We feel that the magnitude of Forde's actions, which in essence was attempting to make news instead of simply reporting news, warranted a quicker response to the public from the C-J. Nationally, newspapers' credibility has been under fire recently from readers. In a 1998 study by the American Society of Newspaper Editors, surveyed readers said they believed newspapers do not consistently demonstrate respect for, and knowledge of, their readers and their communities. Readers also said they feel newsroom values and practices are sometimes in conflict with their own priorities for their newspapers. While the C-J's actions, or lack thereof, may not have been unethical, it did leave readers with an unsettled feeling. Columnists, especially sports columnists in a sports-crazy city like Louisville, are public figures.
Readers often turn to their favorite column first when they open the paper.
When a columnist is suddenly stripped of his or her column, without explanation from the paper, readers are forced to form their own assumptions about what happened. In this case, because Forde did keep writing other things, the questions multiplied. Now, more than six months after this all began, readers finally know what happened. Had the C-J been quicker to report what happened, the wrath of the readers would have justifiably only been directed at Forde. Now, because of the length of time that elapsed between the incident and the explanation, many readers are wondering why the response took so long.