Is this really worthy of talking about?I don’t get it????

Once again, another slow news day in Cow Town.

Steve… How the hell can you ask that? This goes to the pith of what’s happening to journalism in this country, albeit this is a sports story. This guy apparently got jettisoned by the paper after the coach and/or the Lions organization squeezed the paper to get rid of him. If a reporter can’t ask tough questions, the ideal of democracy is in question. I’m telling you: this is the biggest threat the United States faces, this threat against democracy. No other issue — energy policy, health care, etc. — can be adequately addressed without a vibrant press protecting freedom of speech. Remember that old childhood saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me?” That saying is patently false. What do you think encourages people to pick up the sticks and stones in the first place? Some form of communication, be it written, spoken or only suggested with a glance. Parker is just one of the more recent casualties in this withering away of a strong U.S. press. It’s sad. Editors side much too often with the publishers and the bottom line anymore. They don’t stand behind their reporters like they used to. The Detroit News used to be such a proud paper also.

You know, now that I think about it, I wonder if the Pulitzer Committee finds it tough to hand out deserving awards anymore, especially with investigative reporting.

Does “asking the tough question” really mean that the columnist gets to attack someone’s daughter and her choice of husband? She’s not the public figure here. Is there no other way to ask the tough question other than to go after the coach’s family? Seems like a cheap, sensationalistic jab rather than a reasoned, tough question.

I think his question actually goes against journalistic ethics, was inappropriate and he deserved to be called on it. It’s one thing if you want to ask tough, hardhitting questions, it’s another to cheap shot someone and go after a public figures family.

There is much more to this story than what is printed above, EJ. I do agree with you about the disturbing trend toward neutering the press, but in the case of Parker, if you do a little digging, you’ll find he’s had other issues before and is far from the sympathetic figure he would have you believe. In fact, at least two web sites devoted to covering sports media have him pegged as “the worst columnist in America.”

For example, he’s been caught fabricating a story about a Michigan State player and had to publicly apologize for doing so. Check out Deadspin and The Big Lead, among other sites, to read more. I share your concerns in general, but in this specific instance it sounds as if this is a case of good riddance.

Yes, if that’s what’s keeping the guy employed in the position. Happen to notice Detroit’s record? Wasn’t it 0-16?

I don’t really feel bad for him. From a true journalistic standpoint, he’s right, but his question had nothing to do with anything other than to unnecessarily antagonize the coach. The question was posed in a way that had nothing to do with football and had to only do with the coach’s personal life, which wasn’t the topic at the time.
The notion that this somehow was the reason got fired is BS since apparently he’s been doing terrible work for some time. Just the final straw, really. The purpose he states for journalism is very much true, to get to the bottom of the story. There was no story to get to and his question was out of place.
The statement about this being a democracy issue is ludicrous IMO because the democracy is not hurt when a business pressures another business to do something’ it’s hurt when the government applies that pressure. The Constitution doesn’t really apply to business-to-business relationships unless specifically noted, like civil liberties.

If Parker fabricated a story, then the Detroit News should have booted him then. Why did they wait until this issue broke? Any reporter who fabricates information doesn’t deserve to work in the business. If the union would protect someone who does that, then it’s out of line. Probably the most egregious example is the woman who fabricated the 9-year-old heroin addict a couple of decades back. I don’t remember the newspaper she worked for, but it was one of the country’s premier papers. I believe she even won a Pulitzer for the series. Then she tried to defend her actions by claiming the child was an amalgam of several kids she was writing about. I hope she never worked in the business ever again. Then, you’ve got people like Jack Kelley at U.S.A. Today who got away with it for a long time. And what about Matt Drudge? I heard a group of journalists talking on NPR and one mentioned that Matt Drudge trumpeted that he was accurate something like 80 percent of the time. Eighty percent! If that’s the case, that man should not be considered a journalist. He shouldn’t even be let near a keyboard in that capacity. A reporter should shoot for 100 percent accuracy, though sometimes that’s unattainable, given the nature of deadlines, the business and certain sources. Yet, in my experience, it seems most times the reporters who get ahead are the ones who don’t necessarily write stories that are untrue, but it’s not the truth either. They just know how to jazz up the story and cover their butts with the same keystrokes. Obviously, there are reporters who are exceptions and they deserve to be in the positions they hold; the others don’t. Nevertheless, it’s just that I know from personal experience that reporters get let go for other than the stated reasons. In fact, I’m convinced that probably half the people who are fired from positions are let go for OTHER than the stated reasons, because the company involved is worried about legal blowback.

But this issue about neutering the press…. This all started probably 20 years ago, if I had to guess. An ex-reporter at that time wrote an article titled “Anger in the Newsroom.” I still have a copy of it. The guy who wrote the article reached near stardom in the industry. In fact, probably around that same time, I remember a certain local columnist writing a story about how he would look around the newsroom and he just didn’t see fire in anyone’s eyes anymore. Yeah, I would say the ball started rolling on this 20 years ago. It’s now at break-neck speed. Sadly, I think the U.S. press is done. What will fill that void? My guess? Fascism. Then slavery. But this time, in this country, it will be a more informal system and won’t be based on skin color. It will be based on class. I think the energy situation only heightens this country’s downslide. Well, on that note, everyone have a nice evening.