An Editor’s Note
A response to “Majority of students unaware of Student Patrol program”
December 2, 2014
I would like to point out a few things regarding the reporting of the story, “Majority of students unaware of Student Patrol program,” published on Dec. 2.
First off, I as Editor In Chief reserve the right to post what I feel will not only bring readers to The Spectator, but also to inform and educate our number one audience, which is the student body at UW-Eau Claire.
I felt this story, written by a freelancer reporting for an intermediate journalism class, was informative for students to see that such a program exists.
However, I am fully aware of the difficulties in the reporting of this story, and I know of the hardships this caused some sources both on and off campus.
While I believe in our code of ethics to seek the truth and report it, I also believe in human dignity, and I think this got a little lost in this particular case.
In this intermediate journalism course, each student is assigned a story that has a chance to be published in The Spectator or on its website. The professor of the course only grades these stories when they are successfully published.
This reporter had no association in his reporting with the organization. Had someone on staff performed similar actions, there would have been repercussions. I would like to make that abundantly clear.
I and our faculty advisor had what we thought were positive and instructive meetings with this reporter, and our hope is that he has learned how to effectively communicate with his sources.
Once again, to those who were negatively affected by the reporter’s tactics, we as an organization do not condone some of his methods of getting information.
Thank you for understanding, and please feel free to speak to me with any additional concerns. I truly appreciated your communication in this process. Thank you, and please, continue to have faith in the strides we are making to improving The Spectator.
