Reporter responds to counselor's concerns

When I read Mr. Kevin Zoren's letter to the editor about the article I'd written and we published Friday, "Man arrested in bizarre parking dispute," my first reaction was to seriously consider if I mishandled the story. We reviewed the article and even discussed it as a staff.

Mr. Zoren claims I mocked the mentally ill and was "eager to sensationalize the admittedly abnormal behaviors of a man who at first blush, appears to have suffered some form of psychotic break." Mr. Zoren gives me too much credit and forgets we're not all mental health specialists.

Mr. Zoren wrote, "Had this man held things up due to a physical disability, I doubt the same disrespect would have been heaped on him."

I'm in the reporting business. So what may have been to Mr. Zoren as obvious as someone with a physical disability would be to me, the man's alleged actions were just peculiar enough for me to ask about his mental state but not to assume it. Growing up near a major southern university, the alleged actions of Mr. Mclain, the subject of the article, could easily be typical of lower-tier pranksters.

My job is to ask questions so I can tell the community what happened. In the words of author, Northwestern University journalism professor and former Washington Post writer Robert M . Knight, "Ask the reader what he or she wants to know next, and make the answer to that your next paragraph." And that's what I did. I asked what seemed like a logical question - because, again, I'm a reporter, not a mental health specialist, and because we don't skew or eliminate facts because we might be in danger of coming off as lacking compassion.

When someone is arrested or accused of breaking the law, it is public record and we report it like we do anything else that is newsworthy. If we didn't write articles, or held back names, because it was embarrassing or humiliating to someone, or because the person had a family member who will be unhappy, or because it involved someone who may or may not be mentally ill, news would be filled with parades and cats.

I have the utmost respect for the mental health profession and total compassion for those who suffer from mental illness. I've seen first-hand the detrimental effects of someone with a mental illness and do not take the subject lightly. I won't elaborate any further on my level of compassion because it's pointless. My personal life defends me just fine.

Lastly, as Mr. Zoren noted, just the day before the article that rubbed him the wrong way was published, I'd written an article about national health center week, in which Bullhook Community Health Center was participating. I came up with the idea after I came into the clinic to partake in the week's activities. While there, I thought we should publicize what Bullhook was doing, and we did. A couple of months before that, I'd written an in-depth article about the scarcity of the mental health workforce in rural areas such as Havre and what it means to communities. I had pitched both of those ideas.

We publish it all - if it's newsworthy and the community needs to know, that's what we do.

So, could I have done things differently? Sure. Would I? No. We wouldn't have. I didn't mock anyone. We reported a newsworthy story and we told the facts. News is often unpleasant. But that's life and my job is to report it. It's not for everyone. I applaud Mr. Zoren for working in a field that aims to improve the life of others and look forward to reporting the more pleasant stories as well.