Addressing the 4-2 Rumor

Getting a bit of static and flak in the comment sections about the 4-2 on-again/off-again rumor.

People are asking why we publish it, why we give it air, why we respond to it. Others are claiming we shouldn't publish unverified rumors and it's our responsibility to double and triple check everything that goes up on the main page.

First of all, this is a blog. It's a place to vent, to feel what's out there, get feedback on a near instant level, or 24 hours tops. Frankly, we're surprised the FOP hasn't co-opted the format and used it to their advantage at some point in the last four years. It isn't terribly difficult. Time consuming, yes, but not so difficult.

Second, we aren't the media. We don't want to be the media. They're intellectually dishonest, morally bankrupt and tools to the "nth" degree. No thanks.

And finally, just how do people expect us to verify every little thing that pops up here? Rumor Central has been gone for 10 or more years now. You think we have time for this?

• ::ring ring:: Hello, FOP, How may I help you?
• Yes, this is...uh...SCC. Could you comment....
• ::click::

Or...

• ::ring ring:: City Hall, How may I direct your call?
• Hi! This is ... uh ...a concerned cop. We run a small website and we were wondering...
• ::whispered conversation:: "Get a trace on this one Jimmy!"

We exist on "reader generated" content. If that means we give some "credence" to rumor, that isn't a reflection on the blog - that's a reflection on the piss-poor job the FOP and the Department are doing keeping cops in the loop. We didn't give this front page play to fuck with the process, we put it up front and center because this story was getting legs and we felt we had to get out in front of it. We all deserved as much info as we could get in the shortest amount of time. Believe it or not, the truth eventually comes out in this format. Rumors fly and get shot down quicker, facts come out, people step forward. It might be ugly, but it works better than J-Fed's blog or the FOP site.

Seriously, was there any reason to let this run around unchecked for the entire weekend without the vaguest denials from the FOP or J-Fed? J-Fed needs a win to maintain any semblance of credibility within the Department. The FOP needs a win to run for re-election because this contract is going to be a wash. By not addressing it, did they think they'd destroy the blog? Our numbers went up because we were the only ones addressing it. Our credibility didn't suffer because we didn't start the rumor - we addressed it and asked for info from people who might know more than we did.

In any event, the situation still hasn't been addressed. We're still getting e-mails, comments are still flying around, rumors appear and disappear with equal speed. And we'll still try to get our readers the closest thing to the full truth that we can.