The story of Ruth Snyder The year is 1928. You’re assigned to cover the execution of a convicted...

The story of Ruth Snyder

• The year is 1928. You’re assigned to cover the execution of a convicted murderer. Your newspaper is fighting a “circulation war.” This is your chance to scoop the competition. The execution is set for tonight. How will you cover the story?• Get a great artist to sketch the electric chair execution• Sneak a hidden camera in and photograph and moment of

death• Get there early and interview the family of the victim

The New York Daily News chose option #2

• On January 12th, 1928, Ruth Snyder, a New York woman convicted of murdering her husband, was electrocuted at Sing Sing Prison.

• Tom Howard, then photographer for the Chicago Tribune, was “imported” by the New York Daily News so he could sit, unrecognized, with newspaper reporters at the execution.

• Howard had a miniature camera strapped to his ankle. He photographed the electrocution, pulling off the most famous sneak shot in journalism.

• The Daily News splashed the picture across the front page with the screaming headline, “DEAD!” The paper sold a million extra copies, double its normal newsstand sales.

• This sensational coverage was widely condemned, but not among Daily News readers; only a handful wrote to complain.

• This incident led prison officials nationwide to tighten surveillance of all who witness executions. No state then or now has allowed the photographing of executions, but some journalists keep asking for permission. They argue that people have a right to witness the death penalty in operation.

Terror in Oklahoma City

• A powerful bomb has ripped through a large federal building. Hundreds of people are feared dead. You are a network news producer. People want to know who did this. Federal agents and terrorism experts say the blast has the mark of Islamic fundamentalists. The FBI is looking for dark-skinned men of Mideast origin. What do you do?• Get the story out right now. Experts say fundamentalists did

it. Help the FBI catch them• Air the search for suspects but keep digging for facts; don’t

just quote speculation.

The media chose #1; the actual bomber was Timothy McVeigh, a US born white male

• April 19th, 1995; shortly after 9 a.m., a bomb ripped the north face off the nine-story federal building; hundreds of people were injured; 168 died.• The governor said the FBI was looking for 3 people in a

brown pickup truck, all reported to be of Middle East origin. Within hours, a former Oklahoma congressman appeared on national television to say that the most likely suspects were Islamic radicals. News media immediately quoted “terrorism experts” who compared this bombing with the 1993 World Trade Center blast, which was carried out by an Islamic group.• Ibraham Ahmad was an Oklahoma city computer

technician who happened to by flying to Jordan to see his family when he suddenly became a suspect in the bombing. Ahmad was stopped in London and questioned by the FBI. He was arrested, handcuffed and flown back to the US, where his computer equipment was searched and he endured more interrogation before being released.

• Muslims and Arab-Americans were declared guilty of the Oklahoma City bombing almost from the beginning; there were bomb threats, harassing phone calls and vandalism against Muslim groups, mosques and Arab-Americans throughout the United States.• Just two days after the bombing, federal authorities arrested 27

year old Timothy McVeigh, a white American who was a decorated Army veteran with ties to paramilitary groups. • At the time, there was shock that such deadly sabotage had no

foreign origin or foreign face. Journalists were accused of everything from arrogance to prejudice. Arab-American groups said news reports perpetuated ethnic stereotyping.• Many codes of ethics say that journalists should avoid

stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion, ethnicity or geography and should only identify people by race, creed or nationality when it is relevant. The codes also say journalists should admit mistakes and correct them promptly.

Watergate’s “Deep Throat”

• You’re the publisher of a big-city newspaper. Your investigation of a huge political scandal is based on the work of two young reporters. They have a source who refuses to be name. So far, all his facts check out but now he’s implicating the president. The stakes are high. Can you continue to stand by an anonymous source?• No. An anonymous source may lie. Get your facts on the

record• Yes. The only way to get the truth is by protecting your

source.• Yes but confirm his facts with other sources before printing

them.

The media chose #2

• Following a break-in at the Democratic National headquarters in the Watergate office complex in June 1972, The Washington Post began its long and persistent coverage of the greatest political scandal in American history.• The two young reporters credited with this story were

Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward. Woodward had a secret source in the executive branch. The source’s identity remained a mystery and Woodward promised never to reveal the source’s name and never to quote him, even as an anonymous source. The source guided the reporters y confirming some facts and revealing others. • In journalism jargon, using a source means that

discussions are on “deep background.” Thus, the nickname for Woodward’s famous Watergate source: ‘Deep Throat”.

• The use of anonymous sources is hotly debated. Those who use them say people will never tell the whole truth unless they are protected from retaliation. Those who don’t use them say unnamed sources can misuse their shield of anonymity.• Although codes of ethics say keeping secrets is often a necessary

part of a reporter’s job, the codes also advise journalists to question sources’ motives before promising anonymity. Once granted, sources might manipulate reporters for their own ends. Some news organizations have policies requiring reporters to identify sources.• In the case of Watergate, The Washington Post had a rule: All

leads had to be confirmed by two sources. Executive Editor Ben Bradlee later recalled that many people wondered how they printed the stories, however he replied he knew the information was correct.• Leads from “Deep Throat” as well as other well-protected sources

consistently check out. Tapes of Nixon’s conversations show that The Washington Post was right.

“Dateline NBC”

• You’re a producer of a network news magazine. You’ve learned about a teenager who died in a fiery crash. A design defect in his pickup truck is suspected. Telling this story might save lives, but after repeated attempts, you can’t get one of these trucks to explode. It isn’t good TV without riveting video. What do you do?• Scrap the story. The truck won’t blow up, maybe it’s safe.• Rig the pickup to explode, the story is important and video is

crucial• Rig the explosion video, but admit that it’s a “simulation”

Dateline chose option #2

• On November 17th, 1992, “Dateline NBC” reported that older model General Motors pickup trucks can explode on side impact. NBC reported that GM knew the pickups had a design defect. The network aired claims that this defect led to the death of a teenager.• The “Dateline NBC” broadcast featured alarming video of a pickup truck

exploding into flames.• General Motors sued NBC; the pickups are safe they claimed.• Reluctantly, “Dateline NBC” producers admitted they had faked the

explosion. Producers rigged pickups with tiny rockets and sparking devices. Yet, when the video aired on “Dateline”, there was no explanation of how the vehicle had been ignited.• GM dropped its lawsuit after NBC agreed to give the automaker $2

million and make an on-air apology. NBC conducted its own inquiry into the embarrassing episode. Several people left the network, including the president of NBC News, who resigned to “take the spotlight off.”• In 1996, GM agreed to settle dozens of class-action lawsuits by giving

every owner of the estimated 5 million 1973-1987 pickups still on the road a $1,000 certificate toward the purchase of a new vehicle.