PressEthic

On October 30, the New York Times published an article questioning the use of excessive force in New York prisons. Today, November 2, the Wall Street Journal published "Bulging Jails and Tight Budgets Make Job of Guard Even Tougher," by Gary Fields.

The Times reported on a current lawsuit, wherein several inmates are bringing civil action as a result of excessive force, leaving a prisoner blind in one eye and breaking the eardrum of another. No doubt the prisioners have a good case, and this is the sort of public interest story that a serious news outlet should run. If prison guards are using blows to the face in simple interactions with prisoners, the public needs to know.

That's why the article on the front page of today's WSJ caught my eye. What we find out is that inmate population has grown 51 percent since 1995. In a striking contrast, the number of prison officers has grown only 8 percent. Either they were really prepared, or prison guards are in trouble.

I understand that the Times is reporting on a trial, and that there's only so much that one can put into an article. I'd really like to see some due diligence here though, in a follow up article. What is the connection between prison abuse and low staffing? The WSJ article details the problems of an Oklahoma prison. It turns out that making very little money to watch after violent criminals serving hopelessly long sentances is, well, difficult.

What I'm getting at is this: The tone of the Times article is in favor of the inmates. There's nothing wrong with a little investigative reporting to expose wrongs and boost the underdog. It's important though, to follow up, as well as to look at the larger picture. According to the Wall Street Journal, the guards are losing big.

Both articles used pointed localized stories to get at a broader issue. The Times looked at two instances of violence to explore violence in the NY system as a whole. The Journal explored one small prison to see the problems plaguing the nation. I'd like to see some reporting that takes all aspects of this issue into account. Maybe I'm a big picture kind of gal, but I think some big picture reporting is what people want to read sometimes.