Walter
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On the article Report: Group, Armed with Handgun, Carjacks Man in Arbutus
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On the article Woman Dead, Man Injured in Arbutus Incident
Walter
3:59 pm on Thursday, May 23, 2013
It matters, Honest CItizen. In the case of the robbery at the Wells Fargo Bank at 1000 Maiden Choice Lane, that appeared at first in Catonsville Patch but not in Arbutus Patch. If an ATM in Arbutus is being targeted by criminals, shouldn't people who live in Arbutus be aware of that? It matters because one is 21227 and the other is 21228. It matters because facts matter.
Sure, you can be flippant and suggest that I don't read the article if it's bothersome. But you don't know that an article is factually incorrect until you read it. I'm not in the journalism business. It seems to me that part of being a journalist is checking information and getting facts right. If you can't or won't do this, you shouldn't be calling yourself a journalist. If you don't know what is or is not Arbutus, you have no business calling yourself Arbutus Patch.
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On the article Arbutus Crime: Armed Robbery, Stabbing
Walter
11:35 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Reply1700 Arlington Avenue is in Relay. Four of the six incidents you list as happening in Arbutus are identified incorrectly.
If you don't know the neighborhoods, why do you bother trying to identify them? Isn't it silly that Patch keeps getting the neighborhoods wrong? What's frustrating is that even when readers point out the mistakes, they don't get fixed. Nobody cares.
The May 16 stabbing is confusing and poorly written. Harbor Hospital is in Baltimore. Presumably, the incident happened on Southwestern Boulevard, and the police went to Harbor Hospital to talk to the victim. Was he stabbed at 3 a.m., or is that when police interviewed the victim? The 5700 block of Southwestern Boulevard is at the MARC station. There isn't much else in that area. Is this something that commuters need to be concerned about? It would be good to know. Too bad we won't find out from Patch. So much for news that matters to the community.
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On the article Report: Group, Armed with Handgun, Carjacks Man in Arbutus
Walter
11:22 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Reply1000 Maiden Choice Lane is in Arbutus, not Catonsville. The Arbutus Shopping Plaza is right there.
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On the article Details Revealed in Arbutus Armed Robbery
Walter
9:53 am on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Patch only uses suspect descriptions when they are specific enough to help the public locate them, except when they don't:
http://arbutus.patch.com/articles/barton-distillery-is-burgled-copper-stolen
http://arbutus.patch.com/articles/family-dollar-clerk-robbed-at-gunpoint
http://towson.patch.com/articles/woman-assaulted-in-armed-robbery
http://towson.patch.com/articles/woman-robbed-of-methadone-pills
http://towson.patch.com/articles/sept-20-police-blotter
http://towson.patch.com/articles/crime-revenge-of-the-purse-snatchers
http://towson.patch.com/articles/crime-alert-burglars-not-taking-a-holiday
http://towson.patch.com/articles/fourth-goodwill-robbery-reported
http://towson.patch.com/articles/police-shoot-driver-after-traffic-stop
http://towson.patch.com/articles/woman-assaulted-in-armed-robberyI'm confused. Since the suspect's race in this case has already been reported within these virtual pages (http://arbutus.patch.com/articles/police-investigating-armed-robbery-on-dolores-avenue) and indeed those words still remain available to readers, why is it so important that the suspect's race be withheld in this version of the story? What high moral ground are you staking out?
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On the article Woman Dead, Man Injured in Arbutus Incident
Walter
9:29 pm on Sunday, May 19, 2013
ReplyThey don't know the neighborhoods, and they don't care. When I tried to help by pointing out an error in a crime story, Patch editor Adam Bendar responded, "The police identified the location as Halethorpe. If that isn't correct, that's on them and not on us." He may as well be saying, "I can't be bothered to verify or correct facts, and I don't care whether it is correct." If the job of journalist is to just reprint press releases, that could be done by a well-trained parrot.
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On the article Remington Home Demolished, Extends Community Garden
Walter
2:33 pm on Wednesday, April 24, 2013
ReplyGood to see you don't allow yourself to get distracted by the rules of punctuation, Mr. Bendar. Screw what the books say is correct punctuation. People admire a renegade.
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On the article Early Morning Fire at Western Tech Under Investigation
Walter
4:43 pm on Wednesday, April 17, 2013
ReplyIt's so wonderful that Patch leaves a story above the fold for a week with no update. This story just never gets old! It's a good thing there isn't anything else happening in the area, like a new school being built in the Catonsville area. Why would I want to read something like that at Patch?
Don't spoil your readers! Just keep doing what you're doing.
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On the article Catonsville, Arbutus Crime: Burglar Enters Through Dog Door
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On the article Police Charge Catonsville Man After He Allegedly Smokes Pot with Minors
Walter
7:10 am on Thursday, April 11, 2013
ReplyThat address is in Baltimore City, not Catonsville.
Walter
11:37 pm on Friday, May 24, 2013
The map you linked shows that 1000 block of Maiden Choice Lane is in Arbutus, not Catonsville.