM’s office for the past umpteen years has been Peter Ramsay. Is Mr. Ramsay no longer allowed to follow behind the PM taking pictures abroad or is it that his waist isn’t 24″ and his hair is too short?
Another baffling thing is that this Sharon Williams-Turner person is a married woman. She has a living husband. Who is this man who has allowed his wife to trek the islands endlessly during the FNM political campaign and now again while she supposedly holds a position of such prestige as Deputy Director of BIS? Does he not miss his wife or question why she is following the PM taking pictures of him around the globe when the PM has a photographer attached to his office? This man must not have blood running through his veins or his BRAIN for that matter. Two and Two have always added up to four and for sure where there is smoke there is FIRE.
This whole mess has gone on for more than two years by far and the “sip sipping” of the nation must now cease and explanations must now come to light. WHY has this Deputy Director of BIS, Sharon Williams-Turner become the official OVERSEAS photographer of the PM. Surely she cannot be seen to take better pictures than veteran photographer Peter Ramsay. Who is she and why has she become so OFFICIAL all of a sudden? Is Sir Arthur Foulks, the Director of BIS, next in line to shoot pictures of the Prime Minister abroad? Shouldn’t this newly wed girl be at home with her husband in Grand Bahama planning a family and goals?
Bahamas Press would also like to know why some news organization in this country are refused BIS stories? And how is it both FNM and PLP communications not covered by BIS? How is it Sharon Williams-Turner can get immediately sound bites and text speeches of the Prime Minister with speed, up on the FNM’s website but not to all media here in the country? Is this ‘double dipper’ working for the people of The Bahamas or FNM and abusing her office in the process?
Thanks again to a weak opposition who fail to highlight this kind of subversion against a balanced democracy, and to a ‘cockeyed bias’ media in The Bahamas who don’t even know when they are getting robbed themselves, much less the public.
Someone please explain this!!
See look how you gone barking up da wrong tree!! How you know I aint one of you and just sick and disgusted of current situations in this country. With me ya never know what I is. Aint you said I full of REAL drama? Stop trying to read me up, man. Let it flow.
Tommy is a smart man, he should take advice from someone who on the outside looking in. He needs to bail out while his good name still sorta in tact.
Drama King you are not one of us so why do you think Tommy will listen to YOU
Never heard of the chick before now…..but it seems that there is something sinister about this young woman. She has a cut throat reputation and she is obviously hanging with the biggest cut throat of all times….Hubert Alexander Ingraham. Tommy!! Watch ya back and ya throat!! Hubert swinging from all sides!!
BP, this reminds me of those epic rows that used to happen on Bahamas Potcake. Its good to see someone picking up where they left off. As you know, they disappeared from the web when they broke the Zhivargo Laing Mona Vie scandal months before it came to the House. Now that BP is here, the tradition continues.
On the Turner thing, it is amazing how people overlook the basic gripe BP had and that was how could the FNM put their web person in charge at BIS and then she gets confused over who she works for. They are using government funds to pay for the web administrator and that is wrong. As i said earlier, all the personal stuff ain’t that important to me because if you ask me, it doesn’t make one bit of difference if she’s “close” to the PM or not. Wrong is wrong and BP caught her nubby hands in the cookie jar.
Don’t be fooled by these phonies trying to sing Turner’s praises. The child works for BIS, so what freaking story is there for her to “get”? BIS is not a real journalism operation so there is no real reporting. Every event the government wants to publicize, BIS is a part of and for the most part, serve as government propaganda or simple information sharing. That is not the same as working at a real news organization because their job is to hide the facts, not find them otherwise, Mrs. Turner would have been the one breaking the QC Sex Scandal and not BP and the Guardian.
This thing gone too deep nah. I believe Sharon Turner setting up people to write this blog in her defence. No one know who this gal is. We only know that all the PM pictures have her credit on them. Keep up the good work Bahamas Press, you certainly gat these people waters boiling. Mussee true aye?
stop jokin let it out BP why you holding back? you keep saying you gat the juice and wanna change shit well pull “The Punch” and write around it with the details ya know
Let the record show that we at Bahamas Press are not haters. And whether Sharon did achieve what she did because she is qualified, is not our concerns. We asked how can a cub reporter with less then 5 years experience in journalism be considered a “Veteran Journalist?” Have you come to answer the question? Or do you want us to answer it for you?
Mind you we are trying to be nice here, this debate can go deeper, with ‘SHOCKING REVELATIONS’. We are being nice when we tell the ‘sassy lil girl’ to sit her skin down?
This can go deeper, I worn you, LET IT GO! Before I have to let it all hangout and show to our over 160,000 PLUS readers, how we came to our conclusions.
We fear NO MAN NOR BEAST!
Bahamas Press/Editor.
You ask who this Sharon Turner is. Sharon Turner is just who her title says she is, the Deputy Director of Bahamas Information Services. Until such time as she does not perform her duties as she should that’s who she will remain. LIG it (Let it Go) and get on with your lives.
It is sad that when a young intelligent, educated, woman holds a position of prestige she must have laid on her back to get it, as you are suggesting. We as women already have to prove ourselves above and beyond the male standard to be seen as equal and when we do society still finds a way to make us seem less than. This suggestion is an insult to all accomplished Bahamian females.
Why does her position bother you so much do you feel it somehow belongs to you, or are you just that jealous, that much of a hater that you can’t stand to see someone so young do well.
So when you ask who is Sharon Turner know that she is a young woman that walks in the favor of God, a modern day Ester, one that does not compromise her beliefs but stands up for what she believes. And as for her husband he is a real man, one with integrity, who stands by his wife and her career. Is it so much of a surprise to see a man is secure enough in himself to trust his wife? Real men do still exist.
Why doesn’t she deserve this title?
Who are you that you have the right to judge or speak on what job she should or should not have?
You say “Where there is smoke there is fire” – you are right and since you are blowing smoke you must really be burning up inside that she is doing well for herself.
Quite frankly there are far more pressing issues to be discussed than your personal gripe or jealousy of Sharon Turner. What business is it of yours and why do you care so much about her marriage and family planning, not to mention her goals. Did it ever occur to you that she is accomplishing her goals? Isn’t that what bugging you so much?
Haters will be Haters
Young Progressive thinking Bahamians
Bahamas Press has certainly rubbed too hard here in this story. However to prove our concern with the ‘WUTLASS” garbage bin of rejects at the Bahamas Information Services (BIS), we want you Ms. Darville and others, including Sharon, who have come to the defense of Turner, that she is not the only one we are concerned with at BIS. We at Bahamas Press are working our way down.
Media in The Bahamas must be a boring stale place to be these days, seeing that so many of you continue to attack our core of writers, who simply present truth on this BLOG. And the truth does HURTS!
But let it be known we are not done with BIS as yet. There is much, more on the ‘rejects’ in the bin at BIS we must shake out. There are others we will discuss this coming week, one being a patient on medication from the ‘CRAZY HILL’ who calls herself a “JUNGLEASS” (WHAT IS THAT?). And another who was the estranged ‘gal pal’ of a former PLP cabinet minister and now the ‘gal pal’ for a current FNM. This individual has some very ‘sticky fingers’ when we look at her record at her former employ, National Insurance.
These persons like SHARON are holding a whip over the innocent at BIS and THAT MUST STOP!
Ms Darville don’t rub this blog the wrong way, we mean it deeply when we say media in The Bahamas have GONE SOUTH! Media has become not only ‘deflectors of truth’ in this town, but have become the detractors of which is GOOD, HONEST AND DECENT in this society. This site intends to change this.
STAY TUNED DARVILLE, SHARON and others stay tuned! Bahamas Press stands now at 160,203 readers for the week.
PS: Tell Sir Arthur happy 80th birthday this coming Friday for us!
You know what amazes me? Blogs like this one. If you had done your homework, you would know that Sharon Turner is the hardest working woman around in the media today. She works long hours, fights for her story and gets the job done. I have had persons in the media say to me that she gets her story out no matter what the time.
I think your problem is that you can’t get the scoop so you have now begun asserting your personal feelings into your articles.
FYI: Before you write an article as such (about waist sizes and hours working and people’s husbands) try and be a bit more professional and take your personal feelings out of it!!
You know ‘Instant’ Sharon is one who like the one in our story. To put it best I would borrow a line Hubert Ingraham used whilst addressing the PLP in Parliament on their record as government.
INGRAHAM: ‘Like I say they have no shame, they are shameless,…They Should keep their mouth shut, should hold their heads down! Not be out here shouting. They are shameless men and women! YOU HAVE NO SHAME! YOU HAVE NO SHAME! YOU HAVE NO SHAME SHARON!’
LOL I JUST LOVE THIS SITE! LOL!
PS: And we hope the writer of that post is not the Sharon in our article, here is what Sharon wrote: ‘I think someone like Mrs. Turner would serve you site good as an editor.’
That is what we call a VETERAN JOURNALIST?
Sharon?…is that you lol what did you say that BP didnt wanna post?
BP is that true? i would hate fa someone to have to say “da whutless blog who blast the whutless bahamian press” lol
i love it youll killin me
I notice that you did not post my comment. What is the problem “TRUTH HURTS”.
The public expects the media to be fair, can you not take constructive criticism? It should only make you better. I think someone like Mrs. Turner would serve you site good as an editor, you really need one. If she was doing a poor job at B.I.S by all means CALL HER OUT.
So far the press releases from the Govt have been coming out on time. Stop throwing cheap political shots and give the girl her due. This is not her first time working with the media. Do some research in Grand Bahama.
The PLP giving their webmaster a position like this young woman? NOOOOO WAY, they would not even give their webmaster a position of employment PERIOD! Much less even pay that person within the party.
If its is one thing I can give the FNM credit for is that they hired the girl. However, too many times, and she is confused with her roles.
Bahamaspress.com/Editor
BP, I don’t know if the PLP would have even thought of looking at this as this case of definite double dipping and conflict of interest is far below their radar. As a member of the press, and I might add, a much more credible one to boot, you would see this issue much faster than the Opposition would, having to deal with this person for your information.
But the fact of the matter is that the woman is employed at the public’s expense and as such, her role as web admin (not webmaster because their webmasters are a private company out west) definitely does conflict with her role as deputy director of BIS when she is supplying the political website of the FNM and not the media as her job requires her to. To my way of thinking, thats a bigger matter to be concerned about than her possible double dipping. After all, how can we know if the FNM is in fact paying her for the website? Maybe the job at BIS and all that comes with it was payback in the first place.
Is this to say that if the PLP wins the next elections, their web admin will be in line for that job and are we to expect the same thing from them? I hope not and BP, you guys need to keep raising the alarm on this because it is stuff like that that make this country a real banana republic.
As for her waist size and her marital status, thats her and her husband’s business.
Who dis gal is wit 24″ waist and what yawl tryna say. Truin I aint all dat bright, I need clarity on erryting. What the deal is bey and why she taking picture of the PM? She is a papparazzi aye?
Dear Editor,
I am glad you wrote this. I wondered when someone would notice this. I am waiting to see if Ms. 24″ waist is going to go with Mr. PM on the next trip or if she will allow Mr. Ramsey to do his job. If the PLP was in power, the FNM would be all over them for this. The opposition in this country better stop sleeping and notice stuff like this. Why, tell me why, for true, is this 31 year old lil girl following behind this man every time he goes off this island. Tings dat make me clear my throat !! Ah hem!
Your right media i didnt look at it from that vantage point, but aye like you say WEAK OPPOSITION !!!!!!but is the press not getting anything from her at all?….how is BIS run?….must you request info or is it given out?.
but my thing is if any of us had the oppertunity to do what you described who would not take it
Green your not seeing my anger in posting this article. She is in the Government Information Department hogging up news for the FNM website whilst members of the media in this country can’t get stories, photos and text out of the department.
When the PM was last away, she could have audio up in a heartbeat on the FNM’s website, but news organizations in this town could not even retrieve the sound bites of the PM. Then there is the question, how about opposition MPs and their contribution? She is abusing her office in that right.
WRONG! WRONG! WRONG!
Bahamas Press/Editor
bey bp editor i recall Mrs Turner breaking the story about the human cloning clinic that was operating in Grand Bahama i think it was like 3 yearsago while she was with the Bahama Journal check it out almighty BP editor..you asked for one there is one 😉
just fa argument sake could it be that she records what ever speech the PM makes and puts it on the net and send out. ya know it does look like double dipping yaknow…..but i guess thats two birds with one stone aye cause come on if you had that kinda deal would not take it?….be honest now bp !
is it wrong fa some one to work two jobs in the smae field?…well shit i guess steve mckinney is the devil himself then lol
lets not hate…lets find a way to get piece of the pie…..
Well being stuck stupid is clearly the only way most people understand these days. And what is clear is that you [Thomas and Alferd] did not read our message line by line.
1) We never raised the question if she was qualified, she is trained in Psychology but BIS says she is a veteran journalist. Last we checked, Psychology has nothing to do with Journalism. But that is OK. We asked how in the hell she became a veteran journalist overnight, having never broken a single headline story in her life?
2) On question of double dipping, here is a person who work for the PEOPLE OF THE BAHAMAS. You cannot use the office of the PUBLIC, to spin news stories for your private employ and in the same time withhold news taking place in government from the media in the country. That is Wrong!
Bahamas Press writers group cannot be working at one of these WUTLESS newspapers here in The Bahamas and then seen posting the work on here as news, whilst failing to submit articles to their editors for publishing. That is wrong! And warrant the sharpest rebuke from this website.
Bahamas Press have accepted for a while now, that many person like yourselves clearly don’t know what is wrong anymore.
Bahamas Press /Editor
Is She qualified? Is the only question thats relevant – BTW that doesnt have to mean 200 years in the civil service
First off, you need to stay out of the business of private citizens. Secondly, Turner cannot be called a double dipper if she only receives one salary from the treasury. Seems like people here are also stuck on stupid, to quote Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
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