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Topic: Letters Sent to Romenesko
Date/Time: 7/29/2005 10:16:19 AM
Title: Subject: An apology to journalism
Posted By: Jim Romenesko
 
From JEFF SYKES, former Reidsville Review editor: I do not intend to defend the bad decision I made to not fire my two staff members when they came to me on July 6 and admitted that they had falsified quotes in a man on the street item that runs in the paper every day. It was the wrong decision. I more than anyone knows that. I would like to simply just shed some light on the decision.

They were two of the best and hardest working reporters I had recruited here to our group of two daily and one weekly newspapers. This group of newspapers has struggled mightily to recruit and retain capable journalists who understand what it means to report and write and dig.

Earlier in the day I had a disagreement with my publisher and some advertising staff over the independence of the editorial department and what should be an ethical wall between advertising and news. I was upset at the path the paper was taking, thinking about resigning, and not wanting to talk with superiors anymore.

In the heat of the battle when these two came to me and told me their sins, I made the wrong decision and decided that these two were worth a second chance. I verbally reproached them in the strongest terms and told them each they should note a verbal warning and would be immediately fired if any other breaches were revealed.

The next day we had tornado warnings here and we were again in the flow of news and working hard, all of us, to cover the news for the readers.

I never thought about their sins again until the mighty sword of journalistic morality fell upon me Tuesday.

I did not believe that a two cent item that runs with an ad on the front page was part of the editorial responsibility and that the breach of trust was not one of journalism ethics, but of being forced in a small market to do leg work for other departments, such as advertising, etc. I am certain, because of the vocal support I received from our sources, that there will never be any proof that these reporters did anything unethical in a bylined or staff report item.

I understand the factors that caused this story to spread across the globe and embarrass the paper, which has 50 great employees, and shame the company it is owned by. At the time of the decision, I felt that compassion and a second chance to overcome their failure was in order. I was wrong.

I made the mistake in judgment to give them a second chance and for that I apologize to everyone who reads this note.

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