The online newspaper of Canyon High School

The Eagle's Tale

The online newspaper of Canyon High School

The Eagle's Tale

The online newspaper of Canyon High School

The Eagle's Tale

Local news station chooses sensationalism over sound news judgement

Canyon High was in the news on two different stations this week.

Channel 7 reported on the $11,000 donation to the school’s FFA chapter.

Channel 10 chose to report a completely different story. They took the mistakes of two teachers and turned them into a muckraking campaign against the school. This is most certainly not a picture of journalistic integrity, but an example of sensationalism overcoming sound news judgment.

The station’s premature coverage caused all kinds of rumors to circulate among students. The news made it seem as though these sorts of things are a common occurrence among the faculty members. Many people also did not appreciate the fact that the station felt the need to film in front of the school for both segments, as if the school were a symbol of the alleged wrongdoing of these two faculty members.

Four month-old news is not breaking news. The fact that Channel 10 even bothered to go and dig up the information shows that they are not looking to report the truth and inform the people. They are simply looking to throw mud at a school known for success and high standards.

None of the other news stations covered the story in depth because they both knew that not all the information into the matter had been released. They may cover it later, but not until the matter has been investigated and confirmed.

Next time, Channel 10 should think and use better judgment before they decide to air a story, especially one that is old news and another that is still under investigation.

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  • T

    The Red ShadowMar 9, 2010 at 2:29 pm

    Well, yeah, News Channel 10 is gonna choose what gets more viewers. They say they have the largest viewing audience in the entire Texas Panhandle, and apparently, they want to keep it so bad, they’ll get whatever scandalous story there is, especially if it’s dirt on an esteemed school such as ours. Plus, that whole deal on a coach a day after the segment on a teacher just screams the fact they’ve waited for something to tarnish our school. Otherwise, they would have reported on the coach’s resignation when it happened.

    Sensational old news and sensational new news. Yeah, that makes for a great system that will totally put News Channel 10 on top.

    Reply
  • J

    JamesMar 5, 2010 at 4:28 pm

    I was so horribly disappointed by the news coverage provided by NewsChannel 10 this week. It’s not that I think the unfortunate situations need to be swept under the rug, but that there needs to be full and complete reporting. Ethical journalism sometimes demands pushing back a report until a complete and fair picture can be constructed. It seems like NewsChannel 10 and Megan Moore in particular were more concerned with doing a “live” report in the wind in front of CHS than with producing a coherent and thoughtfully research piece of journalism to offer to their audience. Doing a spot “on location” offered nothing of substance to the story — was she expecting live footage of a perp walk?

    I was particularly disturbed by the unspoken insinuation that there was some kind of coverup involved. Never mind that the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) specifically exempts the release of employee disciplinary files in these kinds of investigations. It’s just a lot more fun to subtly (or not-so-subtly, as the case may be) hint that CISD is hiding the truth than researching the educational code and case law to see exactly what can be legally and responsibly released to the media.

    As with all broadcast journalism, NewsChannel 10 is selling a product. Part of that product is a dedication to ethical reporting. They will not be the recipient of my patronage any longer and I encourage everyone to decide if they are worthy of the public trust to which they lay claim.

    Reply
    • J

      JamesMar 5, 2010 at 4:43 pm

      Additionally, I want to say thanks to the staff of the Eagles Tale. Clearly these young journalists have a more firm grasp on responsible reporting than Megan Moore. Way to go!

      Reply