Retired newspaperman Hugh Clark, who was a mainstay of the press corps in Hilo for decades, sent an email yesterday that’s highly critical the failure of reporters to get behind the press releases and prepared statements of public officials to ferret out the “why” behind stories of concern to the community.
I’m sharing Hugh’s message in full.
I call your attention to poor reporting on significant stories on the N Isles.
Police Chief Darryl Perry on Kauai, whom I have never met but almost always heard and read positive things about, was restored to his job today with no explanation of why he was suspended by the mayor in dubious actions. Where’s the beef?
(I know Hawaii’s mayors from Hilo to Honolulu can and have developed what I call the emperor’s complex, but the media is supposed to keep them accountable to the electorate. And not just by damning editorials but solid, complete as possible reporting.)
In Waimea, veteran educator John Colson, whom I have known for more than 30 years as a splendid school leader with impeccable ethics, was released as Waimea Intermediate Charter School principal with no reason provided. Resigned, discharge or fired? The correct term is not explained in any stories I have read by seven reporters in four outlets.
Have they become slaves to official utterances?
If education is important and charter schools supposed to be a good step to break up an intractable statewide system, I think this outcome destroys hope we may have had of locally controlled schools. News of this canning came from a Honolulu board room.
I have the questions but darn few answers.
Here you have two superior guys with fine reputations caught in some kind of mystery cross fire no one has explained.
The “why” is a damned important element in news. Why has it been discarded?
Aloha, Hugh
Stories on Perry’s return to the job yesterday appeared in the Garden Island, Star-Advertiser, and elsewhere.
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Here’s the Beef:
http://hawaiifreepress.com/ArticlesMain/tabid/56/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/6178/Kauai-Chief-Perry-Victim-of-Retaliation-by-Corrupt-Mayor.aspx
That “beef” appears to be heavily mixed with McDonald’s slimy stuff — heavy on innuendo, supposition and conjecture.
But heck, Mr. Walden, at least you got another hit on your website.
Here’s a post specifically bemoaning the lack of good journalism today, and this is the link you provide? I’m sorry, the irony is too much for me.
If our elected officials want us to know any facts, they will supply them. Until then, be quiet.
I know it’s only Wednesday, but I’m going to go ahead and call it. The prize for Most Terrifying Thing I’ve Heard All Week goes to you, sir.
I think the simple answer these days is you have to sue to get them to release what was once public information. It’s our own fault, not the media. We don’t punish these elected officials by not re-electing them. Same ole same ole…..
You miss the point. Reporting means digging for sources and information, some of which may come from official records, some from talking to people and putting the pieces together. Going to a press conference and reporting what was said should be a very small part of the whole.
spot on, Ian.
Watergate coverage did NOT come from a White House press release – it came from reporters finding fantastic sources (a former honcho of the FBI!!!!) through time, insight and investigation. in-depth investigative reporting been shrinking in the US for many years, replaced with communications, marketing and features.
in other words, forcing the release of more public information through lawsuits is important, but IT IS NOT THE ONLY SOLUTION. public officials are very careful in what they give out and are very good at hiding, especially when lawsuits are involved.
(yes, i am capitalizing for emphasis.)
Ok…
But- they seem to have too much trouble already trying (yeah, trying…let’s give them that possibility!) to find out who, what, where- not to mention how!
Agreed. Time and time again I read stories in SA that simply don’t provide complete (and easily reportable) information. For example, they did a story recently about legislation at the state level and completely failed to include a single sentence about an county bill on the same topic coming up at the council the next day.
“Do or Do not. There is no try.”
—- Yoda.
Agree.
Sidebar: John Colson has accepted a swell position at Hawaii Preparatory Academy, probably prompting his resignation.
http://www.hpa.edu/news/john-colson-returning-hawaii-preparatory-academy
(dated Feb. 22, 2012, BTW)
The question of why he actually left his charter school position remains
.
Much of the time it is not the reporters fault for not fully exploring a story but that of their editors who do not give them the time to do a proper job. These days some reporters are kept at their desks working on stories instead of being allowed to go out into the world to do their job. Blame the bosses not the workers.
Correct.
Thank you.
from my experience in the field, there is a little bit of blame for both sides, not just reporters and not just the editors. some reporters are union-protected and almost as unlikely to be fired as a tenured professor. some editors are basically more in it for business than journalism.
in the end, some reporters and editors put their own individual jobs above the readership they are serving.
this is the problem.
fortunately, other journalists do the exact opposite and put their profession first, always.
unfortunately, they are in dwindling number.
Well said. I agree.
From the S-A story this a.m.: “Only snippets of information have been released. Some of the information has not been correct. What has been left in the community is a sense of ‘What’s going on? What’s going on with our chief of police? That’s what I didn’t want to happen.” Statement of the chief himself, who has been ill-served by the mayor and media both.
Thanks Maunawilimac…..The others on this post only read into what they want to believe. Yes yes yes Norm, the poor union workers are slaves at their desk while task master editors hover over them forcing them to write incomplete stories. Sure. Maybe the SA should just go with solid rumors and leave the truth behind. Or would that steal the thunder of a blog somewhere? One can sit with people all day long and get some juicy tidbits but verifying, I imagine, what they said to be true is another thing. Like I said, post it on a blog, it has to be true then.
My journalism professors from UH, Scott and Wiley, must be turning in their graves if they saw what passes for news reporting now days.
This is why I have become such a fan of the Civil Beat. They actually try to report and DON’T settle for press releases. Although I don’t always agree with their conclusions, their “fact checks” are a genuine effort to get behind the press releases.
They do get stonewalled frequently, particularly by the HPD, but keep asking. They probably don’t get the access that Star-Advertiser gets due to the SA’s fondness for “playing ball” with the powers that be, but access to press releases and prepared statements isn’t worth much.
I became so disgusted with the Star-Advertiser’s “press release as news” reporting that I am done with them. If they ever get (got?) back to the business of real reporting and asking actual questions, I won’t know about it unless someone tells me.
For whatever reason, on stories where I have personal knowledge of the situation, I feel reporters often have not done their homework.
In many cases, the stories show a lack of awareness of basic background information that is readily available to the public.
In many cases, a single Google search would turn up the links to the info or contact information for sources who could provide background and insights typically missing from the stories.
There are some reporters who regularly check with our office. However, my perception is that I am getting a lot less calls than I did five or ten years ago, which is probably a reflection of the elimination of the competition, and subsequent sharp reduction in the number of reporters.
spot on, Lopaka43
So kakaheo, how did CB do uncovering all there is to know regarding the Kauai situation? Did I miss something?
As one of those reporters Hugh may have been talking about, I would like to weigh in.
The Colson case was a particularly tough nut to crack as it appears he and his just weren’t talking. My attempts to talk to folks on the periphery revealed very little other than dismay and disbelief, I’m sorry to say.
A similar thing happened with the Waianae charter school operated by the same board where two top administrators left abruptly and mysteriously in 2010. Both cited the presence of a nondisclosure agreement, which appears also at play in the Colson matter. Nothing has come out about the Waianae matter, either.
One has to wonder just how much money it took for these highly regarded administrators to keep everything under their hat.
With the upmost respect to Hugh… he needs to realize that NEWS printed in a newspaper a day later then things happen… can’t possibly be news.
Many of us folks who have blogs on the Big Island don’t get paid for what we do… nor have the time to research the things paid journalists should or can do at times.
Press Releases fill a void on my blog that our local papers can’t even fill at times in the printed press!