[Sca-cooks] Here we go again- that old rotten meat myth

[Gretchen Beck]

--On Wednesday, March 17, 2010 2:49 PM -0700 Laureen Hart
<lhart at graycomputer.com> wrote:

> Yeah, but then your boss doesn't pay you...
> A good news story is one you think people want to read.
> Apparently truth and objectivity aren't a necessary part.
> 
> Would people rather hear about screwball nuts who give each other food
> poisoning, or boring, screwball nuts that are interested in history?

Just checked out the original story. It's printed in:

"The independent voice of the University of Chicago"

which, at most universities, translates to --we're the folks who don't want
to play with the regular student newspaper, we want to be the "Alternative"
voice on campus.

...and according to the paper's own website,
Chicago Weekly is a student-written alternative weekly at the University of
Chicago that promotes arts and culture on the South Side of Chicago through
coverage and criticism. The paper also follows South Side news stories that
are ignored by mainstream media. Newcity Communications publishes Chicago
Weekly every Thursday during the academic year. The newspaper includes
feature-length narrative journalism, arts criticism, essays, and a weekly
calendar of cultural events.


In other words -- narratives and opinions pieces. What about this makes you
think journalistic standards of any sort?

Story about some cook or other at some event sometime in the past serving
up a yummy plate of salmonella?  Almost certainly true -- statistically,
it's bound to happen or have happened at some point. The problem is the
accusation (possibly a confusion on the part of the author, possible a
muddling of stories by the story teller) of "accidental poisoning" with
"poisoning the populace deliberately".

Frankly, I didn't think the story was as bad as everyone seems to think it
is; I know it pushes a hot button, and one that ought to be corrected, but
really -- it does present some good points, too. I loved the closing
paragraph:

While there are those who take the society perhaps a bit too seriously, the
SCA accommodates varying levels of commitment. Like Ridgwell, Alex Carter,
president of the University's SCA chapter, likes to keep the SCA as a side
activity. "I really enjoy the flexibility," he says. "Learn a dance here
and there, make a costume, have some food. It's what you want it to be."
The SCA's appeal is not so much the complete transformation of life into a
24/7 Renaissance fair, but rather the opportunity it provides to "relax,
explore, and escape a lot of stress." 


All in all, this seems to fall pretty squarely into the "narrative
journalism" category of their mission statement -- we talk to some people,
and report what they say about a topic. No further digging done (or
necessarily required).

toodles, margaret