Here is the letter I typed up. Constructive criticism is appreciated before I press send.
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To whom it may concern:
The story published this morning on your site containing a search function for concealed carry permit holders is disturbing to myself and many others, as well as it should be to you, too.
As a former resident of Wake Co., and lifelong viewer of WRAL news, I was shocked to hear of this type of reporting on WRAL.com this morning. It is obvious that articles of this nature do nothing good for the community; indeed, they only encourage and empower the criminal element. By making this type of information available publicly, WRAL demonstrates its willingness to assist people on the other side of the law, and your complete admission of doing that knowingly and willingly.
It could be argued that this information is public record, and as such is available to anybody who wishes to request it. And yes, that is true. But before your article, those people would have to travel to their local law enforcement office, fill out paperwork and show their ID, and create a paper trail of their request and their search. Now, they can do it from the comfort of their own home, with no paper trail for law enforcement to trace when doing their report after a crime has been committed. Or even worse, with the mass use of smart phones, criminals can now pull up your website while in their vehicle, and through the link in this article, search for homes on the streets they are presently on and have a faster option for searching for victims.
Being in the news industry, I'm sure you have heard of other news outlets across the country that have tried stunts like these when you were researching and writing this story. The Roanoke Times, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, CommercialAppeal.com ( a Memphis, TN based news website) among others have tried this approach in the past and met with sufficient response from the public that they rather shortly decided to remove the lists from their media outlets. One would hope that the writers and editors at WRAL would have also heard about the public backlash that happened to said outlets, and would have taken a moment to step back and reconsider articles of this variety.
Even though the search only returns street names and no house numbers in the results, this is still more than disturbing and very dangerous to any and all people living on that street. Perhaps the criminals decide to pick a house at random, and to their surprise, that house is occupied by a member of the local police force’s SWAT team, and that criminal meets their ultimate demise that day. That would be bad for him, but it would rid society of one more person intent on harming others and causing violence. However, have you considered what it would do to the emotional and mental condition of that officer who was forced to defend his family, himself and his home while off duty, in the comfort of his own home?
Or, what if the criminal decided to pick the home that was inhabited by a 14 year old girl who is babysitting 3 small children under the age of 7 for a family friend. And what if the criminal decides it’s better to leave no witnesses behind than take the chance of being identified, so he murders all four victims in cold blood just so he can carry on with his lifestyle of crime?
Concealed carry permits are for just that. Concealed. They are not meant to be broadcast for the entire viewing public to know each and every person with one. By making this information public knowledge, you are placing legal, law abiding concealed carry permit holders on the same level as registered sex offenders and other criminals. Unbelievable!
So, please reconsider this article, and those it will affect the most. And not WRAL’s ratings or the careers of those involved with this piece.
Until the article comes down, I will assure you that myself, my family, and many of my friends will not view WRAL on the TV, will not visit WRAL.com, and will not listen to WRAL FM. This type of irrational and irresponsible reporting will not be supported by me or my loved ones. And I know of many like-minded individuals who feel the same.
Thank you for your time, and I look forward to hearing a positive response soon.
