Unfair and Unbalanced

From the Democrat and Chronicle newspaper.

(January 29, 2004) – About two dozen people representing 10 pro-life groups rallied at the Democrat and Chronicle Wednesday, claiming that the newspaper does not present balanced views about abortion in its articles.

The focus of their complaint was an article, “Rally supports Roe v. Wade,” published on Page 4B on Jan. 23. The article mentioned local involvement from those on both sides of the abortion issue.

“We want the newspaper’s name changed to ‘Delusion and Confusion’,” said Carol Crossed of Brighton. She said that local prayer vigils held to commemorate the Roe v. Wade anniversary were ignored. “It’s an insult to the people involved,” Crossed said of the lack of coverage.

The groups gave six demands to the paper, including wanting a public apology for the recent article’s headline and “imbalanced reporting.” The groups also want an ombudsman to review articles about abortion for fairness and want to meet with editors about coverage of the issue.

Jann Armantrout, representing the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester, said balanced reporting “is so critical to the political freedom in this country.”
[Full Story]

Thomas P. Flynn, vice president of communications for the newspaper, said just because the groups disagree with the coverage doesn�t mean it is wrong.

�We cover this issue with the same fairness and balance that we write all of our stories,� Flynn said

I guess the above statement can be true regardless of how slanted towards abortion the paper is.