Reprinting hate letter irresponsible journalism
By Christie Genochio
Some people may be wondering why The Santa Clara has chosen not to print the hate e-mail sent to GALA members last quarter. The editorial board debated the merits of running the letter, and ultimately arrived at the decision that to do so would compromise our mission as a newspaper and the responsibility we have to professional reporting.
It wasn't an easy decision. Like most people, we felt the outrage, disappointment and disgust experienced by those who had hoped such anti-gay sentiment was on the downswing. It was even argued that sharing the letter with the public could generate support for GALA, rallying the proverbial troops to combat the virulent hatred and myopic ignorance that has historically plagued minority groups.
But as noble as this idea is, there are equally noble reasons not to run the e-mail.
For one thing, we as a newspaper do not want to inspire the imaginations of copycat criminals, people who might read the e-mail, and feel driven to win comparable infamy. We wish that only solidarity and sympathy could be borne of sharing such a heinous act, but unfortunately we fear that to act upon such a wish would be willfully naive. There was at least one person depraved enough to write that e-mail. Why risk arming others with the thoughts and words, however incoherent, incorrect and reprehensible, of the e-mail's author?
Whoever sent that e-mail sent it with malice and rancor, aiming to hurt and offend innocent people. The Santa Clara will never serve as a forum for such defamatory remarks. We refuse to facilitate such a ploy for attention by giving the author the notoriety he or she appears to crave.
Finally, to run the letter would be tantamount to tabloid journalism. We would be sensationalizing the hate mail, making it a sideshow freak in an otherwise professional paper. We are journalists; our job is to report the facts in an objective, tasteful light and to edit out what is inappropriate for print.
And take our word for it, inappropriate doesn't even begin to describe the quality of those four despicable paragraphs.
We know that students are curious, that it would have an immense impact upon all who would read it. But at what price?
When I first heard about the hate mail, I must admit, my curiosity was piqued. Like many people, I was shocked to hear of its existence, and infinitely more so when I finally read it. But as the Editor of the Opinion Pages, I can't in good conscience say that it should be published in this newspaper. Those who wish to read it can find it independently â€" ask your friends, check with GALA, but don't ask us to run it or accuse us of censure. It would violate our journalistic integrity to run it in this paper.
It is our responsibility to report the news, not to run every incendiary piece of tripe that comes our way.
Contact Christie Genochio at (408) 554-4852 or at mgenochio@scu.edu.