There are plenty of these articles and it goes something like this. You are reading an article and 90% of the story is good, but in the interest of showing the other side, the reporter finds some random schmuck to spout some dissenting catchphrase. This person is generally introduced (not always but often) with the word BUT, and it is a big ole BUT.
This article has just been BUT-fucked.
There are two recent articles that illustrate this trend of media sodomy.
Sex Offender Registry and Community Safety: Does it Work?
By: Marci Manley, KARK 4 News
Updated: May 17, 2012
In 2010, KARK took a look at the sex offender registry system and how well it works. Changes in state law and the way information is reported had us taking another look to see if the system keeps communities safe.
"I'm a level three, which is called a high risk sex offender," he said across the desk.
Robert Combs is required to check in with Little Rock Police every six months to make sure they know where he lives.
"I think we have to step back from that one-size fits all approach to the way we deal with people on the registry," Combs said.
Combs is a Level III sex offender, but he's also the Executive Director of an advocacy group for sex offenders in the Natural State, called Arkansas Time After Time, pushing for fewer barriers for some offenders.
"It's the knee-jerk reaction to pass further laws like residency restrictions that people think it's going to make communities safer but really it makes communities less safe," he said.
His reasoning? Combs said the restrictions on residency make finding a house, a job, or a normal existence next to impossible, so some offenders will try to skirt the system.
"It's harder for their probation parole officer and their supervising team to watch them," Combs said. "They'll move to the countryside and if they're in the city they will go underground. That actually makes communities less safe."
Paula Stitz, the Arkansas Sex Offender Registry manager, disagrees. (Here is the "but fucking")She said two major strides in the past year have made the Sex Offender Registry more efficient and more capable of keeping communities informed.
"You can't tell me having the registry does not save people's lives," she said. "I know, I hear stories every day, where it has and continues to keep people safe. Information is power. Sex offenders have relied on our hesitancy to say the word sex or sex offender. It allowed them to stay in the dark. But now, this system is shining a light on them, and they don't care for that. It doesn't really allow them to live the lifestyle they want to live."
EXAMPLE #2: http://www.wktv.com/news/local/Woman-engaged-to-sex-offender-registry-ruined-our-life-143561776.html
Woman engaged to sex offender: registry ruined our life
By HILARY LANE
Story Created: Mar 20, 2012 at 6:19 PM EDT
Story Updated: Mar 20, 2012 at 6:19 PM EDT
ONEIDA, N.Y. (WKTV) - A woman engaged to a man who committed a sex crime is calling for the New York State Sex Offender Registry to be eliminated.
Shana Rowan's fiance committed a sex crime in 2004 and served four years in jail. Now her fiance's name is cemented in the New York State Sex Offender Registry forever and Rowan says it is impossible for them to move on.
"As long as the registry exists, I am always going to be living in fear," said Rowan. "I already had my car vandalized. My car is on the registry since he drives it. My neighbors won't talk to us, they think we are scum, and I never know how long my relationships are going to last. I never know if they are going to find out and think that he is scum and decide I am not worth it."
Rowan has now dedicated her life to advocating for families of sex offenders tormented by the registry and openly talks about these issues on her blog: iloveasexoffender.blogspot.com
"We don't believe sex crimes shouldn't be punished. We don't believe it is okay. We are not condoning it," said Rowan. "All we are promoting is safety and equality for families. All families. Part of that is allowing families of registrants to be safe in their homes."
(Here comes the BUT-fucking)
Richard Ferrucci, Senior Investigator for the District Attorney's Office, said the Sex Offender Registry is vital to society.
"The public has the right to know these people were dangerous, probably still are dangerous, or can be dangerous in the future to young children," said Ferrucci. "Children don't really have a means to protect themselves. By having a means to access information that is out there about crimes these people commit is paramount to keep their children safe."
I each example, the big BUT comes in the form of two people, Paula Stitz and Richard Ferrucci. Stitz is a disgraced police chief who was fired over corruption yet got a job with Arkansas sex offender registry. Richard Ferrucci, who is this clown? What is his credentials?
In each story, the focus of the article was supposed to be collateral consequences of life on the registry, the impact of life on the registry, BUT(fucked) then, someone pulls out the big BUT and fucked the entire article. What was the article about again?
The position of the big BUT is important, because for those who don't simply read the headline and actually take the time to read the article will remember the BUT because it is usually at the end of the article. So the article looks more like this:
The real story is this person we inconvenienced to tell his/her important story, BUT! This random expert spouts a myth and this person is important so listen to this random expert and fuck the first person.
This is your media article on the sex offender issue in a nutshell.
I'm not sure what to offer by way of remedy but Tom Madison, former CEO of SOClear Media, came up with this term in a recent conversation and it is worthy of use. I have been a victim of media sodomy as well. The media will approach me for an interview, butter me up (oh wait is that butter or vaseline?), then when the article comes up, my story is overshadowed by someone's big fat BUT. I'm not the only one. Perhaps we should register reporters that do these things. What do you think?
I'm not sure what to offer by way of remedy but Tom Madison, former CEO of SOClear Media, came up with this term in a recent conversation and it is worthy of use. I have been a victim of media sodomy as well. The media will approach me for an interview, butter me up (oh wait is that butter or vaseline?), then when the article comes up, my story is overshadowed by someone's big fat BUT. I'm not the only one. Perhaps we should register reporters that do these things. What do you think?
Bravo!
ReplyDeleteExcellent Derek, thank you for telling it like it is. This lovely little 'twist' the media pulls, so self-serving...certainly can't accurately give the public information, where will their profits go when it's not what the sheeple want to hear? No worry, just drop a "But - f**k" and all is remedied!
ReplyDelete