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Now here’s what a news organization like ours thinks about rumors:
In one sense, they’re worthless. We don’t report a rumor that someone has broken the law.
Would you like it if your neighbor called to tell us that you had been involved in sex abuse and we printed it? We demand at least two or even three independent and highly credible sources to print any anonymous allegation of criminal behavior.
Murphy tracked down sources who confirmed that the rumors were serious but found no one with firsthand, verifiable knowledge of the case.
Sara Ganim had more luck. After a great deal of work, Ganim eventually located and spoke with the victim’s mother. But we needed much more if we were to accuse a Penn State coaching legend of an abhorrent crime.
After Ganim came to The Patriot-News, she continued her reporting in Centre, Mifflin, Clinton and Dauphin counties. She interviewed more than 26 people, often three or four times.
We confirmed their statements in other ways, as well. Sara tracked down a second victim, witnesses and other sources who could talk not only about the Clinton County victim but about what had happened back in 1998.
With enough evidence that we were confident of its accuracy, we published the story on March 31.
The national media ignored it. Locally, we mainly received anger from some readers.
“It truly is troubling to me to see a ‘reputable’ newspaper such as The Patriot-News carrying this type of sensationalist story,” wrote one.
“Shame on those who have tried to defile the legacy that Jerry Sandusky has worked so hard to build,” wrote another.
We stood by the story and more stories followed. We have been told by those with knowledge of the grand jury investigation that our stories prompted additional victims to come forward.
Many of my colleagues here at The Patriot-News are Penn State alumni. Many more of us are Lions fans or have simply admired Joe Paterno. This has been an unbelievably sad week for us along with hundreds of thousands of Penn Staters and millions of Americans who feel the same way.
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