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The Accident Story
Casualty Releasing Policy

Journalist 3 & 2 - Introduction to Journalism and other reporting practices
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The following is an important tenet of Navy public affairs:  Accident news cannot be avoided or withheld, and it must be released.  The  amount  of  information released   varies   with   security   and   next   of   kin considerations. Accidents  can  happen  anytime  and  anywhere. Because   they   are   unpredictable,   unfortunate   and undesirable as a source of news, the JO who covers and writes  accident  stories  must  be  especially  careful  in handling them. Accidents  involve  both  life  and  death.  They  may cause  human  suffering,  heartache  and  anxiety.  Also, because  accidents  sometimes  result  from  carelessness or  negligence,  they  may  injure  reputations  or  lead  to disciplinary  action.  A  careless  word  or  phrase  in  an accident story may cause great damage to the Navy, to individuals   involved   and   to   the   careless   writer. Therefore,  accuracy  is  of  utmost  importance  in the accident  story. Figure 3-6.—Accident/disaster story structure. In collecting information for a story, the journalist must be careful to avoid gossip and conjecture. You must be  able  to  seek  out  proper  authorities  and  get  your information right the first time. You may not have the opportunity  to  verify  it  later. You  must  stick  to  the  concrete  facts,  resist  any temptation to hide or cover up legitimate news, maintain high standards of good taste and, above all, be familiar with security restrictions and other limitations. You must know what to release and whatnot to release. Never will your abilities as a JO be put to a more exacting test. STRUCTURE In any accident where a number of persons are killed or injured, the quickest and simplest way of writing the story  is  to  use  the  accident/disaster  story  structure shown in figure 3-6. This structure is adaptable to all types  of  accidents  and  enables  you  to  get  the  most important facts into the beginning of the story. Lead Consider  this  example:  “Two  San  Diego  sailors  were The lead of an accident story introduces the reader to the basic facts in the situation by summarizing the five Ws  and  H  (who,  what,  when,  where,  why  and  how). killed  and  three  others  seriously  injured  today  when their automobile blew a tire and smashed into a tree on Highway 80, five miles east of El Cajon.” Note that the lead answers all of the five Ws, but does not elaborate on any of them. The most important facts in any accident story are the number and identities of the casualties and the cause of the accident. This lead immediately  satisfies  the  reader’s  initial  curiosity  about these facts, but more detailed explanations are saved for the body of the story. Since five people are involved in this accident, it would not be practical to list their names and complete identities in the lead. Therefore, they are included in the next segment of the story. Casualty  List The   casualty   list   contains   the   names,   ranks   or ratings, ages, next of kin, hometown addresses and other pertinent  information  available  on  the  dead  and  injured. A casualty list for the above lead might be presented in the proceeding manner (listing should be in alphabetical order to facilitate readers in scanning the list for known names): Dead are: Seaman   Apprentice   David   K. Becker, 19, son of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel M.  Becker  of  821  Sherman  Dr.,  St. Louis, Mo. Seaman Jackson B. Painter, 22, son of Mr. and Mrs. Carl H. Painter of 680 Deamond St., Elmsdale, R. I., driver of the car. 3-18







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