Announcement of a 2002 Sigma Delta Chi award entry in the category, Investigative reporting - newspaper/wire service. Mike Lee of theTri-City Herald, Kennewick, Washington, received the award. Investigation uncovered 15 years of flagrant law-breaking and abuse by two farmer brothers. Actions involved disregard of state and federal laws and regulations, including illegal water and air pollution. Series titled, "Bitter Harvest."
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 144 Document Number: C22545
Notes:
Published in a column, "The Final Word," from Food Routes Network, Millheim, Pennsylvania. Issue 45. 2 pages., Author reports on consolidation of farm periodicals, with resulting cutbacks in editorial staffing and in local coverage. Describes financial pressures that lead to more use of free-lance writers that often write for ag publications and ag public relations agencies simultaneously. "But the divided loyalties often yield stories that resemble corporate press releases more than journalism." Cites an example from his experience as a free-lance writer.
Analyzed the content of four major U.S. newspapers, 1992 through 2001, in terms of their coverage of conflicts of interest in science. Types of conflict of interest: financial, professional and personal. Examples include the relationship between research institutions and the tobacco industry.
