• January 2, 2013

Was The (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News' decision to publish names and addresses of local gun-permit holders a courageous move furthering gun control, or a snafu? Poynter's Al Tompkins analyzes the latest media brouhaha in a long, well-reported and thoughtful piece and concludes that the paper was not justified in its invasion of privacy. "I like it when journalists take heat for an explosive, necessary, courageous investigation that exposes important wrongdoing.There is journalistic purpose and careful decision-making supporting those stories," he writes. "But The News Journal is taking heat for starting a gunfight just because it could."