Freedom of the Press?

I read the news obsessively on my Blackberry at least 4-5 times a day. Usually, I go to KTLA.com first because they have the juiciest stories. I understand this is possibly because of their sub-par journalistic standards, since they usually post facts that aren't 100% verifiable. Next I go to LAtimes.com, then CNN.com. Usually I pick websites that have a good mobile format for my Blackberry OS so I can easily navigate the news I want to access. Now that you know my routine I will share a recent experience.

I have been following the story of the tragic beating of Matthew Stow, the Giants fan who was brutally beaten on opening day at Dodgers' stadium. This story really struck home with me because I am from Northern California and while I am not an avid MLB fan I am an avid NBA fan. The Northern vs Southern California rivalry is very strong and I definitely feel that tension living in Laker territory now, as a Los Angeles transplant. I still proudly wear my Sacramento Kings jersey on game days if I go to Staples. After Matthew Stow's senseless beating for wearing the wrong colors, it has made me think a little harder about celebrating my hometown pride here.

Early Sunday morning I was reading the news like I always do before I went to sleep and read a story that the LAPD had captured one of Stow's attackers. I immediately called my parents and told them the news since I knew they had been following the story closely as well. I was very happy at least one of these men was off the streets and that he could possibly lead detectives to the accomplices in the beating. Just yesterday, I read on LA Times that the Chief of Police for the LAPD was very upset at a few news sources for posting a mug shot of the alleged attacker. Apparently not all the witnesses of the attack had viewed a photo lineup of the suspect, and with these leaked photos it could compromise the case. The LAPD is relying solely on witness identification and with these leaked photos, the defense can easily throw those identifications out. This made me so upset, especially since one of the news sources that had allegedly leaked the photo was KTLA. Just this afternoon I was again reading the news on KTLA hoping that they might mention something about the photo or about the investigation and I was appalled to see that they had the photo up on their website of one of the alleged attackers Giovanni Ramirez. In the previous stories I had read on KTLA I had not seen a photo of him, but after reading that LATimes article, I was extremely upset at KTLA for continuing to plaster the attacker's face on their website- potentially compromising an entire case.

This made me think, is KTLA just hiding behind the First Amendment? Do they feel that despite an ongoing investigation, that the public has the right to see the picture of Ramirez? I personally see no use in posting his picture since he is captured and poses no threat to the public. I would respect KTLA a lot more if they followed more stringent journalistic guidelines... but then again I read their news knowing that they have loose morals when it comes to fact checking and other journalistic guidelines. But am I just perpetuating this bad behavior by feeding into it? Most definitely. I suppose if I am that upset with them I should stop supporting their news site, but I just want to have both sides of the story. I read a few different sources in order to attempt to get a more well rounded picture of a story. These are just a few of my thoughts on a current story that is at the forefront of my mind at the moment.