It’s a question most parents don’t like to think about… unless you live in Minnesota.
A few months ago some parents in a quiet Twin Cities suburb were forced to consider how easy it was to have a stranger abduct their child. Not because there was a deranged kidnapper on the prowl, rather parents and children were unnecessarily frightened because a local TV station decided to take a hands-on approach to reporting the news.
Or shall I say creating the news?
Thanks to some bonehead news director at KMSP, the Fox affiliate in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, reporters were told to drive around in unmarked SUVs and ask random kids for directions as they walked home from school. The plan: See how easy it was to lure innocent young children to their vehicles in an effort to “abduct” them in a candid camera stunt-type set-up.
If the words sensationalism and stupidity come to mind, you’re not alone.
I spent more than a decade as a TV reporter and anchor, and I must admit that this idea for an investigative “news” series has got to be one of the most idiotic I have ever come across–and believe me, I’ve been a part of some real doozies. Thankfully, though, none of the hair brained sweeps/ratings stories I was sent to generate… (cough… cough… I mean… cover) involved scaring the daylights out of young kids and their parents.
Fortunately, parents and school administrators in the upscale Edina area caught wind of KMSP’s diabolical plan before it was set into motion and called police. Law enforcement, then sent a message to area school administrators, who then issued this letter to parents:
KMSP Fox 9 will be driving around Edina neighborhoods between 2:00-4:30 p.m. today to “ask children for directions.” Reporters will be driving a 2004 silver Ford Explorer or Expedition. While there is nothing illegal with this, law enforcement does not endorse this activity.
Upon receiving the letter, hundreds of parents flooded KMSP with complaints. Long story short, the station eventually agreed to abandon the story.
I wish I could also say the news director was fired as a result of trying to create news instead of just reporting it, but alas, I think he’s still around.
You have to wonder if he has kids, and if he does, then how would he react if his child was approached by a stranger in a truck, and then lured inside the vehicle only to have the unknown person end the charade with “Gotcha! Just kidding! We’re actually the news.”
Talk about obliterating the concept of stranger danger.
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Can You Miss Your Kids Too Much?