Poynter columnist drops Weblog in dispute over naming Bryant's accuser

Geneva Overholser quit writing her blog for The Poynter Institute after Poynter edited out the name of the woman accusing Kobe Bryant of rape. Her blog entry argued "it is time her name became standard media usage" now that the woman is taking her case out of the criminal court and into civil court.

This incident raises two interesting points.

First, whether you agree or disagree with Poynter's decision, it took the admirable step of posting notes from its discussion on whether to name the victim. This is something all publications should consider doing when making controversial decisions -- open up the process and let the readers in.

Aside from the issues Overholser raised, the case is interesting in that the accuser's name has already spread widely across the Internet, after the court mistakenly released several documents that included her name. A quick Google search turns up not only more than 11,000 references to her name, but an address, phone number and photos.

Most media may continue to hold off, but the media's monopoly on facts like these is long gone.

Sep 19, 2004 | E-MAIL | SAVE | PRINT | PERMALINK | DISCUSS(0)

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