Griscom: Haiti? UT? How about credibility?

Please stay with me.

I am over Lane Kiffin, University of Tennessee football (at least for a while), and the soap opera that enveloped the Vols Nation.

But there is a journalism lesson from the UT travails, the mistakes that occurred and the apparent inability to acknowledge errors caused by speed, time and a fear of being left behind.

A handful of callers last week shared a single message: "Why does anybody care about this Kiffin person when people are dying in Haiti? UT football should remain on the Sports page not on the front page."

Several penned letters to the editor -- that were published -- reciting the same points.

An answer is appropriate since I believe that letters to the editor allow the writer to express an opinion and should not resemble a tennis game with a series of volleys across a net.

The devastation in Haiti is jarring. The poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere has been wracked over time by poverty, dysfunctional leaders and general neglect. Religious-based relief organizations for decades have attempted to address at least the abject poverty. There is little to show but a crumbling infrastructure that was in disrepair well before an earthquake took a toll on people and property.

Rich, caring nations respond well after the fact. But Haiti was a nation crying out in need for some time.

Amid the news of the devastation in Haiti came the loss of a football coach at the University of Tennessee.

Are they equal in terms of human suffering? No.

Is there a substantial group of readers who, while acknowledging the Haiti disaster, bleed orange? By all means.

Publishing a daily newspaper is attempting to find a balance for readers' interests, which stretch across a broad spectrum.

Does that balance cause some to be displeased regardless of the choices? Yes.

The mosaic of news that shapes the complexion of the front page changes each day. A broad market product, a newspaper touches the lives of people with shared and dissimilar interests. Perhaps in this time of Washington political dysfunction, which lacks civility or tolerance, the daily newspaper remains a symbol for being exposed to and tolerating divergent interests.

Balancing a newspaper front page is an imperfect science, influenced by various methods of gauging the issues that are shaping the day's agenda.

For example, a quick survey of the local Rotary Club led one to believe there were two main topics last week: Haiti and UT football. It was a bit of a stretch for the audience to grasp that education reforms proposed by Gov. Phil Bredesen and approved by the Tennessee General Assembly warranted attention.

There is one other lesson from the week that Haiti shared with UT football: the power and the limitations of the Internet.

The world of digital information has resulted in many great newspapers becoming somewhat less so.

The competitive edge that existed in print is hard to find in some media markets unless it is in the realm of competing for eyeballs and finger twitches on a computer keyboard or a smartphone.

Gov. Bredesen pushed a "Race to the Top" for education funds; some newspapers attempt to "race" somewhere, leaving accuracy on the sideline in the desire to be first.

The debacle that was the search for a new UT football coach demonstrated all the warts of today's media (not only newspapers), and while some of the mess is self-inflicted, the consumer also bears a small measure of responsibility.

Herd journalism is a term applied to reporters who cover the White House or political campaigns. A thread for a story is created, and all the journalists write or tell the same story. The effort to be first on the Internet is the digital herd.

A story that a two-time former UT coach was backing the moving van up to Neyland Stadium flooded newspaper and television Web pages and even crept into the daily news products in print and on the air. The story was not correct. The Times Free Press did not carry the story.

The miracle of the Internet is, when all else falls simply remove it as if it never occurred. More telling was the attempt to keep the false report alive by saying the deal fell apart at the last minute because of disagreements over staff changes.

Credibility comes from admitting a mistake -- that the original information was inaccurate. Apologize and rebuild your standing in the eyes of a reader.

The race for the top listing on the Internet led to the breakdown of the tenets of journalism, and the herd mentality kicked in.

A race to be first should not crowd out being second with correct information.

There was more than Haiti or UT; there was also credibility.

To reach Tom Griscom, call 423-757-6472 or e-mail tgriscom@timesfreepress.com.