By Don Nelson
We heard the rumors too. The bar talk. The speculation. The questions directed at us. Did we know what was going on?
Yes, sort of. But not entirely. And therein lies an instructive tale about how responsible journalism works.
Last week there was a highly visible law enforcement raid at a residence in a mobile home park in Twisp. The raid, which included police officers from Twisp, took place on Wednesday, after the Methow Valley News had gone to press for the week.
That kind of police activity is unusual here. People noticed. In the absence of meaningful details, stories began to circulate informally. That’s how small towns work. Bits and pieces floated our way. We didn’t trust any of it, because it wasn’t coming from the people who actually knew what happened.
On Thursday we started gathering information, beginning with Twisp Police Chief Paul Budrow, who was involved in what turned out to be the arrest of a 49-year-old Twisp man who was suspected of, and ultimately charged with, possessing and distributing child pornography.
With that confirmation, we knew that we were dealing with a sensitive story of great interest to the community. Child pornography is as repulsive as it gets, and we were being told that someone in our town was collecting and distributing it in a way that drew the attention of law enforcement officials from outside the community.
Also in on the arrest were members of the state Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, led by the Seattle Police Department. It was their investigative work that led to the arrest in Twisp. The Seattle investigation was in turn part of a larger national investigation focused on distributors of child pornography.
Given the rumble and buzz already building in the community, we knew it was not a story that could wait until this week’s print edition. We wanted to post something our website as soon as possible.
Reporter Ann McCreary used her interview with Budrow to start building a list of sources to call. Putting aside everything else she was working on, Ann spent all day Friday pounding away at the phones, doggedly tracking down source after source, gathering the full story bit by bit — which is the way it usually happens. By that afternoon, she was able to get a copy of the “preliminary finding of probable cause,” the document that was used to support the charges brought against the man who was arrested.
By late afternoon, Ann had enough information to begin writing a story. The question then was, what kind of tone should the story have? We were determined to present the most thorough, accurate information we had available without sensationalizing it. With a story like this, there’s no need to. Its impact is palpable without added dramatics.
After Ann crafted the story, I edited it while she carefully went over it again. We agreed on some editing changes and some bits of additional information. For instance, we thought it was important to note that the man who was arrested was not producing child pornography. By that evening, we were able to post the story on our website, and anyone has been able to read it since then. The story is updated in this week’s print edition.
You’ll note that everything in the story is sourced and attributed. That gives it credibility, and it also protects us from accusations of making things up. In the course of gathering such information, we use — in fact, push hard for — documents that are part of the public record, which means anyone can access them. The investigative material we had access to revealed that the man who was arrested was an employee of Sun Mountain Lodge, and in fact is accused of using Wi-Fi work to view child pornography. That’s how investigators found him — by tracking an IP address to the lodge. Because it’s in the public record, that is not something we could keep out of the story. It’s important to point out that Sun Mountain was responsive, helpful and fully cooperative when contacted by law enforcement.
There are some things we did not include, such as details of the man’s statement to arresting officers which many readers would find offensive and distasteful. That wasn’t a necessary part of the story.
We’ll continue to follow the story. And we’ll emphasize accuracy over speed in everything we post or publish.
