Daniel Diaz found himself in a strange position as a reporter earlier this month when Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua surprised him, publicly asking him to lead the city council in the Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. flag.
The timing of the request was odd for Amezcua, who rarely engages with the local press corps and declined to take questions for this story.
Amezcua publicly surprised Diaz – a young newspaper publisher from Santa Ana who co-founded the Santanero newspaper – just a month he publicly called out city leaders for stonewalling numerous public records requests about police firing less-than-lethal rounds at peaceful protestors over the Summer.
[Read: Santana: Were Santa Ana Police Justified in Firing On Peaceful Protesters?]
Was it retaliation or ignorance?
(Right) Daniel Diaz, co-founder of The Santanero, attends a press conference in Santa Ana on June 10, 2025. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC
News reporters avoid any kind of political activity that may compromise their impartiality, so leading the city council in anything is something that the Society of Professional Journalists canon of ethics advises against for good reason.
The idea is simple.
As journalists, we are not for or against any politician or set of political interests.
We are here to ask hard questions, to give readers facts and let them decide.
We don’t take sides.
We don’t participate in public meetings.
We report on them.
It’s a concept that can be tough for many politicians – who often find themselves locked in heated battle with each other – to accept or understand.
Especially when reporters are asking tough questions about their conflicts of interests, their campaign finance or votes or lack of action.
And especially in Santa Ana – a city government reeling from years of tense political battles between the city’s police union, several police chiefs, city managers and members of the city council.
In Santa Ana, questioning how police do their job is often framed by Amezcua and her allies on the city council as being anti-police.
Residents should take notice when city leaders start pressuring reporters by putting them in a position where their loyalty as American citizens is questioned publicly.
“It caught me off guard,” said Diaz, who is a regular presence at the city council meetings, often wearing a blue t-shirt in the audience to help identify himself as a reporter.
“Everyone looked at me. I had to decide in three seconds. If I choose not to, I’ll be seen as an un-American newspaper,” he thought, ultimately deciding to walk up the city council dais and lead the city council in the pledge of allegiance.
“She (Amezcua) did put me in a tough spot,” Diaz told me in an interview, adding he works hard to maintain professionalism and guards his independence from city hall.
Diaz – who posted publicly about the incident – said he spoke to Amezcua after the meeting and expressed his concerns, which he said prompted her to apologize, adding that she told him she often just picks people at random to lead the city council in the pledge.
Since Amezcua became mayor in late 2022, city officials have increasingly disregarded public records requests – despite what state law says.
Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua listens to public speakers during a 2025 meeting. Credit: JULIE LEOPO, Voice of OC
Most notable was the fact that city leaders kept secret for six months a public claim filed by former city manager Kristine Ridge alleging a web of corruption leading to her ouster.
City leaders paid her out over $600,000 to settle her claim and held back key public documents until local media started threatening to file public records lawsuits.
Right before Ridge’s departure, Police Chief David Valentin announced his retirement alluding to problems with the political influence of the city’s police union – a key backer and campaign finance supporter of Amezcua and others on the city council. He is the second Santa Ana police chief to leave levelling those kinds of allegations.
Meanwhile, Santa Ana city officials continue ignoring requests for interviews and public records about the police department’s use of force against peaceful protestors.
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