Journalists need to tread carefully when reporting certain stories, especially when a family 
tragedy is involved. They need to weigh the public’s need to know against the concerns of the family. And most of all, they need to be fair. Well, you can give the Associated Press a FAIL on their reporting of the deaths of Dr. Viswanathan Rajaraman and his wife, Dr. Mary Sundaram.
A small plane crashed into a cornfield and caught fire early Sunday, killing the parents of a former Harvard University student who lost a $500,000 book contract because parts of her first novel were copied from other works. [Link]
It’s been five years since Kaavya’s scandal and it seems unseemly to bring it up in the very first paragraph of an article that should have focused on the death of a brilliant and beloved neurosurgeon. In fact, I wonder if it’s necessary to mention it at all. Perhaps it is, but you can argue that the death of two doctors in a plane crash is newsworthy enough, without bringing up their daughter’s much-publicized but well-in-the-past literary sin. In any case, the Indo-Asian News Service seems to have handled the article better than the AP, even if they didn’t do much original reporting themselves.
Here are just a couple of comments about Dr. Rajaraman from a NewjerseyNewsroom.com article.
Dr. Raj was an awesome man… Very nice, friendly, smartest DR. I have ever had the pleasure to work with & for. I still dont want to believe this horrible news. Dr. Raj used to always come to my desk and ask me for Chocolate, and we used to laugh.. I will never, ever forget you… May you and your beautiful wife REST IN PEACE….. GONE BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN…. (Paola S)
The surgery Dr. Rajaraman performed on me changed my life. Such a kind man. I feel blessed to have met him. Such a loss to the world. My deepest condolences to the entire family. (D. Mariniello)
yeah, i thought the AP treatment was off too. it isn’t as if the tabloids are holding back, so why go there like that?
This is their legacy then? Shame on AP for such a shoddy job.
Does every follow up to a fatal accident – the Jackass actor’s self-inflicted death another recent example – need to be a hagiography?
Personally, I don’t go out of my way to speak ill of the recently deceased, but since the only reason this story is at all newsworthy is because of the Kaavya connection, well, it would seem artificial not to mention that.
let’s not forget how viscous this blog was to Kaavya in 2006 (except for Anna).
Well I reckon the reason AP’s covering the news is because of the daughter. Take that fact away and it’s just another couple who died in a plane crash. It’s a tragedy still but not one that would interest the media.
The last paragraph in the article even talks about how their custom tailored home was in a cul-de-sac lot in an expensive area (again seemingly unnecessary info).
Unfortunately, in America today, the death of a doctor no matter how distinguished is not newsworthy. I think it is a reflection on news consumers in this society that AP felt it necessary to lead with the old scandal.
AP opening line: All of that reference in one sentence seems gross and unprofessional.
And why should the death of this couple be any more newsworthy than others who die in plane crashes? Because they went to Harvard? Because they are doctors? They were the parents of a young woman who gained some significant press a few years ago. THAT is why it is newsworthy. Get off your high horse and stop being so thin-skinned.
Saddened to hear the news of such a tragedy and my heart goes out to the grieving family members. However, as a former journalist, I’d say it’s not a surprise that the AP would choose open with that eye-catching lead. As much as I personally prefer the Indo-Asian News Service article, an editor might say they “buried the lead.” Depends on the editor. Sensationalism sells. So so so sad, however. Thanks for posting about this, Melvin.
Did the dead people WANT to be news? Did Kaavya?
AP decided to make this a news story by bringing in Kavya.
And this created news is hurtful to her, as many commentators have pointed out. And she has a right not to be hurt by news organizations.
There is no thin-skin here, just basic decency. It is pretty clear you don’t understand what that means.
Since when have dead people ever wanted to be news??? My sympathies to the family, but it is normal to include something about the victims in a plane crash like this. Are you going to be calling out the AP every time they bring up something unpleasant about the dead? Or only when the color of their skin is brown?
That is very sad , and like you so rightly pointed out, they could have focussed on the positives of the people who passed away, rather than the negatives of their daughter. Not fair at all. But this is how media sensationalises issues, isn’t it!!
You guys realize that you see all kinds of “unknown” people in the news after a crash or even something like a burglary? So why do they have to highlight the infamous linkage so much to make it a story? It is a story on its own merits. Nothing wrong if they tie it in with the Kavya situation, but they seemed to spend a little too much ink on that part.
@Melvin “Journalists need to tread carefully when reporting certain stories, especially when a family tragedy is involved.”
Not when your in a recession and journalism is going down the tubes, in that case anything goes unless you want to stand in the unemployment line.
One of the casualties of modern journalism is the heightened need to publish racy and often shocking news. This article was indeed in poor taste and I hope AP issues an apology and retraction right away.
This is completely unfair. As I commented in the topic above about Harmon Raju, negative publicity lives with you forever. This man probably saved hundreds of lives through surgery and diagnosis, but that’s irrelevant. All that matters is a mistake his young daughter made half a decade ago. When something negative about you goes public, your reputation is tarnished forever. Which is why the first sentence of this new story had to mention “killing the parents of a former Harvard University student who lost a $500,000 book contract because parts of her first novel were copied from other works.” Interestingly, it takes three sentences before they even mention the names of these parents.
Stupid. It’s the sins of the fathers visited upon the children, not the other way around!
Also, pardon my superficialness, but Dr. Rajaraman looked kinda good. Tragic loss!
Dave Chapelle talks about this subject at length.
You can become infamous….but you can’t become un-famous
Kavya will be “that girl who cheated on book deal blah blah” forever as charlie sheen will for “winning” and dave chapelle will for ‘i’m rich bitch!”
Man, when I saw that article about Kaavya’s parents, I felt so ashamed of myself for saying the stuff I had about her online after her plagiarism thing. I could not believe the cruel comments I saw in the NY Post (Scam girl’s Tragedy was the headline).
The doc seemed like an amazing person in the medical community. I was so glad his colleagues and patients wrote such wonderful things about him. It sucks that there’s one less neuro-oncologist in this world. And I feel so terrible for Kaavya, who I read is an only child. She just graduated from G–town law. I remember when I had just graduated from grad school and was out in the world on my own. To not have had my parents’ advice would have been-I seriously can’t even figure it out.
I can’t believe how many journalists just went for the cheap shot.