Whenever a scandal arises or controversy forms, the public always has more questions than answers. The thin line between what information should be disclosed and what shouldn’t is a tricky one to step on. There are reputations to be tarnished, heroes that will turn to villains, and even backlash towards the people who uncover these stories that leave us uncertain.
Anybody who has ever done something wrong has thought about getting away with it. This can be applied on a personal level, when we tell a white lie to get out of a small punishment, or it can be applied to the uncovering of years and years of hiding the truth for reasons the public may never know. Though we may never know the motives behind these cover ups, the situations become complicated when we are forced to question our beliefs.
At first, when Sarah Ganim broke the news on Jerry Sandusky and the child sex-abuse scandal, the former Penn State football coach was the only monster in the story. Slowly, the public began to find out the Penn State administrators were involved as well. Men like Graham Spanier, Tim Curley and Gary Schultz weren’t adored in the eyes of many, so their firings weren’t cause for outrage. The name Joe Paterno seemed immaculate, but when the Freeh Report was released and Paterno was fired, it all spiraled downward.
One of the most respected men in sports was found to have covered up the disgusting acts of a pedophile and most people couldn’t handle that. They feel Paterno was unfairly criticized. Joel Mathis of the Philly Post writes, “a number of them blame (Sarah) Ganim for the besmirching of Paterno’s reputation.” He continues by saying, “a small-but-vocal number of those people are determined to hound Ganim for the sin of having committed journalism.” Some will always blame Sarah Ganim for the firing of Joe Paterno even though her work was described as, “journalism at breathtaking best.” (Quill 2012) Instead of shooting the messenger we should learn to question the ethics of those in power.
The same skepticism arises at the case of Pat Tilman. Tilman was a heroic figure, a golden boy of sorts that you couldn’t help but cheer for. He was an NFL star, turned U.S. Army Ranger that served as a role model for people everywhere.
His tragic death in 2004 was heralded as a hero’s death. “Three bullets pierced his skull, and he was dead.” (Christie 2007 ) A report came out that said his unit was attacked and that Tilman died defending our country. It was hard to argue with the U.S. Army, the White House and all the other official statements from government administrations that we trust.
It was discovered months later that Pat Tilman wasn’t honorably killed in combat, fighting for his country. The U.S. Army Ranger was a victim of friendly fire, a tragedy that his unit tried to cover up. Reports said that, “a fellow soldier burned Tilman’s body armor, just hours after he died.” (Christie 2007 ) Journalist, Mike Fish was the primary investigator in the scandal that uncovered the truth behind Tilman’s death. “It doesn’t answer all the questions, but unlike most of the coverage of the Tilman tragedy, it poses them,” (Christie 2007 ) Fish said, regarding his report.
Sometimes that is all it takes. Some curiosity can be the key to questioning all that we trust in this world. Whether it is the supposedly spotless record of a sports icon, or the reputation of those who protect us every day, these cases teach us to no always believe what we hear. Either way, the journalists who bring these cover ups to light should not be condemned for staying true to the ethics of the job.
Christie, Raquel (2004, Nov). Probing Pat Tilman’s Final Mission. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=3&sid=480e2d0d-e85f-4ff0-9451-e6d12be991f3@sessionmgr4&hid=19&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==
Quill. (2012, Jun). The Jerry Sandusky-Penn State Scandal. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/ehost/detail?vid=5&sid=480e2d0d-e85f-4ff0-9451-e6d12be991f3@sessionmgr4&hid=19&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==
Mathis, Joel (2013, 19 Feb). Blogs.phillymag.com. Retrieved from
http://blogs.phillymag.com/the_philly_post/2013/02/19/ugly-harassment-sara-ganim/