Editor’s note: This letter refers to a press release sent by the Attorney General’s office, not a staff-written bylined story, that appeared online and in the Dec. 22 edition.
Should journalists refrain from shading stories in ways that tend to convict people in the court of public opinion before they've had due process? I am commenting about your recent story: “AG: Angola man groped four during massages.”
Here’s some context: I have a wife and a daughter who I would defend with my life. I know women who have been sexually assaulted, and I’ve shared in the heartbreak of those families. I care deeply that we prosecute and punish men who in any way abuse women. That’s the antithesis of manhood, and those creeps deserve severe consequences.
And – your headline, plus the statement you provided from AG Jennings, strongly implies this man’s guilt. Full disclosure: I know the man; he is my friend. I have no special knowledge of whether the charges people have organized to bring against him have merit. Like you, I must trust the legal system to determine truth. I hope and pray they do their job well. But I can tell you this: I will be utterly shocked if we learn that he is guilty of violating women sexually or treating them inappropriately.
Earlier this week, I commended Delaware Online, in their more careful coverage of this matter than yours, for at least noting the many positive experiences hundreds of people have had with Robb Leech’s massage technique – a technique which, as I understand it, is detailed in written agreements every client signs before the services are delivered. Before you printed this story, you might have investigated whether Leech did anything that was not spelled out in these agreements. Closer scrutiny, or at least thoughtfulness, might have caused you to choose a different headline or to provide some context for the AG’s statement. Words matter. Especially big bold ones that grab attention.
Please focus on facts over accusations in the way you continue to cover this case. And until due process is able to consider Leech’s defense, I ask the community to digest your reporting with the healthy dose of skepticism and open-mindedness that you should actually be providing to us as public trustees in a free society where we do things according to the rule of law and due process, not public lynchings of a man’s character.
If it were your paper, livelihood and good reputation that were at stake, you might better understand the impact of the reporting slant you chose to take on this. I understand that law enforcement likely asked for your cooperation and that is also a public trust. But if you don’t have the resources to better understand the situation before going to press, at least use words like “alleged” to make it clear that you really don’t know a lot of the relevant facts.
If Leech is vindicated in court, I hope your publication will act appropriately to help rehabilitate his public image, which your carelessness has helped to damage, very possibly unfairly.
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