The Argonaut regrets errors made in Oct. 28 stories, editorial
In the Oct. 28 edition of The Argonaut, a series of front-page stories about a potential tobacco-free policy contained misleading and misinformed reporting.
A misunderstanding in the reporting process lead to a false pretense for the series, which then misinformed The Argonaut’s editorial board for an editorial in the same edition.
Kaitlyn Krasselt
Regrettably, the error in reporting resulted in incomplete, unbalanced stories that painted the actions of the Tobacco Task Force in a way that was not consistent with their actual pursuit of a tobacco-free campus. The series indicated the Tobacco Task Force was intentionally acting outside its authority. In reality, the task force has done nothing outside its power, and instead has only moved forward with planning for the potential approval of a tobacco ban.
After meeting with the task force, speaking with the reporters and considering the issue, it became clear we did not do our job appropriately as reporters and editors.
Everything we do at The Argonaut is subject to a journalistic process of reporting and editing, and it’s clear our process was, in some way, broken during the production of these pieces.
The reporting misinformed the opinion of our editorial board, inaccurately portrayed the actions of the task force and provided erroneous information to our readers.
This is not a problem we like to have or a letter any editor wants to write, and it is with great regret we are doing so now.
Though this is in no way an endorsement for a tobacco ban — which may or may not be in the best interest of the University of Idaho — elements of our reporting on the task force’s process were unfair and poorly done.
We cannot make this situation right, but we are taking every step we can to do so, starting with this letter, and continuing on page 9 of today’s edition with a guest column from the task force outlining the process they’ve engaged in since beginning their research in 2012.
We have reviewed our process, and will do everything in our power to ensure this does not happen again.
The Argonaut will continue to report on the progress of the task force with every angle and source in mind. It is important that we continue to ask questions, consider all perspectives and — most importantly — report fairly and accurately on the issue.
The Argonaut regrets the error, and is dedicated to a future of fair, balanced and accurate reporting.