News
ENLARGE
There are always lessons to be learned - even at the ivory tower of the fourth estate.
Sean Taylor is a good example.
In the 24-hour news cycle we all enjoy that involves up-to-the minute news alerts and all-day sports talk, speculation and reporting oftentimes blend together. By no means, is it right or should be purported as such.
When Taylor was shot in the early hours of Monday, Nov. 26, the reporting on the event was merciless. To be blunt, it was irresponsible. And the majority of the blame I direct squarely upon the Associated Press.
From the earliest version of the Associated Press' story - totaling 17 different versions before Taylor was pronounced dead - teammates, friends and associates of Taylor were forced to defend the player's character from assassination because of the way he was perceived in the media.
Particularly, references to his late hits, missing his rookie symposium, spitting in the face of another player, an acquitted DUI and an incident in which he brandished a gun and for which he received 18 months probation.
By all means, it was perceived by the balance of this background information, in contrast with actual reporting, that Taylor's latest brush with violence must have been a circumstance he brought upon himself due to the lifestyle he lived on and off the field.
And by all accounts, that version was wrong.
When I say wrong, I don't mean inaccurate. Every fact reported was true to its word, deeds in which Taylor took part and later regretted. But at the core, what was wrong was that a father, a brother, a son, a fiancé and a young man did not get a clean shake.
No, he was lumped in with the rest of the degenerates because it's easier to group violent crimes with violent people than it is to look at the situation in its context.
Taylor, simply, had been the victim of a home invasion robbery, which is something almost as common as apple pie. Now, four young men have been charged with his murder in what has been reported a robbery gone bad. Taylor died hoping to protect his home, girlfriend and infant daughter.
Looking back, no late hit, no fine, no spitting incident, no acquitted DUI and no rookie symposium had anything to do with Taylor's murder.
No, those details are the result of "drive-by" journalism, in which we (as the media) attach random pieces of information to the next story, hoping to fill space and make deadline. Unfortunately, not much thought is put into fairness, which contrasts heavily with the truth or facts. Because the fact is, Taylor was a good son, a changed man by reported accounts, a loving father and a life taken too soon.
He was not a bad person, deserving of salt in his wounds before he died. Salt that would later spur the likes of sports writers across the nation, including myself, to cry foul on his behalf.
Much has been made of what I've said about the reporting in the aftermath of Sean Taylor's murder. I know the e-mails have been endless. Who the hell cares what a small-town sports writer has to say about some murder all the way in Florida?
To be short, everyone, because it affects every community with violence. It affects this entire country. And when the press gets it wrong, or are unfair, we (as the media) should be held accountable with sharp tongues, angry letters and open apologies.
I was quoted by Richard Prince of the Maynard Institute, for his "Journal-sims" online column last week, which was subsequently picked up by the Poynter Institute's Jim Romenesko. To sum up the majority of my comments, it was jacked up. "I mean, there's obviously a list out on everybody that's done anything wrong, waiting to be attached to the person's next scandalous story," I said. "Well there's no scandal here, just tragedy. And I feel that Taylor's memory right now is being done a disservice ..."
Consider this my letter, a declaration that it is not OK to assassinate anyone's character without knowing anything about them because there are a thousand other Sean Taylor's out there who die every day. They are delivery boys, waitresses, mechanics, plumbers, teachers, doctors, lawyers and sports writers. They are brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, fathers and mothers. And they are never forgotten.
In one short way, we can honor a slain football player and right the errors that have wronged a dead man, by being judicial in our reporting. But more or less, by being fair to those who can't speak for themselves because, literally, they may be unconscious.
ooo
Zuri Berry is a sports writer at The Union. His column appears Wednesdays. Contact him via e-mail at zberry@theunion.com or by phone at 477-4244. You can also read his blog online at TheUnion.com.
On the net:
http://www.maynardije.org/columns/dickprince/071127_prince/
Sean Taylor is a good example.
In the 24-hour news cycle we all enjoy that involves up-to-the minute news alerts and all-day sports talk, speculation and reporting oftentimes blend together. By no means, is it right or should be purported as such.
When Taylor was shot in the early hours of Monday, Nov. 26, the reporting on the event was merciless. To be blunt, it was irresponsible. And the majority of the blame I direct squarely upon the Associated Press.
From the earliest version of the Associated Press' story - totaling 17 different versions before Taylor was pronounced dead - teammates, friends and associates of Taylor were forced to defend the player's character from assassination because of the way he was perceived in the media.
Particularly, references to his late hits, missing his rookie symposium, spitting in the face of another player, an acquitted DUI and an incident in which he brandished a gun and for which he received 18 months probation.
By all means, it was perceived by the balance of this background information, in contrast with actual reporting, that Taylor's latest brush with violence must have been a circumstance he brought upon himself due to the lifestyle he lived on and off the field.
And by all accounts, that version was wrong.
When I say wrong, I don't mean inaccurate. Every fact reported was true to its word, deeds in which Taylor took part and later regretted. But at the core, what was wrong was that a father, a brother, a son, a fiancé and a young man did not get a clean shake.
No, he was lumped in with the rest of the degenerates because it's easier to group violent crimes with violent people than it is to look at the situation in its context.
Taylor, simply, had been the victim of a home invasion robbery, which is something almost as common as apple pie. Now, four young men have been charged with his murder in what has been reported a robbery gone bad. Taylor died hoping to protect his home, girlfriend and infant daughter.
Looking back, no late hit, no fine, no spitting incident, no acquitted DUI and no rookie symposium had anything to do with Taylor's murder.
No, those details are the result of "drive-by" journalism, in which we (as the media) attach random pieces of information to the next story, hoping to fill space and make deadline. Unfortunately, not much thought is put into fairness, which contrasts heavily with the truth or facts. Because the fact is, Taylor was a good son, a changed man by reported accounts, a loving father and a life taken too soon.
He was not a bad person, deserving of salt in his wounds before he died. Salt that would later spur the likes of sports writers across the nation, including myself, to cry foul on his behalf.
Much has been made of what I've said about the reporting in the aftermath of Sean Taylor's murder. I know the e-mails have been endless. Who the hell cares what a small-town sports writer has to say about some murder all the way in Florida?
To be short, everyone, because it affects every community with violence. It affects this entire country. And when the press gets it wrong, or are unfair, we (as the media) should be held accountable with sharp tongues, angry letters and open apologies.
I was quoted by Richard Prince of the Maynard Institute, for his "Journal-sims" online column last week, which was subsequently picked up by the Poynter Institute's Jim Romenesko. To sum up the majority of my comments, it was jacked up. "I mean, there's obviously a list out on everybody that's done anything wrong, waiting to be attached to the person's next scandalous story," I said. "Well there's no scandal here, just tragedy. And I feel that Taylor's memory right now is being done a disservice ..."
Consider this my letter, a declaration that it is not OK to assassinate anyone's character without knowing anything about them because there are a thousand other Sean Taylor's out there who die every day. They are delivery boys, waitresses, mechanics, plumbers, teachers, doctors, lawyers and sports writers. They are brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, fathers and mothers. And they are never forgotten.
In one short way, we can honor a slain football player and right the errors that have wronged a dead man, by being judicial in our reporting. But more or less, by being fair to those who can't speak for themselves because, literally, they may be unconscious.
ooo
Zuri Berry is a sports writer at The Union. His column appears Wednesdays. Contact him via e-mail at zberry@theunion.com or by phone at 477-4244. You can also read his blog online at TheUnion.com.
On the net:
http://www.maynardije.org/columns/dickprince/071127_prince/
