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 or we would like in all cases. For the vast majority it does thankfully, almost all reporters in Canada take an ethical stand on the facts and how they are made public. Unlike irresponsible reporters like Tracy McLaughlin, aka Tracy McConkey who use supermarket tabloid style news and sell it to the unsuspecting public who buy the local paper as news. Unfortunately they unknowingly assist in destroying innocent people and or their careers.

Imagine if you will you are a hardworking, 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 neighbours, your employer, even your family all instantly think you are a criminal! Then that “community newspaper” posts it on the net. At times they will even include you place of work! For the rest of your life as soon as someone types in your name on a Google search up comes their screaming false headline. Job interview, forget it. Business opportunities don’t bother. So your work now pays because someone is thinking of dealing with the company and Google search is done and guess what comes up…That screaming headline. So now all your colleagues and work will pay so Sun Media can make a buck.

Furthermore there is nothing you can do if the reporter sensationalizes the article. The reporter can hide behind the "Charter Right" and ruin your life! Now let’s say you have all charges dropped or your proven innocent - what happens then? 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 would be a lot harder to sensationalize or exaggerate, so it would likely be “not news worthy”, or would not get the same or equal coverage.

SO WHAT CAN BE DONE?

We all 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 these papers report the news responsibly or we are not buying any longer. In short collectively we need to deliver that message.

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 the Orillia Packet and others are condoning what she is for the sake of profit. Let’s quickly look at a McLaughlin story….

MCLAUGHLIN’S NIGHTMARISH REPORTING

Tracy McLaughlin/Tracy McConkey has recently written 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, Ontario company, the second for just over $3000 from a large Barrie, Ontario 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 by a petition of creditors, not a voluntary act. The court record is clear 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/McConkey incredibly wrote numerous stories with front page coverage about this trial (yet no other reporter or media outlet even found it news worthy!). You decide the facts, but it’s clear we believe this case was sensationalized by McLaughlin, 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? Or simply writing the news?

McLaughlin 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 McLaughlin/ 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. Not one word of this was said in the court or is in the transcripts! There were a number of major errors in the stories, and it is obvious that McLaughlin/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 residence of Simcoe County, 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 the stand a chance of being smeared by Sun Media? What may be the only alternative? This tabloid journalism is not only affecting this initial gentleman, but numerous employees of a completely unrelated company. This type of reporting would leave all companies in a very precarious situation.

WHAT WE ARE DOING AND HOW YOU CAN HELP

We intend to petition our government for new laws making the papers more accountable for their actions. “The McLaughlin/ McConkey Legislation”

Legislation we want will protect the public from tabloid journalism, including providing equal space in publications to clear the names that irresponsible reports have smeared!

Take your place in history by helping us stop tabloid journalism in Canada! We need you and your help! Here is what you can do:

How You Can Help:

1. Sign Our Petition

2. Email this to your friends and all addresses in your address book.

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…start a blog or self-published newspaper!

COMING IN JANUARY 2011

Breaking News: Boycott The Toronto Sun & Toronto Sun Advertisers AND ALL OF SUN MEDIA ADVERTISERS!