When tragedy strikes, please help the messenger

A wise journalist I know suggests three simple rules for how public officials should deal with the media. He uses the acronym HAT: be honest, be accessible, be timely.

I'd have to say, when it came to dealing with us on the tragic story of the Naperville North High School student who died of complications related to the H1N1 virus, the school district came up a bit short.

And I wish the district would have viewed us as a helpful messenger, rather than almost an adversary.

Michelle Fahle died at age 14 last Thursday, and Naperville Unit District 203 was less than forthcoming in letting us know about it. Given the nationwide concern about H1N1, one would think the district might have made some sort of announcement. But we heard about what had happened from a friend of an editor. The first official word came in the form of a districtwide e-mail Friday afternoon.

After the story came out, District 203 proceeded to throw down the gauntlet. In a harshly worded e-mail, we were told that to ensure the educational process was not disrupted, police would be stationed at Naperville North to keep the news media off the campus; anyone who attempted to gain entry would be arrested.

Our goal is not to disrupt school. Nor is it to be intrusive. But we must convey what strikes at the heart of our communities, to show the empathy and compassion for the people who are victims of tragedy. It would be far, far easier to write a dispassionate, detached story about a high school student's untimely death. But without attempting to chronicle Michelle's heartbreakingly short life, through friends and family who cared to talk to us, we would not be doing the community, or Michelle, justice.

We've worked hard to establish a good working relationship with District 203 and all schools we cover. I think our reporters conduct themselves professionally and courteously. We try our best to respect the wishes of grieving families, putting ourselves in their shoes. We stayed away from Michelle's funeral this week, after the family told us through the funeral home to respect their privacy.

Perhaps the district's no-trespassing order was aimed at the broadcast media. I certainly can see the validity in not having camera crews wandering the halls. There also seems to be some sentiment that TV shows up at our high schools only for the tragedies. That might be valid, but we're also there for the play rehearsals, the graduations, the pool dedications and the sporting events.

But rather than just bellyache about being swept under by mandates that normally aren't imposed until the glare of the metropolitan media is cast upon a local school district, perhaps I could offer a constructive suggestion.

In the past, we've commended former Superintendent Alan Leis with taking a proactive approach when District 203 has been in the limelight. For instance, when a popular principal plagiarized a graduation speech, Leis let us know what was going on every step of the way until the principal was removed from his job, a story the district couldn't have relished.

In this case, a District 203 news conference would have gone a long way toward achieving everyone's needs. There, the district could release whatever information was appropriate about Michelle Fahle's death. The district might have had someone from the health department and/or a hospital on hand to answer questions about H1N1, and what dangers might still be lurking for students.

Maybe, just maybe, the district could have worked in concert with the news media in getting that information out in a responsible, sensitive and non-hysterical fashion.