Article Unfair
As president of the Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley, I was extremely disappointed that the Metro Pulse's cover story ["Dog Fight" by David Madison, Vol. 9, No. 27] and sidebar included such extensive personal attacks on Vicky Crosetti, based on rumors and misinformation circulated by people who don't like Vicky. The articles were not fair to Vicky or HSTV.
Over two or three weeks, the articles' author talked to people who dislike HSTV or Vicky, who he quotes extensively throughout his articles. Literally thousands of people support Vicky and HSTV, including volunteers, contributors, community leaders, law enforcement officials, and shelter officials in other places across the country. Yet, Mr. Madison does not quote a single person saying the simple truth: that Vicky Corsetti is a respected regional and even national authority on animal sheltering and cruelty issues.
As far as we know, Mr. Madison did not talk to anyone who supports HSTV, other than the day he spent with us. And he did not even approach us; after word reached us that he was doing a story about HSTV, we approached him.
The theme of Mr. Madison's cover story was that rivalries among Knoxville's animal activists inhibit them from doing what's best for the animals. In fact, what really hurts animals is widespread irresponsibility in controlling the animal population, and refusal to implement licensing measures which are an essential element of bringing animal populations under control. A cover story emphasizing these truths and placing the blame where it belongs would have been truly constructive.
Instead, Mr. Madison sunk so low as to cite the scandal tabloid Knoxville Journal's alleged comparison of HSTV to Nazi oppression. Mr. Madison knows the Knoxville Journal's stories about HSTV are filled with malicious misinformation, yet for some reason his cover story portrayed the Journal's guttersnipe publisher as though he were a crusading folk hero.
Part of the problem may be that Mr. Madison has only been in Knoxville for about a month. Yet, in many instances, Mr. Madison knew better than what he wrote.
For instance, Mr. Madison told us his research showed HSTV's adoption policies are about average. Yet his cover story did not share this result of his research with Metro Pulse's readers; it only complained of our "strict" policies, which reinforced the article's harsh descriptions of Vicky.
Mr. Madison told us that former employees refused to speak to him on the record because they wanted to come back to work for the Humane Society someday. Yet, he wrote only that they would not be quoted because they feared some unidentified reprisal from Vicky.
Unfortunately, Mr. Madison's articles invariably gave such charges emphasis at least equal to or and usually greater than that given to our responses, even when he knew the charges to be without basis. Responses such as "vehemently denies" were used far too infrequently in the stories.
For instance, Mr. Madison knew the insinuations about medical research in his "sidebar" story are untrue, but, once again, chose to print them without comment as to their truth or falsity. Similarly, there is no basis to a whisper campaign that Vicky was fired from a job 10 years ago because of mismanagement. Mr. Madison mentioned the rumors in the cover story, however, despite the fact that he had told me they would not be included.
Mr. Madison repeated a disgruntled former employee's story comparing Vicky to irresponsible people who dump animals they no longer want at the shelter. Yet Mr. Madison knew the reality: that Vicky made a personally painful decision to give up a pet she had saved from euthanasia because Vicky suffered an excruciating physical injury which left her unable to care for the animal properly.
Mr. Madison unfairly accuses Vicky of driving employees away from the shelter and suggests that her "coarse management style" damages morale. I know from talking to her staff that attacks like Mr. Madison's and Mr. Hamby's are far worse for employees' morale than Vicky's leadership style. Mr. Madison owes Vicky an apology.
Mark Siegel
Knoxville
Ed. Note:
Among HSTV Board President Mark Siegel's points, the attorney suggests that reporter David Madison had no intention of contacting the HSTV; in fact, Madison was only in his first week of a month's worth of reporting when Siegel called him.
On the issue of adoption, the story does note that "by placing 30 percent of its animals, the HSTV is on par with the average adoption rate for shelters nationwide."
With regard to the sidebar titled "Statehouse Scrap," it is Siegel himself who is quoted in the sidebar giving the comment he claims to be missing.
And finally, Madison made no promises to Siegel about the content of the story.
Special Bonus Letter!
Gosh darn it, we do love getting mail from our readers but we just can't print it all. Sometimes the missives are unsigned, run too long, don't relate to any of the issues we usually cover, or verge on the loopy. Rather than let these bits of personal expression go unread, we will now start posting them here. Enjoy!
Creeping Malevolence
Maybe it's just me but I've noticed a malevolence creeping into Knoxville for a while now. I didn't notice it at first but then by the time I realized what was happening it was like a floodgate opening. I'm talking about how Knoxville's "powers that be" decided who and what should be allowed here. Oh, I'm sure that it started long before the finger annexations that put practically all of the adult entertainment establishments inside the city. But when "they" refused to renew the beer license for the Pink Putty Cat, it seemed ironic after the trouble the beer board had been through. Then the "sudden" amount of underagers who would drive from every corner of our state to sneak beer at The Underground. Of course I believe the undercover officer who said it was no revenge for being thrown out... And now it seems another favorite nite spot is being eaten by this beast. Last week at some point the parking lot at the Mouse Ear South was removed, ok not ALL of it there is still ten feet of pavement from the door to where grass will be planted. So now I ask myself; when did entertainment become a black-listed item in Knoxville? I don't recall a referendum or it being on the ballots last election, but slowly and maliciously night life in Knoxville is being consumed, and we don't have to look too far to find the cause. Think about it, that is before YOUR favorite haunt becomes an endangered species...
Scott B Vancel
via e-mail
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