Pundits Run Amok

Good Afternoon/Evening
Bill, I listen to your program though I don't always agree with you or your point of view. I feel that you offer a well constructed non emotional perspective on topics which unequivocally are related to the triangle and the nation. Listening on 5/20, I first have to say that I do admire how you and the station were quick to shift focus to inclement weather that was approaching our area. That said, I also have to say how I strongly feel that it was poor judgment to devote an hour of air time to Kristin Butler and her assault on NCCU and Crystal Mangum. The Duke Lacrosse Rape Case/Hoax was needless to say a blemish in our state's history as so many systems failed. From the legal to the news to even the social systems-- all structures which we trust to operate in our best interests failed. Some years later, as we are trying to move away from this debacle as expected there are people who still wish to keep the fires burning. Enter your guest Kristin Butler, a Duke University columnist who I assume is supposed to be some type of journalist for the Chronicle. This event (the Duke Lacrosse Rape/Hoax) by itself was polarizing. In hindsight, I admit I even threw a few "dogs into that fight." That said, this case if we look at it through Butler's lens, plays very much like a final four game with clear winners and losers. Simply put, nothing could be further from the truth. What pains me about this the most is that we have become so detached from the fact that human lives were involved here and those same lives were ravaged. You have the wrongfully accused, a woman who has apparently become irrational and discombobulated, overly zealot parents and boosters from Duke University and NCCU, an opportunistic DA and journalists who feel this represents their "white ford bronco." As many are trying to migrate away from this spectra, in comes Butler who throws gas on a smoldering fire. What's worse, you allow her a platform that has the potential to escalate tensions as opposed to using the power of media ease away from this. To me it is grossly irresponsible as a broadcaster. It is capricious for Butler and the Chronicle to not help to heal the situation that they obviously had a part in. I am greatly disheveled by this. In fact I observed that you failed to offer or at least demonstrate that any attempt to obtain an opinion from NCCU faculty, staff or students to join you on your panel. This is endemic of opportunistic bias and I would expect more from a seasoned broadcaster. It is uncalled for and quite flatly wrong. I respect you as a person but you have lost credibility with me as a broadcaster. It may not mean much to you but to me it reflects a lot as I listen to diverse opinions. As a student of culture and a professor of media if you have the ability to control discourse, you are obligated to do it responsibly. You are better than that and your listeners deserve better.
Like I said, I do not always agree with you or your perspective but I do respect your ability to step away from the issue of the day. Today I failed to see that and it borders negligence.

I am deeply disappointed.

W. Russell Robinson