It starts off with a "scare you" paragraph about how sexual predators look and act "like us", then references Mitch as having child-exploitation files on his computer and "fear there could be unreported victims of abuse". That's a lovely catch-phrase meaning nothing more or less than "we don't have evidence to claim he ACTUALLY abused anyone sexually, but you should leap to that conclusion anyways".
"9 On Your Side obtained court documents that show the 47-year-old “admitted he had a problem with child pornography and had an attraction towards children.” In fact, the search warrant describes in explicit detail some of the files on the computer, many of children in sexual acts."
Parse that.
What "court documents"? He only just got arrested, there hasn't even been time for the initial hearing. This references the old California case, not the current arrest. But failing to mention it's an old case suggests to the unknowing viewer that Mitch just confessed guilt to the court. The quote is clearly not from Mitch, but from someone commenting on something Mitch said, such as a prosecutor.
If a prosecutor asks you, during interviews, "do you have a problem with child pornography?" and you say "yes, I do" --- meaning "I think it's disgusting, I hate it" or whatever --- the prosecutor is NOT required to assume you meant the negative. He is perfectly within his legal rights to stand before the judge and assume the opposite stance: "your Honor, the accused has admitted he has a problem with child pornography".
Similarly, teenagers under the age of 18 (and in many areas, older than that) are legally considered children, even if they are at or beyond the age of consent. If you say you think a 16-year-old in a string bikini is hot, you may have just admitted "sexual attraction to children".
None of this proves, or even alleges on my part, that Mitch Beiro is necessarily innocent of what he's accused of.
But after nearly 45 years of life and a fair amount of both political and social activism, I can say with confidence that the free press is simply a business industry. "True believers" in news as a public trust are few and far between.
Just went and checked KGUN's story: it is precisely the sensationalism that Xydexx complains Flayrah is engaged in here. http://www.kgun9.com/news/local/173413841.html
It starts off with a "scare you" paragraph about how sexual predators look and act "like us", then references Mitch as having child-exploitation files on his computer and "fear there could be unreported victims of abuse". That's a lovely catch-phrase meaning nothing more or less than "we don't have evidence to claim he ACTUALLY abused anyone sexually, but you should leap to that conclusion anyways".
"9 On Your Side obtained court documents that show the 47-year-old “admitted he had a problem with child pornography and had an attraction towards children.” In fact, the search warrant describes in explicit detail some of the files on the computer, many of children in sexual acts."
Parse that.
What "court documents"? He only just got arrested, there hasn't even been time for the initial hearing. This references the old California case, not the current arrest. But failing to mention it's an old case suggests to the unknowing viewer that Mitch just confessed guilt to the court. The quote is clearly not from Mitch, but from someone commenting on something Mitch said, such as a prosecutor.
If a prosecutor asks you, during interviews, "do you have a problem with child pornography?" and you say "yes, I do" --- meaning "I think it's disgusting, I hate it" or whatever --- the prosecutor is NOT required to assume you meant the negative. He is perfectly within his legal rights to stand before the judge and assume the opposite stance: "your Honor, the accused has admitted he has a problem with child pornography".
Similarly, teenagers under the age of 18 (and in many areas, older than that) are legally considered children, even if they are at or beyond the age of consent. If you say you think a 16-year-old in a string bikini is hot, you may have just admitted "sexual attraction to children".
None of this proves, or even alleges on my part, that Mitch Beiro is necessarily innocent of what he's accused of.
But after nearly 45 years of life and a fair amount of both political and social activism, I can say with confidence that the free press is simply a business industry. "True believers" in news as a public trust are few and far between.