WARNING BEAWARE OF Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey
We are postponing and not canceling the rally. We are thankful that almost 5000 individuals have signed our petition. But we realize that there is much work to be done if we want this to be a resounding success. 5000 is not going to give us what we need to win this important fight. This is being posted on our sites as well as being email to all those who have give their email as a way to contact them. Please we want all of you to take a few minutes and think who you can get to sign the petition. If we get the 100,000 to sign we will be listened to and taken seriously. Send the site info to all in your address book and ask them to please take a minute and look at our sites, then send it to everyone in their address book.
It now looks like a fall election is a possibility. Maybe with 100,000 behind us we can get one of the parties who would like our votes to assist us or promise to review the laws or even introduce legislation. We will be going door to door in the coming weeks asking for people to join the petition and to stop buying the papers, if you can help please send an email.
Thank you
TABLOID JOURNALISM SOLD AS "NEWS" in Canada! We are tired of the press having a free pass to ruin lives with little or no recourse. Tired of reporters like Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey and the newspapers that allow her and others like her to do what they do under the cloak of integrity.
A reporter can report the news, or whatever their interpretation of it under the freedom of the press in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. We all agree that this is a fundamental right that we should and do hold dear.
Unfortunately, this doesn't work out as great as it sounds in all cases - like when an irresponsible reporters like Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey uses supermarket tabloid style news and sells it to the unsuspecting person who buys the local paper as news. Unfortunately they unknowingly assist in destroying innocent people and or their careers.
Imagine you are a hard working, blue collar person from a small town in Canada. You are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and end up being a suspect in a crime. The second your name hits your community newspaper, your life is ruined. Your neighbors, your employers, even your family all instantly think you are a criminal! What ever happened to innocent till proven guilty?
Further more there is nothing you can do if the reporter sensationalizes the article. The reporter can hide behind the "Charter Right" to ruin your life! Now let’s say you have all charges dropped or your proven innocent - what happens now? The likely answer is nothing! Reporters like Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey are under NO obligation to even mention you’re innocent and under NO obligation to even print it. That’s a lot harder to sensationalize or exaggerate, so it would likely be “not news worthy”, and would not get the same or equal coverage. Do you think your neighbor will look at you the same? Do you think you will still have a job?
So what can we all do?
We have to stop eating the tabloid journalism that these reporters are feeding us as news! We have to ACT to PROTECT ourselves! We HAVE to stop this "wild west news show"! Make the editors of theses papers report the news responsibly or we are not buying any longer.
Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey has been practicing these methods of reporting for years, and ruining lives in the process with what seems no concern at all. By publishing her, Sun Media, Barrie Examiner and the Orillia Packet are just fuelling this fire by allowing her to print what ever she wants, without verifying her facts, because it sells! Here is just one example
McLaughlin's Nightmarish Methods of Reporting...
Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey has recently wrote stories about a man who was charged with 3 counts of fraud. The charges involved taking deposits on 3 office furniture orders that were never completed (1 was for just over $2000 from an Orillia company, 1 for just over $3000 from a large Barrie trucking firm, and a 3rd for just over $8000 from a third company. The court heard that this man ran not one, but two massive companies for many years - companies that employed over 100 people. Unfortunately, he and his company were forced into bankruptcy. He had sold and delivered 100's of office supply and furniture orders in the past - but these three orders remained undelivered. The judge in the matter found that during the time he ran his companies he lead a legally blameless life. In fact the court made a finding that "he has for the past 18 years lead a legally blameless life". The court heard that he had repaid all monies and not a cent was unpaid to these three companies. The crown told the jury to find him guilty - not because he intended to defraud the three companies, but because “he did not protect their deposit and keep it separate from other monies”. The jury did what the crown asked. The matter is before the court of appeal now, and the final outcome is as yet unknown. His sentence was a $17,000.00 fine and a year of house arrest.
Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey incredibly wrote numerous stories with front page coverage about this trial (yet no other reporter even found it news worthy!). You decide the facts, but this case was sensationalized by McLaghlin, in a number of papers she writes for, including the Toronto Sun. The Sun headline screamed "SERIAL FRAUD ARTIST SKIPS JAIL!". What do you say Malicious? Simply writing the news?
Tracy wrote how a court many years before had made an order to this man to pay a former girlfriend. McLaughlin in her stories clearly said he had never “paid a penny” back to her. This was completely untrue and was not the evidence before the court - but it made for good reading and that is what it is all about!
McLaughlin sat in the court house and was speaking to his former employer, who was a competitor to his current work. The former employer provided Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey with an old security photo of this man, regardless of the fact that they had no right to distribute this. This should have been known to McLaughlin. She boldly put his current employers name and address in the story, and claimed that it was his business, not his place of employment. She went on to imply that the company was just a post office box he rented, that the offices the company leases were not there, and that he just rented an answering service. There were a number of major errors in the stories, and it should be obvious that Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey made little effort to check her facts. We will cover this story and others like this in great detail in the future. We intend to publish our own small newspaper, which will be delivered free of charge to all Simcoe County homes, clearing up the facts of this and other McLaughlin stories!
The effect on this man's employer and his colleges was and has been catastrophic, just as she likely imagined. His former employer has relentlessly emailed and promoted the story, and other competitors now carry it to sales calls. Is Sun Media saying every employer now should fire anyone who gets charged, innocent or not? Or just if they are convicted? What may be the only alternative? If they don’t they could be smeared by Sun Media? This tabloid journalism is now not only affecting this initial gentleman, but numerous employees of a completely unrelated company. This type of reporting would leave corporations in a very precarious situation.
So what are we doing:
We intend to petition our government for new laws making the papers more accountable for their actions. “The Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey Legislation
We are organizing a MASSIVE rally in Barrie, Ontario on Saturday, September 12th, 2009 where we will be showing The Barrie Examiner, The Orillia Packet, and Sun Media that we aren't going to take their type of reporting anymore! We will be providing free Hot Dogs and Refreshments, and want to encourage you to bring your family and friends!
Here is the big thing - by attending our Rally, you'll be helping to shape
Canada for the better! You'll be a part of history! We will be driving in tandem to Queens Park, where we will be lobbying for legislation that we'd like to call "The Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey Legislation" - Which helps protect the public from tabloid journalism, including providing equal space in publications to clear the names that irresponsible reports have smeared!
By attending our drive to Queens Park, You'll be part of our GUINNESS WORLD BOOK OF RECORDS attempt! Imagine setting a world record while you fight a good cause and protect our future!
Take your place in history by helping us stop tabloid journalism in Canada! We need your help! Here is what you can do:
How You Can Help:
2. Email Your Friends
3. Volunteer
We need help! We have a dedicated team, but with more people we can expand become closer to our goal!
Are you a reporter? We need your help too! Don't let your colleagues make a bad name for the hard working majority! Let us know how you can help!
Are you a writer? Help us expand our network of blogs and self published newspapers!
Are you passionate? Help us at our rally! Bring your friends, tell the world, and help us execute one of Canada's largest political based rallys!
www.TracyMcLaughlin.ca - We have currently been looking into a number of claims from a number of individuals who feel that they might have been wronged by Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey and her reporting. Because of the number of issues and similarities we have been made aware of, we are exploring the possibility of a class action lawsuit against Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey, relating to articles she has written and had published in a number of newspapers in Canada. Do you feel you could have been wronged by Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey, and possibly interested in these proceedings? Please contact us immediately at classaction@tracymclaughlin.ca, with all your information.