This week’s indictment of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick on federal dogfighting charges has raised the curtain on a cruel and unseemly activity that has been going on for years in some segments of society. Vick’s career and the future of the city’s NFL franchise are at stake.
I’ve said several times in this space that caution is needed when reporting about the many questionable incidents Vick has been involved in. While that is still my belief, the fact that Vick now faces serious charges that could end his career and land him in jail make this a huge story for the AJC.
Despite what people are saying in the court of public opinion, it’s a newspaper’s job to stay focused on what is known about the case and what is happening as a result, says Keith Woods, dean of faculty at The Poynter Institute, a training center for journalists in St. Petersburg, Fla.
“With athletes, there can be a rush to judgment or a rush to acquittal,” said Woods. “What the newspaper has to do that the public will not do is to continue to tear apart the issues so they are represented as individually as possible.”
Among the issues: “You have an athlete who the city has hung its NFL and Super Bowl hopes on and he hasn’t delivered,” said Woods.
“You have an accusation that someone is engaged in an illegal action. What do you know about the crime? Keep it as specific as you can. The more specific accusation is that he’s involved in dogfighting a cruel, vicious, inhumane sport. For every person who doesn’t care about football, you have 20 who care about dogs. These people are starting to speak up.”
Sportswriters at the AJC had already been covering the various accusations surrounding Vick from the now infamous trick water bottle incident in the Miami airport to AirTran’s decision not to continue its endorsement deal to the April raid on Vick’s property in Virginia, where dogs and evidence of dogfighting were seized.
Now that criminal charges have been filed, more reporters and editors are involved, and a number of stories are planned.
Reporters have interviewed legal experts on Vick’s options for mounting a defense. They are looking more closely at dogfighting as an activity that Vick may have grown up around, and they are probing the backgrounds of the other men charged in the indictment.
Reporters are examining the network of kennels named in this week’s indictment. They are looking at evidence gathered in other dogfighting investigations and the outcome of those cases, said Chris Vivlamore, the AJC’s pro sports editor.
One void in the AJC’s coverage has been the absence of comments from Vick and his attorneys.
“We always want to present both sides, and it becomes difficult [when one side isn't talking],” said Vivlamore. “We understand the public’s perception when you can’t present Vick’s side. That’s certainly his choice not to comment, but it is an obstacle in our way.”
When NBA star Kobe Bryant was charged with rape, he quickly proclaimed his innocence and his comments received as much attention as his arrest, said Ronnie Ramos, senior editor/operations in AJC’s News & Information department.
While some readers have already complained about the volume of stories carried in the AJC about Vick’s indictment, the coverage is warranted given Vick’s status as one of the league’s top players and the city’s most famous athlete.
“I understand there’s a feeling out there that because we write so much we’re going overboard to get him,” said Vivlamore. “We’ve heard a lot of things that would have been easy for us to jump on and run with. The caution we’ve always exercised is to continue reporting until we have more than one person in a position of knowledge to confirm what we’re hearing. I’m very proud of the fact that we’ve been very fair and not run inaccurate information.”
Sports columnists and blog commenters clearly have their opinions about Vick’s guilt or innocence. In both print and online, there is plenty of space for people to have their say. Part of our job is to reflect what people are saying and present it responsibly. That means making sure columnists support their views with sound arguments. It also means monitoring blogs and deleting comments that include profanity and racial slurs.
