[Peace-discuss] A curious omission by the News-Gazette

[Marti Wilkinson]

It didn't occur to me that I was being quick to 'defend' the News-Gazette.
My comment was to the effect that what you observed may be a reflection of a
standard practice in newspapers. As for your decision to 'challenge' me - I
have to ask why are you so quick to judge my response?



On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 11:00 PM, Randall Cotton <recotton at earthlink.net>wrote:

> Well I think it's clear that you tend to give the NG the benefit of the
> doubt, much moreso than I. Did you see the original article? Did you
> compare the two? Why are you so quick to defend the NG?
>
> If you were to study the two articles side by side, you would see that
> there several edits. A sentence here, a sentence there, with at least one
> other instance of removing material unflattering to the military. It
> wasn't just a matter of lopping off the last few lines. Yet so little
> space was saved. The large front-page photo could have been something like
> 73 or 74 square inches instead of 76 and the entire article could have
> been preserved. There was another smaller photo as well. Making each of
> them imperceptibly smaller would leave enough space for the whole article.
> I remain convinced that whoever edited that article was biased in favor of
> the military. Is it hard to accept that the NG might be biased in favor of
> the military? Would you find it hard to believe that there have been other
> instances of bias in favor of the military in the NG? Or that publisher
> and editors might be biased in favor of the military?
>
> I challenge you to do the actual comparison and come away from that with
> your opinion unchanged.
>
> R
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Marti Wilkinson" <martiwilki at gmail.com>
> To: "Randall Cotton" <recotton at earthlink.net>
> Cc: <peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net>
> Sent: Monday, December 08, 2008 10:18 PM
> Subject: Re: [Peace-discuss] A curious omission by the News-Gazette
>
>
> : In Journalism reporters are trained to start off a story with the
> : information that is considered to be the most newsworthy. As an article
> : progresses the information becomes less of a priority. So in the event
> that
> : a copy editor cut's off a paragraph or two from the bottom the people
> who
> : read the article will still get the bulk of the story.  While the N-G
> may
> : have had room to 'fit' in the missing paragraphs it may well be an
> editorial
> : standard to use large photos in order to get a visual appeal to readers.
>  The
> : further away an article is from the front page the less likely it will
> be
> : read and this is something that publishers take into consideration.
> :
> : In this instance, I see this as being part of a fairly common and
> mundane
> : editorial practice....and the News-Gazette is not unique in that
> respect.
> :
> : Marti
> :
> : On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 9:30 PM, Randall Cotton
> <recotton at earthlink.net>wrote:
> :
> : > Mention was made at last Sunday's AWARE meeting about the quite
> prominent
> : > story on the front page of the Commentary section of the Sunday
> : > News-Gazette.
> : >
> : > It was a McClatchy Newspapers article about the rising suicide rates
> in
> : > the military. The article was somewhat unexpected in my opinion and
> : > laudable on the surface. It featured the story of Sgt. Joshua Barber's
> : > suicide as related largely by his wife Kelly (who is featured in large
> : > compelling photos). However, it turns out the article as printed was
> an
> : > edited version of what was originally a somewhat larger article. In
> : > particular, a very significant part of the story was omitted in the
> : > snipped News-Gazette version. The following is the end of the full
> : > article, describing the end of Sgt. Barber's life, when he arrived at
> : > Madigan Army Medical Center (referred to as "Madigan" below). All of
> this
> : > was completely lopped off in the News Gazette version:
> : >
> : > *****************************
> : > Surveillance video shows that Barber arrived at Madigan about 7 a.m.
> the
> : > next day and didn't get out of the pickup, according to the police
> report.
> : > A Madigan employee found his body two days later and called 9-1-1.
> Kelly
> : > Barber, who was working at the time of the discovery, was notified
> later
> : > that morning.
> : >
> : > According to the medical examiner's report, Barber had put a revolver
> : > loaded with hollow-point rounds to the right side of his head and
> pulled
> : > the trigger.
> : >
> : > He was dressed in his old combat uniform.
> : >
> : > "He was making a statement to the military," Kelly Barber said.
> : > *****************************
> : >
> : > It's not like the NG didn't have room to fit this in. The front page
> photo
> : > was exceptionally large (over 70 square inches). Did the News-Gazette
> omit
> : > Sgt. Barber's last desperate statement under the rug because it
> reflects
> : > poorly on the military? So it would appear. A google search turned up
> the
> : > article in 8 different places. None was missing the above excerpt.
> Sgt.
> : > Barber's statement is arguably the most compelling part of the story,
> but
> : > apparently it was left out deliberately by the News-Gazette for no
> other
> : > discernible reason.
> : >
> : > Following is the full article, taken from:
> : >
> : > http://www.individual.com/story.php?story=92728145
> : >
> : > Please read it. It's not long.
> : >
> : > **********
> : >
> : > "Do you think that God's going to send me to hell for killing innocent
> : > people?" former Sgt. Joshua Barber asked his wife one day last summer.
> : >
> : > Kelly Barber tried to reassure her distraught husband. Nearly three
> years
> : > after a combat tour in Iraq, he was a shell of the loving and
> fun-loving
> : > man she'd married nine years earlier.
> : >
> : > Joshua Barber was quiet, withdrawn, constantly fighting demons he
> couldn't
> : > exorcise. His question reinforced her fear that he was sliding further
> : > into a well of guilt and despair as she tried desperately to hold on.
> : >
> : > The couple had sought help from the Army and U.S. Department of
> Veterans
> : > Affairs, but Kelly Barber said they got caught up in red tape.
> : >
> : > "He just had to fight so many battles, and no one would help him," she
> : > said.
> : >
> : > The 31-year-old soldier killed himself three weeks after asking that
> : > terrible question.
> : >
> : > On Aug. 25, a day after his wife reported him missing from their home
> in
> : > Lacey, Joshua Barber drove onto Fort Lewis in his silver 2005 Ford
> F150
> : > pickup, a gift from his wife when he returned from Iraq.
> : >
> : > He parked in the lot at Madigan Army Medical Center and shot himself
> in
> : > the head with a revolver, one of several guns he'd taken from home.
> : >
> : > Barber's death is hardly an isolated case. In a nearly three-year
> period,
> : > more than half of the veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who
> : > committed suicide did so at least a year after their deployments
> ended,
> : > Army data show. A large number of soldiers who hadn't deployed also
> took
> : > their own lives. The number of suicides involving veterans ages 18 to
> 29
> : > receiving care from the VA nearly doubled from 36 in 2005 to 68 in
> 2006,
> : > the most recent figures available, according to the VA.
> : >
> : > The Army and the VA have redoubled their efforts to prevent suicides.
> Both
> : > have expanded services and launched initiatives aimed at suicide
> : > prevention.
> : >
> : > The Army is hiring dozens of counselors and has developed an
> interactive
> : > video so soldiers can identify warning signs and help a distraught
> : > colleague through various scenarios. The Army and the National
> Institute
> : > of Mental Health recently announced a five-year, $50 million research
> : > program into the factors behind soldier suicides.
> : >
> : > The VA, meanwhile, is taking steps to improve its screening among
> veterans
> : > diagnosed with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and
> increase
> : > training so chaplains can look for warning signs. In July 2007, it
> : > launched a national suicide hot line, which receives thousands of
> calls
> : > each month, said Fred Blow, director of the VA's Serious Mental
> Illness
> : > Treatment Research and Evaluation Center.
> : >
> : > "The Army is doing everything possible, but you still have those who
> : > choose to take their own lives," said Maj. Nathan Banks, an Army
> : > spokesman.
> : >
> : > A cook -- and a gunner
> : >
> : > For Joshua Barber, the serious problems began a year after his return
> from
> : > Iraq.
> : >
> : > He had deployed with the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry
> Division
> : > from September 2004 to October 2005. The Stryker brigade has since
> : > transferred to Germany.
> : >
> : > Barber was a cook but found himself a gunner on missions in Iraq.
> : >
> : > His VA physician wrote in an assessment after his death that "it is
> : > reasonable and valid to attribute his suicide to post-traumatic stress
> : > disorder, particularly in light of the fact that he joined during
> peace
> : > time, not knowing he would be called on to serve in war. ...
> : >
> : > "At the point of enlistment, he probably never suspected that he would
> be
> : > called on to serve in a combat role," she wrote in the assessment, a
> copy
> : > of which was provided to The Olympian by Kelly Barber.
> : >
> : > Barber joined the service before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
> : >
> : > On Dec. 21, 2004, a suicide bomber detonated explosives inside a mess
> tent
> : > near the Mosul airport, killing 22 people. Among the dead were 14 U.S.
> : > service members, including six Fort Lewis soldiers.
> : >
> : > For days, Barber and other soldiers had to keep the area secure and
> escort
> : > federal agents around the crime scene. After his return home, he had
> : > nightmares about the mutilated bodies lying everywhere, his wife said.
> : >
> : > "He would say that all he could remember was the smell of death," she
> : > said. "That bothered him quite a bit."
> : >
> : > When a sniper's bullet killed his first sergeant, Barber blamed
> himself.
> : > He was convinced the noncommissioned officer would still be alive if
> : > Barber had gone on that mission, his wife wrote in materials submitted
> to
> : > the government.
> : >
> : > Barber noted in his post-deployment health screening that he felt at
> least
> : > one time during his deployment that he was in "great danger" of being
> : > killed. He also acknowledged that he had an experience so frightening
> and
> : > upsetting near the end of his tour that he felt numb or detached.
> : >
> : > However, the screening official concluded that Barber had "no medical
> : > issues" and didn't refer him for treatment, including for combat and
> : > operational stress, according to the screening, a copy of which was
> : > provided by Kelly Barber.
> : >
> : > Her husband eventually sought private care.
> : >
> : > During his leave, the couple attended a concert by Weezer, an
> alternative
> : > rock band. Barber, who his wife said was usually "the first one in the
> : > mosh pit," couldn't handle having so many people around him.
> : >
> : > She later recalled a camping trip where she remarked about the beauty
> of
> : > the surrounding mountains. Her husband said he liked the scenery,
> too --
> : > because there would be "good hiding places so no one would get me,"
> she
> : > remembers him saying.
> : >
> : > Medically unfit
> : >
> : > Barber's status with the military added to his stress. He transferred
> to
> : > an Army Reserve unit based in Tacoma to serve out his military
> contract.
> : >
> : > He was required to undergo a retention physical. It wasn't until
> August
> : > 2007, nearly a year after he underwent the physical, that he was found
> : > medically unfit to continue serving. The military deemed the reasons
> to be
> : > nonduty-related.
> : >
> : > He was given an honorable discharge in January. He was hired as a cook
> at
> : > Madigan, where his wife also worked. (Kelly Barber no longer works
> there.
> : > The 40-year-old just moved to Florida, where her family lives.)
> : >
> : > By spring, and after some initial delays, Joshua Barber had received a
> : > disability claim from the VA for post-traumatic stress disorder and
> had
> : > begun receiving treatment at one of its hospitals.
> : >
> : > He had requested a transfer back to the active-duty ranks so he could
> join
> : > a Warrior Transition unit, where injured soldiers are assigned until
> they
> : > either can return to their regular unit or are medically retired.
> : >
> : > He thought receiving counseling in an environment where other soldiers
> : > shared his experience with combat would aid in his treatment, his wife
> : > said.
> : >
> : > Kelly Barber said the couple worked with Madigan officials to help
> approve
> : > his transfer, but there were numerous delays and no decision had been
> made
> : > at the time of his suicide.
> : >
> : > Sharon Ayala, spokeswoman for Madigan, declined to comment because an
> : > investigation is pending.
> : >
> : > Drinking and an apology
> : >
> : > Early in the morning of Aug. 24, Kelly Barber awoke to find her
> husband
> : > watching television in the living room, drunk. His drinking had become
> a
> : > problem.
> : >
> : > She became angry and stormed back to the bedroom. Later in the day, he
> : > called her at work to apologize. In one of their last conversations,
> he
> : > "said he loved me and he was sorry," she recalled, breaking down
> during an
> : > interview.
> : >
> : > "Sometimes I think it's my fault," she said a little while later.
> : >
> : > He wasn't home when she returned from work. She later discovered that
> he'd
> : > taken all the guns and ammunition from the home.
> : >
> : > On the kitchen counter, she found his cell phone and a green Post-It
> note.
> : >
> : > "I love you. Please do not blaim (sic) yourself. Sorry," it read.
> : >
> : > She called police.
> : >
> : > Surveillance video shows that Barber arrived at Madigan about 7 a.m.
> the
> : > next day and didn't get out of the pickup, according to the police
> report.
> : > A Madigan employee found his body two days later and called 9-1-1.
> Kelly
> : > Barber, who was working at the time of the discovery, was notified
> later
> : > that morning.
> : >
> : > According to the medical examiner's report, Barber had put a revolver
> : > loaded with hollow-point rounds to the right side of his head and
> pulled
> : > the trigger.
> : >
> : > He was dressed in his old combat uniform.
> : >
> : > "He was making a statement to the military," Kelly Barber said.
> : >
> : > **********
> : >
> : >
> : > _______________________________________________
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> : > Peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net
> : > http://lists.chambana.net/cgi-bin/listinfo/peace-discuss
> : >
> :
>
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