Guild Members Rally Around St. Louis Reporter

Members of the St. Louis Newspaper Guild, CWA Local 36047, rallied outside the Post-Dispatch newspaper to protest the unfair suspension of a prize-winning reporter.

Carolyn Tuft, with 14 years at the paper, was wrongly disciplined for a story she wrote in April 2005 about the Joyce Meyer Ministries. Her case was heard by an arbitrator this week, but a decision may take several months.

After Tuft's story appeared in April 2005, two Post-Dispatch editors — one of whom has left the newspaper — published an unprecedented apology. This apology clarified matters that did not need clarifying and corrected information that was not in error, the local said.

The local also pointed out that management's actions violated contract provisions concerning disciplinary procedures and were unfairly and wrongly applied to Tuft. Tuft was the only person singled out for any discipline.

"I want them to correct the record. I was never unfair or unprofessional. I want my career and credibility back," she said in an interview with Editor and Publisher.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch employees are rallying behind Tuft because they know that if management's over-the-top response is allowed to stand, all employees will be at risk for excessive penalties, the local said. Also speaking at the rally were local president Jeff Gordon and Ed Bishop, editor of the St. Louis Journalism Review.