Friday, May 26, 2006

Pubic Library...Yes, I meant it.

You'll have to forgive me but I'm piggy-backing this blog idea off of the TVPhotogBlog website. Chris Weaver posted this originally and I think it was a great idea. Since it's my station that aired the story by Carl Monday, our investigative reporter at WKYC, the link was posted to b-roll.net. I guess I didn't post a link to it because I've seen it a good amount of times.

A lot of people at b-roll are bashing this as trash journalism and such. Yes, it was indeed a sweeps piece. Was the story aired to draw ratings? Of course it was. That's what sweeps is about. But I ask you, in your local market, don't the stations do similar types of stories? Undercover video, confrontational scenes by the investigative reporter and reports of the same genre? If you say a station doesn't, I'm calling bullshit. All stations do it in one form or another and none are above it.

Where's the outrage about Dateline's TO CATCH A PREDATOR? Oh that's right. If it's the network doing it, then their shit doesn't stink. Or course not, it's good journalism? I mean the Cleveland story used a black and white undercover camera. The Dateline story wires a whole house with color cameras and works in conjunction with local law enforcement authorities.

If this was happening in your local library, and don't be pollyannaish as to think that it doesn't, wouldn't you like to know? Wouldn't you like to know if someone like the adult man beating off at the table in the Cleveland story, might be a threat to your children when you take them to the library?

I didn't shoot the story but to ML and Carl, a very good job.


As seen on Break.com

2 comments:

turdpolisher said...

I think you guys did a good job on the story until you brought the guy's family into it. Ole Mom and Dad may have raised a habitual skippy-whipper, but they didn't do anything wrong. That confrontation was gratuitous. But again, a good job uncovering a dirty little library secret.

Widescreen said...

Interesting story. I am glad that someone like that is exposed, pardon the pun, but did not see the point in visiting the parents. When the story went to air, I am sure that would have been difficult enough as it was.

Clearly he was not 'all there' and I felt that made for an easy target for the reporter. It would have been nice to see an interview with a community based group or similar that would have been able to offer help for this young man.

I dont recall the connection to children? I think that his behaviour would be offensive to anyone and there was no mention as to whether his site were of child porn.

Lastly, our library blocks acesss to those types of sites. Why does not this Library?

BTW thanks for you post on my blog.