I have never met or spoken with Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb. He has appeared in Fishers on a few occasions and I have covered those events, but that’s the closest I have been to our state’s chief executive.
A Morning Consult poll released in July shows Holcomb with a 50% approval rating among registered voters and a 22% disapproval rate. The most interesting result from that poll shows about 28% of Hoosiers either don’t know much about the governor or have no opinion about him at all.
I believe more people in Indiana will be getting to know Holcomb for a reason the governor will not like. He has done something I cannot recall any Indiana governor doing in my lifetime – seek a cease and desist order against a news organization.
If you haven’t been following the story, a news organization named Reveal, which is part of the Center for Investigative Reporting, published a story about the state’s handling of worker safety issues at an Amazon location in Indiana. The Indianapolis Star published that story by Reveal.
If the governor has issues with the story, he has ways of getting that point across. To say the journalists must cease and desist reporting this story is wrong in just about every way.
Reveal and the Center for Investigative Reporting are solidly standing behind the story as reported. The Center for Investigative Reporting has a stellar reputation for checking out stories and ensuring accuracy before anything is published.
The Indiana Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists sent a letter to Governor Holcomb dated December 3rd. The letter makes the case better than I ever could. So, please read this open letter to the governor, which I believe states the issues involved clearly and succinctly:
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Honorable Eric J. Holcomb
Governor of Indiana
200 W. Washington St.
Indianapolis, IN 46204
Dear Gov. Holcomb:
The Indiana Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists takes exception to your call for the Indianapolis Star and Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting to cease and desist reporting stories about your administration’s handling of worker safety investigations at Amazon facilities in Indiana.
Our organization, which represents professional journalists throughout Indiana, feels this move is a threat to press freedom.
According to Article I, section 9 of the Indiana Constitution: “No law shall be passed restraining the free interchange of thought and opinion, or restricting the right to speak, write, or print, freely, on any subject whatever: but for the abuse of that right, every person shall be responsible.”
In our view, your cease-and-desist letters, issued on Nov. 29, are designed to intimidate reporters and journalists looking into your administration. The letters also add to the overall climate in the nation that looks to undermine the credibility of journalists and media outlets.
Although you might not agree with the contents or conclusions of the report in Reveal and the Indianapolis Star, an unusual call by your office for a cease-and-desist order against the media could chill efforts to report an ongoing story.
Indiana Pro SPJ stands behind the efforts of local and national journalism outlets to report issues of public importance and hold leaders accountable. If there are disputes over accuracy, there are ways to address those concerns without issuing a cease-and-desist order.
Indiana should set an example for the rest of the nation to follow when it comes to press freedom. Our officers would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and discuss this issue further.
Sincerely,
The Board of Directors
Indiana Professional Chapter
Society of Professional Journalists
For more information, please contact:
John Russell, chapter president
Michael Puente, chapter vice president
Thank you for sharing with Fishers what has been happening since the publication of this story, and for your defense of a free press. Good citizens must defend journalists from government intimidation.
Larry – Thank you for sharing that letter from the Society of Professional Journalists.
I think this sort of thing needs to be openly discussed by more people — regardless of political affiliation. The chilling effect and intimidation tactics that all levels of government are doing to journalists, globally, muddies the water of being able to determine what “truth” is going on. It is no wonder the mass populous can’t differentiate made up “alternative facts” from true observations and investigative reporting of potentially nefarious dealings.
I don’t have an opinion one way or the other about Governor Holcomb, in general. However, this stance he’s taking about the Amazon incident really doesn’t bode well for my ability to trust the administration to do the right thing going forward. The promise of jobs isn’t tantamount over employee safety…
Hello Larry,
Thank you for reporting the REVEAL story (as did the Star) about Gov. Holcomb’s attempt to censor the press about the tragically fatal accident at the Amazon site in Indiana. As a former newspaper reporter for The Noblesville Ledger and the Anderson Herald-Bulletin, I find Gov. Holcomb’s attempt to keep this information from his constituents a travesty.
Sincerely, Becky Snelling Schroer