RandyTravis' Blog

Whenever I speak before large groups, I usually get asked why I seem to love investigative reporting so much. My short answer: I love it because every story I do usually makes at least one person furious. And usually, that person deserves to be.

Back in my journalism school days at UGA we were taught, much like doctors, to do no harm, or at least minimize the harm to those not directly involved in the story. In the world of investigative reporting, our stories usually seem to right a wrong, prevent harm, and save people money. But often, people not directly involved are affected

Case in point: our two-part undercover investigation that airs this week starting Thursday at 6 and 10. As you’ll see, we expose a bunch of local telemarketers who came up with an incredible way to fool people into buying risqué DVDs. It’s great TV. Our producer really got the goods on these people by spending two days undercover inside the company.

But even before the story has aired, many people there have been fired. In fact, the entire company could very well shut down for good. That’s certainly a good thing for all those potential victims out there (often senior citizens.) Bad for the innocent families of those telemarketers. Worse for some of the telemarketers who were trying to sell this stuff without lying and cheating. (I’m guessing there were a few.)

It’s sad when an I-Team story costs someone their livelihood. Perhaps next time they’ll consider the true cost of what they’re doing to support themselves and their families. And what might happen when they finally get caught.