Today, September16th, the Courier Journal posted an article about a Wyoming guide killed by a grizzly bear while looking for an elk in the Teton Wilderness. Click here to read the article. The report violated the element of good journalism newsworthiness.
In order to determine if something is newsworthy, the question, "Does it effect a lot of people for a long time?" must be answered. Without even reading the article, the answer to that question is clear. No, a random guide from Wyoming getting killed does not effect a lot of people for a long time. It was one occurrence that would only effect locals and close family. In general, this story was not deserving of publishing at all however, if it were more thematic it would possibly be relevant enough for publication. For example, if the report talked about a trend of grizzly bears attacking people very often in specific environments, that would effect a much larger group of people. It would make people aware of where not to go or what not to do. While this article allows its readers to be aware of grizzye bears in that area, that was not the articles purpose.
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