Setting the record straight

May 04, 2008 01:47 pm

— Allow us to set the “record” straight. A local news organization attacked the Laurel Leader-Call this week for “picking and choosing” who appears in the arrest report.
The policy of this newspaper has not changed — and will never change — in regards to who is arrested and their name released on the jail docket. IT WILL RUN IN THE PAPER. PERIOD.
We do agree with them that “the absolute cornerstone of any successful newspaper is integrity.” But there is another important facet of the media — getting your facts straight before putting it in the paper.
Here are the facts:
We receive a daily arrest report from the Jones County Sheriff’s Office that is usually e-mailed. The person who normally e-mails the arrest report to us was not in that day, so it was faxed to us, along with the weekly Public Record. Our reporter who types the Public Record inadvertently included the daily report into the Public Record which appeared in the Wednesday, April 30 paper. The arrested person in question should have had their name in the paper last week, but it appeared in this week on Wednesday, April 30 in the Public Record. The person in question’s name was published in the LL-C even before the issue was put to a question through the other publication.
People can say a lot of things about Laurel’s daily newspaper and they’re entitled to their opinion. But when the integrity, ethics, credibility and character of the people who work here is publicly questioned, I take offense and will defend them.

— Rob Sigler, editor
Laurel Leader-Call