Is it a blogger's responsibility to destroy people?
That's kind of a leading question. Of course the answer apparently is yes!
The story on "Tony's Kansas City" that caught my attention is "Fox 4's Shauna Thomas and soft porn." Apparently Thomas has appeared in a couple of "movies." Initially, I didn't have a real big problem with Tony bringing this up.
However, one sentence in the blog made me think:
At first I wasn't sure about the validity of the rumor but I did a little surfing and I found that photos of the sluty short film also haunted her in her former gig in Utah.
I have a couple question about this: (1) Would the Kansas City Star or competing television stations run this story or is this just a blog phenomenon? (2) Is it right for bloggers to bring this up in every city she works in?
I don't think every newspaper would run this story, but I think some would for any number of reasons. One of which to humiliate the competition. The ethical dimemna as to whether to bring it up at all is the most interesting. Thomas certainly has had a past that she may not be very proud of. She may want to move past it all. But if Fox's philosophy in hiring anchors is to go for the "sexiest" applicant, a story like this has to come up every once in a while.
One of the biggest problems people have with mainstream news is it's never-ending attention to "sex." Destroying one anchor at a time may be one of the bloggers' many weapons against this problem.
Comments
This is yet another example of the transparency of the web. In the latest issue of Fast Company Esther Dyson, editor for Release 1.0 talks about how this transparency is making business competition tougher and business better. "When a company messes up," she explains, "it will be very visible." She goes on to say that businesses will be better because they will have to hire better people. She also recognizes that human psychology will change as people realize the power they have.
The brand of a news personality is not really any different than a company. Especially in this case. Poor Shauna can't seem to escape this bad decision, can she? It has definitely hurt her brand.
Posted by: Bob Deck | February 27, 2006 9:47 PM
This also may be an example of the everlasting nature of the Web. We think of the online world as ethereal and ephemeral (or at least I do), but I see frequent reminders that once you've messed up, it can haunt you forever, or at least as long as somebody wants to make it haunt you.
Posted by: John Broholm | February 28, 2006 5:00 PM
To some extent, the Web is an opaque medium regarding people like "Tony" and their ability to publish anonymously. It breeds cowards like Tony who don't have the guts to publish their names next to their copy.
Posted by: Steve Lynn | March 2, 2006 12:41 AM
I'm glad they're cowards. I'm glad they keep their names off their ridiculous copy.
If they had a real byline like a real journalist, they would further confuse the much-needed line between professional and amateur reporters.
Posted by: Jill Barton | March 2, 2006 9:10 AM
"Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority."
-- Justice Stevens
Posted by: Chris Schulz | March 3, 2006 12:50 AM
I understand the negative comments toward Tony, but come one, doesn't WDAF and Shauna deserve most of the blame? I mean, it's not like she posed for a modeling photo as a teen and is now haunted by a topless photo--she made several of these movies...and shouldn't FOX4 have conducted a background check on its prospective employee?
And, as viewers, don't we have a right to know of the qualifications and backgrounds of the people delivering us the news?
I'm not trying to lead a stoning of Shauna, but if she truly wanted to put this past behind her, shouldn't she find a less high-profile line of work?
Instead, I think this is a clear case of FOX4 wanting to hire the sexiest anchor possible--I seriously doubt she was hired solely on her reporting credentials. To me, this is just another example of the dumbing down of journalism--and in a way, I think Tony (the blogosphere) has a good reason to bring this to our attention.
Posted by: Ranjit Arab | March 3, 2006 12:09 PM