Reaction to an article published on Nov. 20

Mr. Jerry S. Tundag

Editor-in-chief

The FREEMAN

Mr. Gregg M. Rubio

Writer

The FREEMAN

Dear Sirs:

I write to you in reaction to the article you wrote and published on page 7, November 20, 2013 issue of the The Freeman, entitled " Yapha Denies Allegations of Fake Ballot Printing for HRET."

First of all , let me express how appalled I am that my name is linked, directly or indirectly, to a very serious, wild and ridiculous allegation of falsification of ballots.

I expected that as a reporter of long standing, you would abide by the ethical standards of sound journalism. Very apparent in your article is that you failed to take any measure to gauge the veracity of the charge. You relied on the bare allegation of your anonymous source only through a text message, without any iota of evidence to support it, as the basis of your news article.

This gives rise to questions which, if left unanswered, will certainly render your credibility as a reliable source of information, doubtful to say the least.

First as a journalist, it is the police of The Freeman to run a story from any anonymous source? Are you not supposed to write base on facts alone?

Second, do the standards of journalism permit a reporter to write on a mere allegation, especially one involving a very serious charge, without requiring his source to present any evidence? Do you not follow the two-source rule especially on a very serious allegation?

I believed that by writing that article and invoking the privilege of not naming your anonymous source, you promoted a baseless allegation that is severely damaging to my reputation. I am sorry to say this but your article is licentious and is no different from a gossip.

Since your article has unjustly tarnished my reputation, I hope you will make an effort to correct the same in the spirit of responsible journalism.

Trusting that you will help in preventing the recurrence of a similar incident, I am likewise hoping that you will verify the truthfulness of every damaging allegation you will publish.

I remain,

Geraldine P.  Yapha, MD