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Michigan Radio, the public radio station serving Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids and Flint, recently found itself at the center of the news when
three former employees were charged with embezzlement for accepting freebies. The criminal investigation also alleges the station has been sloppy about keeping records. As a result, some companies may have received air time without contributing anything of value and individuals who worked at the station are accused of receiving valuable gifts that did not benefit the station.
Dustin Dwyer is a reporter at the station. He's also a
2003 Poynter Summer Fellow. He wrote me an e-mail in early March wondering how hard he should push to encourage the station to cover the story. Dwyer is a sincere and earnest young journalist. He was concerned that the public would judge the station harshly if the coverage were less than transparent.
If there were an award for covering one's own newsroom scandal, then Dwyer and his bosses would win it. Although it is certain to make him blush, I believe young Dwyer influenced his bosses to do the right thing. After we talked, the station managers issued
this letter to their listeners that mentions Poynter's advice. Station management has added even more layers of transparency with this
statement and FAQ.
Dustin has been covering the story ever since. Here's his
latest installment.
Mostly I'm impressed with Dustin's ability to articulate the conflicts that have surfaced. He's learning to do good journalism in the middle of a messy situation. Here's as excerpt from his latest e-mail:
Most public stations are run by universities. In our case, we’re actually a division of the school’s communication department, meaning the U of Michigan spokeswoman is technically my superior. Yet we interview her regularly without revealing any of that. This experience reporting on the station has certainly made me more aware of the awkwardness of that relationship.
If there were a club for reporters who had to cover their own newsroom scandal, how big would it be? What might we learn from their collective wisdom?
