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Mark Whicker, what were you thinking?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Inky_Wretch, Sep 9, 2009.

  1. 21

    21 Well-Known Member

    I've often wondered why Mark Whicker doesn't get more attention on this board; he's one of the good guys, and a well-respected veteran. Sad to see him stumble into the spotlight this way.

    But wow, that was a bizarre column. Can't see anyone getting fired over it, but clearly someone was asleep.
     
  2. Drip

    Drip Active Member

    I think Whicker is safe.
     
  3. Starman

    Starman Well-Known Member

    Real, real, real, real bad. (And yes, Whicker has been very good in the past.)

    At this point none of us know what Jaycee Dugard thinks of her captivity.

    If at some point she were to give an interview and say, "gee, I missed a lot of stuff on TV" -- indicating she had come to grips with it to some extent -- then something like this might fly.

    Until then, you're just completely trivializing something unspeakably brutal that deprived her of (up to now) 2/3 of her life.

    This is another example of Albom's Law: When a columnist gets to the point when his stuff is declared untouchable, bad things follow.

    The apology and public mea culpa is probably punishment enough -- although I suspect Whicker's stuff will be run through a few more pairs of eyes before heading to print in the near future.
     
  4. bob

    bob Member

    C'mon. It's not a fireable offense. Horrible judgment, but nobody deserves to lose his job.
     
  5. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    Why would an 11-year-old girl from South Lake Tahoe give a crap about Orange County sports?
     
  6. I don't know Bob... ... ... That is a pretty insensitive column.
     
  7. Gator

    Gator Well-Known Member

    I don't consider myself to be too sensitive, and I'm not one who writes letters, but I didn't find this column all that "offensive." No, I wouldn't have written it, and I understand he was walking in thin ice, but at no point did he make light of the abduction or rape. What if it was someone in a coma, or they thawed out Walt Disney? Again, I'm probably the least connected person to this story, but I think people can be oversensitive about everything.
     
  8. spud

    spud Member

    ...but not for writing it?
     
  9. chilidog75

    chilidog75 Member

    He certainly did make light of her abduction. The WHOLE column makes light of her abduction.
    I've got to be honest. I've never read anything like that before. Nothing even close, actually.
    Stunning.
     
  10. 2muchcoffeeman

    2muchcoffeeman Well-Known Member

    I believe Mr. Whicker is about to become the first sports columnist to be named Olbermann's Worst Person In The World.

    Edit: Until Joe Wilson came along.
     
  11. Bruhman

    Bruhman Active Member

    He was second-worst on Olbermann's list, lumped in with the editors and deskers who let it run.
     
  12. 2muchcoffeeman

    2muchcoffeeman Well-Known Member

    [​IMG]
    "Like it's their business. Columnists are
    geniuses and their shit doesn't stink. Dude
    should write whatever he wants, even make
    it all up if that's how he feels."
     
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