By James Eli Shiffer
In August, Whistleblower reporter Lora Pabst told the story of Kerra Cameron , who was taken to the hospital against her will after passing out in a public place. The incident raised questions about whether the government was abusing its power to put people on emergency medical holds. This week, Pabst described the frustration of Jerry Rogers after he couldn't prod any government agency to use that power to get his mentally ill son medical treatment. It raised questions about whether the system failed to act in a crisis.
So which is it, Whistleblower? Is government too intrusive, or is it asleep at the wheel?
We ask ourselves those questions all the time, and we would be the first to admit that we don't know. The Whistleblower method is anecdotal, not scientific - we tell the stories of individuals who come to us with their frustrations and struggles. Some of those problems have struck you as trivial and unworthy of the Star Tribune. All right, not all of them are earth-shattering. But there's still a place for quick-turn investigative reporting. It's no substitute for the conventional way we do investigative reporting - delving into a subject that's identified by reporters and editors as of unquestionable significance. The Star Tribune is putting more resources into its broader investigative effort than at any time since I arrived four years ago.
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But to a large degree, Whistleblower is handing over some of our editorial control to the public. You set our agenda. So you're bound to see apparent contradictions from time to time. Life is like that.