http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/harristrial
http://www.ktiv.com/Global/story.asp?s=9640498
http://kscj.wordpress.com/2009/01/08/harris-trial-may-be-postponed
There is one major news story that has been the focus point lately and it is the trial of Lawrence Harris. Lawrence Harris has been accused of the ritualistic slaying of his step-daughters a little over one year ago.
The Sioux City Fire Department responded to a house fire call at the residence. When they were there, they found the girls dead in their room. Lawrence Harris told the police that he was performing a witchcraft spell and it had gone wrong.
From that date, the media in Sioux City have been all over the case. You can’t blame the media though. They are doing their job. The media is giving the community the information they need.
The local television media have had their cameras at each event containing Mr. Harris. From the initial coverage of the story to his first hearings and at every court appearance along the way.
The local newspaper has had a live blog from the courtroom everyday. It is on the front page of the newspaper and is the first item on the web site. If the newspaper follows their previous examples, there will be a special section on the web site for years to come.
This trial has been delayed for some time because of motions involving the psychiatric well being of the defendant. Lately, the main focus of the defense attorneys has been the location of the trial. They feel there is no way that Lawrence Harris can receive a fair trial in Sioux City.
The defense may have a point. With the amount of media coverage that has taken place, is it possible for the potential jurors to be completely fair? At this point it must be as the jurors were sworn in yesterday and the trial has started.
Sioux City is a town of about 100,000 people. News of this magnitude very rarely happens in our quiet community. The people want to know about this crime, these little girls, and the resulting trial. The media is performing their duty to the community by giving them access to the information they crave. When is there a line crossed between what is needed for the community and what is needed for the courts.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
A Public Relations miscue?
R. R. Donnelly is a printing company out of Chicago, Ill. They are widely considered the largest commercial printing company in the world. They are of course a large business and they are to always do the best they can to turn a profit for their shareholders. The company was founded in 1864 and has over 50,000 employees worldwide.
In northwest Iowa, there is a town called Spencer. The R.R. Donnelly plant there employees 160 people. These people rely on the R.R. Donnelly as their source of income as any employee would.
On Tuesday morning, the employees of the company started hearing rumors that their plant was being shut down and that there was a meeting scheduled for 3:00 that afternoon. Nothing else was being said to the employees.
That afternoon, there was a meeting and the employees were told that they were losing their job. The regional economic development coordinator has been trying to reach the corporate office but no one there will return her calls.
One worker told the reporter that the employees were not allowed to talk to the media or they may lose their severance benefits. Another visitor to the we site posted a comment that the plant may not wait until March 1st to be closed, that it could happen at any time.
To read the entire story, follow this link.
http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2009/01/14/news_business/local/6a051418c632a9658625753e00142598.txt
The worst part about this entire story is that the company has not responded to anyone about what is going on. The plant manager will not talk to the media, the corporate office will not return calls not only to the media but to the economic development coordinator of the region as well.
I am sure that there is a reason why this plant had to be closed. In these hard times, there are signs of economic turmoil everywhere and there are many companies in trouble. Why is it though that R.R. Donnelly does not feel they have to give an explanation to the employees and the community?
This company plays a large role in the community. This story has given them a bad name. I had never heard of R.R. Donnelly before the other day but since then, I have not had a good opinion of the company.
Had some type of statement been made to the community, through a press release or a briefing, the community would have more information as to why the company had to close the plant and might not be made to look like the villain in this story.
In northwest Iowa, there is a town called Spencer. The R.R. Donnelly plant there employees 160 people. These people rely on the R.R. Donnelly as their source of income as any employee would.
On Tuesday morning, the employees of the company started hearing rumors that their plant was being shut down and that there was a meeting scheduled for 3:00 that afternoon. Nothing else was being said to the employees.
That afternoon, there was a meeting and the employees were told that they were losing their job. The regional economic development coordinator has been trying to reach the corporate office but no one there will return her calls.
One worker told the reporter that the employees were not allowed to talk to the media or they may lose their severance benefits. Another visitor to the we site posted a comment that the plant may not wait until March 1st to be closed, that it could happen at any time.
To read the entire story, follow this link.
http://www.siouxcityjournal.com/articles/2009/01/14/news_business/local/6a051418c632a9658625753e00142598.txt
The worst part about this entire story is that the company has not responded to anyone about what is going on. The plant manager will not talk to the media, the corporate office will not return calls not only to the media but to the economic development coordinator of the region as well.
I am sure that there is a reason why this plant had to be closed. In these hard times, there are signs of economic turmoil everywhere and there are many companies in trouble. Why is it though that R.R. Donnelly does not feel they have to give an explanation to the employees and the community?
This company plays a large role in the community. This story has given them a bad name. I had never heard of R.R. Donnelly before the other day but since then, I have not had a good opinion of the company.
Had some type of statement been made to the community, through a press release or a briefing, the community would have more information as to why the company had to close the plant and might not be made to look like the villain in this story.
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