Editorial: What You Will, and Will Not, See in the Ledger

I had an experience on Monday while covering the horrific bus vs van accident. The incident is something I cannot ignore and is what spurred this editorial.

In February 2009, Dallice Smith was killed in a car accident on Highway 69. She was a friend, a former teammate on softball leagues, and someone the majority of our community knew by sight.

At the time of her death, I worked at the Ledger. When news of her accident broke, the former owner and Editor of the Ledger chose to run photos of the scene. I disagreed with his decision, but I was not the owner and it was not my decision to make. Letters to the Editor came in the following week, one from a business owner and resident of Whitehall. It stated, “I think people would rather have a small-town newspaper filled with local happenings, sports, happy events, and yes, even report on the tragedy, but do so as if it were your own family involved. Be thoughtful in your reporting and photography. Let people show compassion for those involved as they grieve, so they may begin to heal.” This statement stuck with me. The Editor’s choice to print photos of a fatal accident was one of the catalysts to my departure from the Ledger.

As a weekly newspaper, nothing is late-breaking. The Ledger isn’t a newspaper that makes its name by being controversial, late-breaking, or left/right swinging. The Ledger is a local, homegrown paper where you can find information about your local community that you can find nowhere else. When I purchased the paper in January, several people laughed at my decision and asked why I would go into a dying art. Yes, the internet makes news ready the minute it happens, but it doesn’t show what is happening locally at the school, the senior center, etc. That’s my job.

My job is also to respect the community. The accident that happened this Monday was newsworthy, yes. Were photos needed to show a fatality? No. Granted, this is only my opinion. But, as the owner of this newspaper, my opinion is also my prerogative. And yes, I believe that anyone taking photos of a fatal accident and using the guise of “I’m press” is in the wrong. KPAX, KXLF, KBZK...all of them ran stories about Monday’s accident. NONE of them ran a photo. None.

I feel that there are ethics that one must understand to earn the title of PRESS. Yes, our first amendment guarantees freedom of the press. Freedom of the press is the right to publish content deemed legal without interference from the government. As defined by the government, free expression by journalists, or by anyone with access to the equivalent of a printing press, is a cornerstone principle of our republic. This, when it was written, did not account for someone who writes a blog or uses social media to air their opinions. However, that is what “freedom of press” has come to in this day and age.

Upon hearing of the accident, I tried contacting Sheriff Craig Doolittle to get specifics. Was there a fatality? What could they tell me? Was anyone local involved? I did this because I had over three dozen phone calls within minutes of a Facebook post detailing the accident. Parents were calling me to find out if their child, who left for school early, was in the accident. Concerned residents were asking whether the bus driver was alright. Travelers wondered if the accident had been called in; later drivers asked why the road was closed.

I was unable to reach Doolittle, so I ventured to one of the roadblocks and asked if it would be possible to get a statement from one of the onsite deputies or fire department. Hesitantly they escorted me to the scene, which was hellish at best. I immediately found out a fatality had occurred, and immediately I noted to all that I had no desire to take photos.

However, a local gentleman had followed me and my travel escort to the scene. He immediately jumped out of his vehicle, ran to the scene, and started taking photos. An onsite worker approached him where he then said he was with me, but then also stated he was “independent press.” When I clarified that he was not with me and asked why he had followed my escort, which I had gotten through my press credentials and the promise to not release anything unless approved, and the gentleman became irate at my decision to not photograph the situation.

I get it. Freedom of press. You believe you are press. But again, my opinion, the title of press comes with responsibility. Where were you going to post those photos? To your own private Facebook page? Did you consider that this was a fatality and that the next of kin had not been notified? Did you take into consideration that a local bus driver and her child had just gone through an incredible ordeal? No, you told me I wasn’t taking photos of the story and told me to shut up.

The Ledger will never print fatality photos. This town is my community, my home, and its residents are my family. This is the same reason the Ledger does not charge for obituaries.

I feel this needs to be said, on the record in print, as I have heard this gentleman has eluded to working for a paper and as “independent press.” At this time, I am the only reporter for the Whitehall Ledger. Charles Shank, Kristine Erinn, and others write human interest pieces for the Ledger; they do not cover any items that would require press credentials. I also do not and will never buy photos of accidents, etc.

Press credentials are in jeopardy. The media has become so biased left or right that we have become an uninformed public. The public has lost their trust in the media. The media has lost the public’s respect. Journalism should be unbiased. And ethical.

My press pass is my lifeline. It helps me get the exact details from qualified sources, and I don’t have to rely on the rumor mill to get the story. My reputation in this community is also incredibly important to me. My livelihood is important to me.

So, Mr. Independent Press, please cease and desist from including the Ledger in any of your forays. A formal letter will be served to you shortly.