As some of you know, one of my assistants is married to a Chicago cop. He's one of several that I know fairly well. Anyway, I received a forwarded email this morning with this response to the Carol Marin article that dksuddeth posted:
Quote:
Ms. Marin,
I just finished reading your article in today's Sun-times. Once again, you're leading the charge against the law enforcement profession. I ask myself, what has made you a police-hater and when did you become an expert on police matters?
I find it appalling that you, and most of the other media outlets in this city, continue with your one-sided reporting. Of the 13,000+ Chicago police officers it seems that you choose to report on the .5% that are dirty. What about the rest of these men and women who risk their lives daily to serve and protect complete strangers? Oh right, the stories of those men and women do not sell newspapers or bring in ad revenues. It's as if nobody in your profession cares to get the whole story anymore. Like everything else, it's about the almighty dollar. Is that what they're teaching in Journalism 101 these days?
I had the pleasure of attending a book signing last week at FOP, Chicago Lodge 7 headquarters. The authors of 'End of Watch, Chicago Police Officers Killed in the Line of Duty' were on hand to talk about the book which commemorates the lives of the 500+ Chicago police officers killed in the line of duty. What I noticed most, Ms. Marin, was that you were not on hand to cover this story. Neither were most of the other media outlets in the city of Chicago. ABC 7 was the ONLY channel in attendance. 500+ men and women! Yet those in the media continue to give the most attention to a very small percentage of officers.
I preside over a public charity that each year honors two deserving police officers for going above and beyond the call of duty. Officers from the same mold as my brother Mike who was killed on duty in August 2004. Each of the last two years we have sent a press release to all media outlets. Besides a couple of local papers covering the story, I have received ZERO media coverage of the TRUE BLUE Awards. I do not have Carol Marin on hand to interview the winners. These are the men and women who should be paraded in front of the camera and written about day after day. Not the scum that have made an already difficult profession even more dangerous.
Ms. Marin, my brother lived and breathed police work. He was the first person in the locker room each shift and rarely took a break while on duty. He and his partner accumulated 44 felony arrests in the eight week period before he died. Mike was truly in the zone. Yet nobody covered that story. Of course, they covered his funeral. Who doesn't want to see a grieving widow or crying child? Who doesn't want to see shattered parents and siblings? I'm sorry, Ms. Marin. My brother's life, not his death, was the story. Just like the other men and women of the CPD.
Thank you for contributing to the demise in stature of our police officers. This year's TRUE BLUE Awards will be held on Sunday, November 11. I know you'll be first on hand to cover the 'story.'
Respectfully,
John E. Gordon
Brother of Michael P. Gordon, CPO (EOW 08/AUG/2004)
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Let's face it, police corruption sells advertising both in the paper and on TV. Honestly, the other ceremonies mentioned here aren't news. Just like a kid in a bad school getting good grades and a good job isn't news.