Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson has brushed off criticism after her office released hundreds of text messages showing officials, including herself, discussing how to manage press coverage in the hours after a deadly shooting in July. The messages, released on Friday, have drawn scrutiny because the administration was already facing criticism over a five-hour delay in publicly addressing the shooting and apparent communication breakdowns with the Seattle Police Department. When asked about the texts at a public event on Monday, Wilson declined to address the content directly, instead pointing to new communications protocols announced with the interim police chief.

The shooting took place at the Bite of Seattle food festival on 26 July, killing three people, with residents left waiting hours for official information. Released texts show Wilson expressing concern that local broadcaster KOMO might "spin" her as an "absent mayor" if she did not appear at the scene, while aides debated whether it was safe or appropriate for her to go there. Other exchanges show staff, including then-interim press secretary Jonah Spangenthal-Lee, expressing frustration at the police department's slow public updates, and officials scrambling to correct an error in the mayor's initial statement.