Mistakes of all sizes
Loggins violates paper's ethics guidelines
By Henry Walker
In the midst of covering recent allegations against Circuit Court Judge Muriel Robinson, Tennessean reporter Kirk Loggins personally added his name to Robinson’s nominating petition. In doing so, he was in violation of the paper’s ethics guidelines.
“[Loggins] won’t be doing that again,” Tennessean editor Frank Sutherland said Monday. Reporters are “expected to avoid conflicts of interest.” Signing Robinson’s nominating petition could be “perceived to be a conflict,” he said.
Loggins has written a half-dozen stories about an ongoing political/legal dispute between Robinson and a group of women, led by Nashville gynecologist Dr. Jennifer Oakley. The women have accused Robinson of judicial misconduct and have even tried to prosecute her.
Oakley herself discovered that Loggins had signed Robinson’s nominating petition, which qualifies the judge to run for reelection in May. It is “absolutely” a conflict of interest, Oakley said. “As a journalist writing about Judge Robinson, he should have remained impartial.” Oakley, who is zealous, perhaps obsessive, in her pursuit of Robinson, accuses The Tennessean and Loggins of being “clearly biased in favor of the judge.” Loggins’ signature on the petition reinforced Oakley’s suspicions.
Sutherland’s admission “sounds nice,” she added wryly, “but after six stories, the damage has been done.”
Keith Woods, who teaches ethics at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, said Loggins’ actions are “inconsistent” with the ethics policies in most newsrooms, where signing petitions is “discouraged.” But it’s a minor ethical breach, he said—not nearly as serious as, say, “partisan politics being played in the newsroom.”
Which continues to be the problem at the Banner.
One political reporter was told recently that his job was “on the line” because of an uncomplimentary story involving Gov. Don Sundquist.
Another one, now a former staffer, said political editor Andy Telli admitted on several occasions that, under pressure from publisher Irby Simpkins, Telli had rewritten stories about Sundquist to make them more favorable to the governor. That’s nothing new. Banner staffers have been quietly complaining for years about Simpkins’ interference in the newsroom, but even those who’ve left the paper are afraid to say it on the record. Telli himself declined comment.
So while The Tennessean admits to a real, if unimportant, ethical violation and promises it won’t happen again, the Banner goes on cheating the old-fashioned way.
Mistakes in court
The Banner, too, admits mistakes, but sometimes not until the mistakes have been publicized in The Tennessean and the Banner itself has been hauled into court.
This week, Banner attorney Doug Pierce told Criminal Court Judge Cheryl Blackburn that the paper was “embarrassed” over having published a courtroom photograph of a 13-year-old witness.
Last Wednesday, the Banner printed a large, front-page photo of Carmella Russo as she testified against her father for murdering her mother. State law prohibits photographing an underage witness in the courtroom. After editors realized the problem, they yanked the picture from the final edition.
Later that day, Blackburn issued an order directing newspaper officials to appear in court to explain the violation. Although Pierce said he discussed the court’s order with several Banner editors Wednesday afternoon, there was no mention of the incident in Thursday’s paper.
Only after The Tennessean published a story about the photo on Friday did the Banner print a tiny, four-sentence article about the judge’s order. The Tennessean said that efforts to reach Banner editors for comment “were unsuccessful.” The Banner story didn’t include any statements from the paper’s management.
Blackburn ordered the paper to send a letter of apology to Russo and to institute a training program to educate Banner staffers and editors about restrictions on cameras in the courtroom.
Mixed signals
ABC finally admitted its own mistake last week by pulling David Brinkley’s ads off the air. The retired newscaster is now a paid spokesman for the Archer Daniels Midland Company, a regular sponsor of ABC’s This Week, a show formerly hosted by Brinkley.
Why the fuss? Suppose Dan Rather retired from CBS and then reappeared a week later doing commercials during the CBS Evening News. Imagine a retired Mike Wallace being paid for ads that aired during 60 Minutes. It’s not just that Brinkley sold his reputation as a newsman. It’s that ADM and ABC were shamelessly cross-promoting each other, regardless of viewer confusion or the network’s credibility.
Brinkley deserves to be embarrassed. But the real blame lay with the network for intentionally blurring the image on the screen until the letters “ABC” begin to resemble “ADM.” At least they finally tuned the picture.
For the record
Some mistakes get corrected; others are simply repeated every time a new staffer writes a story based on old, inaccurate clippings. Here are some facts that should be taped to every newsroom wall:
The Frist Foundation money came from HCA, not the Frist family. Nathan Bedford Forrest was not a founder of the Ku Klux Klan. The overall crime rate in Nashville is about the same now as it was five years ago. None of the women molested by ex-Judge David Lanier had a case pending before him at the time.
To comment or complain about the media, leave a message for Henry at the Scene at (615) 244-7989, ext. 445, or send an e-mail to henry@nashscene.com.
The Frist Foundation money came from HCA, not the Frist family. Nathan Bedford Forrest was not a founder of the Ku Klux Klan. The overall crime rate in Nashville is about the same now as it was five years ago. None of the women molested by ex-Judge David Lanier had a case pending before him at the time.
To comment or complain about the media, leave a message for Henry at the Scene at (615) 244-7989, ext. 445, or send an e-mail to henry@nashscene.com.
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