Wednesday, November 19, 2008

How Far Will You Go To Get A Story, Part II?

IN CASE YOU ZONED when Barry Levine mentioned the lengths his reporters went to track down John Edwards, this clip explains the event.

Did the reporters go too far in hounding Edwards through the Beverly Hills Hotel, chasing him into a bathroom? Or is that good dogged journalism?

16 comments:

Joe said...

As awful as terrorizing people for information may seem, Edwards is a "public figure" and is fair game and we have a right to know and all of that. So I guess it's good dogged journalism but I'm sure there's lots of gray areas that one could spend hours dissecting... is there a right anymore?

p.s. I said I was appreciative, did I not?!

Anonymous said...

I think were kind of doing a public a favor. First of all Edwards is an asshole for cheating on his wife who has cancer for the second time. at least let her die first. secondly its something the public needs and wants to know if he cheated. it definitely effected his campaign and people cared. nobody wants a president to be controversial and have some baggage behind him while he is in office especially when he is spending money from the campaign to hide his immoral actions.

Anonymous said...

I don't think good journalism has to be this intrusive..but maybe I'm just naive? Having the facts straight is important, but hunting someone down for them is too much. Especially in this case, a politician's private life is not something the people have the "right" to know of. Yes he is a public figure and what he is doing is wrong, but this wrongdoing doesn't affect his relation to us, the public, and is therefore not fair game for us to report and judge.

Anonymous said...

While hunting people down and barricading them in a bathroom is intrusive and kind of insane, this man was running to be the PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES. Why shouldn't he be attacked until he finally confessed his wrongdoings? He was going to serve our country and be a man American citizens looked up to, yet he was lying to his cancer-stricken wife! A public figure DOES have a relation to us..because we are the public. He is a figure to US and if he can't even uphold his martial responsibilities, how will he uphold his responsibilities to us? I think it's important to go to extreme lengths to get a story out there, especially one as important as this. While the Enquirer is known for celebrity news above all else, it does provide good stories occasionally. How many of you would follow this story, only to give up when the man wouldn't confess after so long? I hope nobody. I hope any good journalist would hound someone until the truth came out, because that's what the public needs to hear. I applaud the reporters who cracked this story and made the truth known.

Kierra Ray said...

I think it is an invasion of space.

But this man did put himself in the public eye to be elected president. And being president, you're going to be harshly criticized because you are an icon of America and the American people.

So, the people are going to want to know every detail of John Kerry's life. Especially if he's having an affair and cheating on his cancer-strucken wife.

And journalism's first loyalty is to its citizens.

So I guess it was the National Enquirer's duty to hound Kerry and chase him around for the public's sake.

Anonymous said...

Actually, it was John Edwards but I still agree with you :)

Jah Mez said...

I believe so. What else is there to find out about this man? We already know what happened. We know the who his mistress is, and we know she is going to have his child. Its to the point where its becoming very embarrassing for him. But, then you look on the other side of the coin and ask is this what he deserves for cheating on his wife? No, nobody deserves that

Gabrielle Clark said...

It`s good doggone journalism.. it would`ve been even better if it was for something important like embezzlement, fraud or something on a less personal level and had more to do with the American people. I think if it wasn`t about something "juicy", the Enquirer would`ve cared less and wouldn`t have gone to these extremes. While I`ll give it a pass because his personal life is fair game [he was running for POTUS] I`m not gonna go out on a limb and give the Enquirer a standing ovation..

Megan McCue Journalism said...

I'm don't think it was right and kind of borderline harrassment.

flyydude19 said...

Journalism is a tough profession. The obligation of a journalist is to the truth and nothing else. If that means acting a little devious than so be it.

Anonymous said...

Well, Edwards not only put himself in that position by becoming a public figure, but he aslo by cheating on his ill wife. The Inquirer needed proof to back up previous stories so that it would not lose credibility. They were doing what they had to do... it's not like they hid in his closet. It was sneaky yes, but it was also good journalism.
Nikki Allen J1111

Anonymous said...

You don't like someone asking you a question? Don't answer it.




I honestly have nothing else to say about him. Other than the fact that I had always sorta put Edwards on a pedestal. But that shit crumbled to dust months ago.

Catherine Cannon said...

There is no question in my mind. This is riduclous. Everyone has a right to privacy and to not be hounded. I don't care if he's a public figure, his rights weren't stripped away because he held a political office and people know who he is.

Have some class people. You can get a story in many less menacing ways.

Anonymous said...

This is non way good dogged journalism. This has become the bottom of the pit poor paparazzi and is ridiculous. The only thing I can think of in favor of the journalists who covered the story was that he must be guilty to run, but hey, I would run away from a camera man who is trying to stalk me!

Genevia said...

The reporters went toooo damn far. I could understand if they were trying to get the scoop on national security issues or something else of great importance, but they were not. They were looking to get information about celebrity gossip... Who the hell cares about his affair? It's sad to say, but that's sometimes or most times politics and Hollywood in a nutshell. In reality, the same stuff happens everyday to other people. Why should this time be any different? Because he's John Edwards? Who the hell is John Edwards? NOBODY! And, even if he was somebody, there's still no point in jumping off cliffs to get the "celebrity news!" There regular ass people.

Anonymous said...

The reporters went extremely to far. Seriously, why would you hunt someone down like that? When he told us this story I was shocked. Theres a difference between trying to get a story and plain stalking somebody. What Levine and his reporters did was ridiculous. Why is he so obsessed with Edwards? Theres other things that are more important to report about than an affair and at the end of the day, how many people really cared about this affair anyway? Seriously, what they went through for that story annoyed me. The way they were so pressed about that story made it seem like he was hiding some great secret from the world that could destroy all of mankind.