LOCAL JOURNALISTS IGNORE MAJOR LAW

San Diego -- "Journalists in print, broadcast and on-line news media need to avoid using the phrase 'illegal immigrant' if the person involved hasn't been convicted by a judge," says a diversity blog on the national website of the Society of Professional Journalists (S-P-J, www.spj.org/diversity).

Mainstream TV news anchors and on-air reporters - including many in San Diego - regularly use the phrase "illegal immigrant" when referring to undocumented persons in their stories.

Reporters of the San Diego Union Tribune sometimes unethically use that improper phrase, "illegal immigrant."

But, "most try to avoid it," says Carol Goodhue, the former U-T readers' representative. She recently left the newspaper under its buy-out program for senior employees, as the Union Tribune cuts costs and staff significantly.

At least two suitors reportedly have inquired about buying the U-T, including a Canadian company, and a sale could be announced at any time.

Sale of the longtime, family-owned newspaper was reportedly accelerated after its publisher, David Copley, Jr, was "outted" recently as a homosexual by the infamous drag queen and city commissioner, Nicole of Hillcrest; in a regular column he/she writes for the Gay & Lesbian Times.

Nicole called Copley a "tired old queen" and severely criticized hm for not donating money to the "No-on-8" campaign for the Nov. 4th election.

"The phrase journalists should properly use, as a matter of journalistic ethics and law, is "undocumented immigrants," the S-P-J's national diversity blog continued.

By using the phrase "illegal immigrant" when referring to undocemented immigrants, local journalists are violating the S-P-J's professional Code of Ethics.

"We are a nation of laws. In our system of common-law jurisprudence, the doctrine of innocent until proven guilty is enthroned in our federal Constitution. It is basic to our law-and-order society," the S-P-J's on-line blog added.

"The only person who can properly say that anyone is 'illegal' is a judge; not a journalist, nor a member of anti-Mexican groups like the Minutemen.
_________________________
Copyright, 2008 by San Diego News Service, leopowerhere@msn.com (619) 757-4909