Rolling Stone's Research

Recently there have been a few articles and people who are ruining the progress of sexual assault cases. The most recent of these has been the Rolling Stones Magazine. A woman known only as Jackie told in an interview to one of the Stone's reports that she was sexually assaulted by a gang of men at a fraternity house party.  I want to note at this point I do not have an opinion on the actuality of the assault. I will talk more about that later. 




The issue that I see is how the Rolling Stones conducted the research process. The original article was published on November 19th 2014 titled "Rape on Campus". My thoughts and opinions are in line with an opinion that was posted by the Washington Post a month after the Stones article. I am mostly worried about editors and their role. 




An editor for at lest a newspaper is to be the filter for the journalists. They make assignments, check the work to be sure it is fair, and accurate, and make headlines. On December 5th the editor Will Dana issued a statement about the article and admitted they did not contact the alleged accused out of respect of Jackie’s request. As an editor I would want to know the other sides argument.

The letter from editor Dana came about because another news source fact-checked them. That news source was the Washington Post. They went out and check some of the stories and found facts that dispute some aspects of Jackie’s story.

I think this is neglect on the Rolling Stones part. The amount of women that do not report sexual assault or rape is troubling to say the lest. Over half of rape cases are not reported to police. As a said before I don’t know whether or not Jackie was assaulted or not. From reading the story and than the other facts that were uncovered I feel that a step has been taken backwards in helping those affected by such assaults.

The NFL has recently seen these affects. They are now stepping up and making the situation known and providing the resources to make things change. There is also a backlog of rape kits that they are two years behind. The Rolling Stone’s neglect has added another brick in the barrier from people wanting to come out and share their story.

In conclusion I agree with Amanda Bennett form the Washington Post and that is Editor Dana should resign and the industry do a self check and get back to reporting the news rather than forwarding an agenda.

Reference List

Amanda Bennett, (December 19^th 2014). Rolling Stone editor Will Dana’s failures have cost everyone involved. Retrieved from: http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/rolling-stone-editor-will-danas-failures-have-cost-everyone-involved/2014/12/19/e7f2bbd0-86e0-11e4-b9b7-b8632ae73d25_story.html

Sabrina Rubin Erdley, (November 19, 2014). Rape on Campus: A Brutal Assault and Struggle for Justice at UVA. Retrieved from: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/a-rape-on-campus-20141119

Education Portal. Retrieve from: http://education-portal.com/articles/Newspaper_Editors_Job_Duties_and_Information_About_Becoming_a_Newspaper_Editor.html

Will Dana, (December 5, 2014) A Note to Our Readers. Retrieved from: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/a-note-to-our-readers-20141205

RAINN Retrieved from: https://www.rainn.org/statistics

Heroes

Last week while I was walking to my class I was listening to my Ipod. A song raised some feelings I wanted to share. The song was Heroes by Peter Gabriel. This is from the Lone Survivor soundtrack. It always almost makes me weep. As I type this I listen to it and my vision blurs. First I want to express as much gratitude I can muster towards those who have sacrificed their lives for me, but not only the fallen their families also. Second I want to thank those who have gone and come back. I know many carry scars both seen and unseen.

My thoughts from that day last week was at first upset. I looked at the other students who had no clue what I was listening to or feeling and their seeming disregard for what others have done. They are carrying on with their lives oblivious. I gnawed at these thought  for awhile. Then a thought struck me. The thought was that if you ask a "hero" why they are a hero my guess would be that they would say something to the effect that they aren't.
Do Heros want to call attention to themselves? I guess some do but the ones I know don't. Humility seems to be a common theme.

My next thoughts were mixed I felt one sad for losses and then lucky. I once again looked around at the people around. These people who are attending a university of higher education were thanking the fallen, in a roundabout way. We are free to seek whatever makes us happy. I feel that the best way to thank someone for freedom is to use it. I may not always agree with how that is done but I can appreciate that there is that opportunity.

I will strive to live in such a way that reflects how much I love my country. I want to make no mistake in that I recognize the sacrifices other make for me. There are evils in this world and I am eternally grateful for anyone who is willing to combat that evil. I ask that we take a more moments to reflect on what we have and how we have it.