How Richmondside approaches public safety reporting

Public safety has long been a topic reported on by news outlets, one that includes stories about crime and policing, public health crises, and environmental and natural disasters like fires. However, the way the news media has traditionally reported on crime in particular — by being overly reliant on information provided by law enforcement agencies — can often end up amplifying inaccurate narratives that harm the very communities most affected by crime.

Instead of simply publishing law enforcement press releases verbatim, Richmondside will aim to dig deeper by identifying common themes and threads and exploring how communities are seeking unique solutions to prevent crime and other public safety problems from occurring in the first place.

A NATIONWIDE SHIFT Richmondside’s approach is in line with a nationwide shift in thinking about public safety reporting. Read more about how the media industry is changing its approach in this article by Poynter, a world-recognized journalism thought leader.

Yes, there will be times when we determine it makes sense to publish stories about individual crimes when they occur, and there are certainly readers interested in such coverage. But as journalists, we’ve learned to question the long-term value of that type of day-to-day crime reporting. Is it making the community safer? Is it holding our public agencies accountable for making the fundamental changes needed to prevent such crimes in the first place?

While we might miss out on website traffic by not publishing headlines every time a property or violent crime occurs in the city, we believe Richmond’s communities will be better served by more in-depth, contextual reporting. Our newsroom is committed to doing this by providing analyses and explanatory pieces that hold the powerful to account, while balancing the information we collect from law enforcement agencies with what we learn from other sources. 

How we’ll decide to cover — or not cover — a public safety story

When an individual crime or public safety situation occurs in Richmond, we’ll start by evaluating its news value and whether reporting on it serves the public interest. Some questions we might consider include: Is there an ongoing threat to the wider community? Who was involved — was it a person of local significance or someone who holds a high level of public responsibility? Did the incident impact or inconvenience a large number of people? Could additional information protect the community from harm? Is this story already being covered by other news outlets? And if so, will our reporting add anything new? Along with assessing the news value, we’ll take into account our limited staff resources. We’re a small team, and we need to make daily decisions about what to prioritize.

When we do decide to report on a crime, we will not name suspects in most cases. That’s because charges may later be dropped or reduced, or a suspect might later be acquitted. Publishing someone’s name online can make it difficult for them to find work or get on with their lives. 

For example, while police departments may arrest someone for a specific reason and recommend certain charges, it is up to the district attorney to file charges — so the information we publish initially may not reflect the final outcome of a particular case. We may decide to later publish the names of criminal defendants once the district attorney’s office has charged the person with a major crime. 

Richmondside will also never publish mugshots without a compelling reason. We’re part of a growing number of news organizations, including others at Cityside, that are questioning this historical news industry practice and choosing to not publish mugshots because of the reasons outlined above and because they reinforce racial biases. If we do ever publish a mugshot, it will be because there is a clear and immediate danger to the public, such as an active shooter, and identifying an individual could help to protect people from harm. 

It is not just newsrooms that are revising their thinking about publishing mugshots. State lawmakers similarly have recognized their prejudicial nature, ordering law enforcement agencies not to broadcast them via social media in cases of non-violent crimes.

If you have questions on any aspect of Richmondside’s approach to public safety reporting, please email hello@richmondside.org.