When I first read "Jimmy's World," the content made me sick. I wondered why that story would even be published on Page One since the material could be so upsetting. Then I began wondering how these sources could've checked out, if only their first names were used. The only expert was quoted once, and that information didn't seem to add up to the rest of the story. I also wondered why Jimmy's absences from school weren't being punished.
The first necessary skill a reporter needs is skepticism. Had copy editors been more skeptical, as Laurie Phillips says in her piece, the entire "Jimmy's World" crisis could've been avoided. Little discrepancies in the story highlight the bad - that is, complete lack of - reporting done. Janet Cooke didn't even lie well. Copy editors - and anyone else who read the story - should have immediately been skeptical of the sources in "Jimmy's World" because they were partly anonymous. Any source, even if they aren't anonymous, needs to be double-checked, especially in a world where identities can so easily be changed.
The second necessary skill this event calls attention to is knowing one's reporters. Alpin-Brownlee knew that Cooke, one of her reporters, was not capable of writing a story like "Jimmy's World." Personalities are reflected in story content. Thus, knowing the reporters on a personal level as well as their journalistic capabilities will definitely help in maintaining the validity of any publication.
I learned a lot from this case study, and I plan to immediately apply these lessons to my editing life.
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