The 4 mistakes of the Journal News

Washington Post ^ | 1/3/13 | Erik Wemple

[Impala64ssa]

The suburban New York-based Journal News published on Dec. 23 a story headlined “The gun owner next door: What you don’t know about the weapons in your neighborhood.” It also published a map listing the names and addresses of all pistol permit holders in the New York counties of Westchester and Rockland. The map alone prompted a level of outrage that all but dominated the media-criticism world over the holidays. Herewith a look at Journal News’s four mistakes:
Mistake No. 1: Here’s Our Statement!: A word of advice for Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino. And for Westchester County Clerk Timothy Idoni. And for Rockland County Sheriff Louis Falco. And for Rockland County District 17 Legislator Nancy Low-Hogan: If the Journal News has some tough questions for you, don’t answer. Just issue a say-nothing statement and clam up. Because that’s precisely what the Journal News has done in the aftermath of its gun story-cum-map. A much-passed-around statement from Janet Hasson, president and publisher of the Journal News Media Group, offers this explanation for the story: “Frequently, the work of journalists is not popular. One of our roles is to report publicly available information on timely issues, even when unpopular. We knew publication of the database (as well as the accompanying article providing context) would be controversial, but we felt sharing information about gun permits in our area was important in the aftermath of the Newtown shootings. The Erik Wemple Blog has attempted on several occasions to pry more feedback out of the Journal News, to no effect. “No interviews,” wrote a Journal News staffer in response to a request last week from this blog. No response to another attempt made today. A news organization that behaves this way doesn’t deserve to gather the news.

[Impala64ssa]

FTA: "According to police reports on public record, Journal News Rockland Editor Caryn A. McBride was alarmed by the volume of “negative correspondence,” namely an avalanche of phone calls and emails to the Journal News office, following the newspaper’s publishing of a map of all pistol permit holders in Rockland and Westchester."

Could be that Janet Hassen is merely bucking for a Pulitzer by any means necessary.. BTW, what is the position of the Printers' union as well as the IBEW (the people who maintain the presses)and the union that represents the drivers on this debacle (Teamsters?)?

[Fraxinus]

News flash of what should be common sense: Just because you can do something does not mean you should. While understand there are good arguments for all permits being public info, publishing them in this manner is not a good idea.

[justrepublican]

That he does is a setback for public accountability.

So the Post finds it there job to hold the populous accountable for there actions?

[unixfox]

These 2 bitches need some serious payback.

I’m talking digging into their backgrounds. Have they ever been arrested? Have they ever filed bankruptcy? Ever been involved with drugs? DUI maybe? Divorced? How many times? Family issues? Oh, and where exactly do they live? Do they have pets? Do they have children? Where do they go to school? Is that school public or private? Ever owned a gun??? How bout your spouse? Or is he too much of a wimp?

I say we expose these bitches on EVERY avenue we can then publish it. Teach them and their ilk a lesson. It’s payback!

[irishtenor]

Nah, just require them to post large signs on their property claiming it to be a gun free zone.

[onona]

And they’re not backing down either.

[Morris70]

Everyone should own a gun.
How many people own shotguns and rifles but have no handguns?

[IAGeezer912]

The publisher fails to understand that their First Amendment rights are protected by the Second Amendment. Do away with the Second Amendment and the administration will impose free speech censorship on those who oppose them. Check your history books on this.

[jiggyboy]

Mistake No. 3: The map! Why would anybody protest being placed on the Journal News “interactive” maps? These things are balky, slow and unhelpful in every way imaginable. Citizens may just as easily file their own records requests as click around on the Journal News gun-map page.

It's impossible for somebody to be this obtuse and not know it. Why yes, Mister Washington Post, I think I'll ignore that map and write my own FoIA request for some semi-random area completely previously unknown to me. Then, after however many number of weeks it takes for that data to get to me, I'll type them into some map program one at a time to see what that particular house is like, and then I'll "look around" the neighborhood as well. There's an interactive map, you say? Thank you, but no -- there are some things a man has to do by himself.