The name game

By Nicola Jones
A man comes home from work after a few drinks, and somehow gets into an argument with his partner. Things get out of hand. The woman gets punched in the face. Three times. With a closed fist.

The man is Ian Mulgrew, city columnist with the Vancouver Sun, now charged with assault causing bodily harm. The victim, his common-law wife, is also a public figure of sorts — she used to be a reporter for the Vancouver tabloid, the Province.

At this point you might be dying of curiosity to know the name of Mulgrew’s common-law wife. The question is, do you have the right to know it?

The Province thought so. They ran a story with her name. The Vancouver Sun didn’t.

Both papers had valid points. On one hand, there was no legal reason to hold back the woman's name. Journalists have a mandate to tell the truth. Besides which, she's a "public" figure whose name has been printed in the press and that you may recognize. And the rules for privacy of public figures, many argue, are vastly different than those for more private citizens.

Lorne Smith, city desk editor at the Province, certainly felt the issue was clear cut. "Unless there is a ban on releasing the names of victims in sexual assault charges, we publish the names of all directly involved with the case," he said. "They’re public figures and we have a right to print the names."

On the other hand, there may be little reason to bring this woman’s name to light. It doesn’t really add much context to the story, beyond knowing that she’s a Province reporter (which you already know). It could cause a lot of embarrassment and humiliation for someone who’s already been victimized. Is there really a reason to subject her to that twice?

John Cruickshank, editor-in-chief of the Vancouver Sun, said, "The spouse of a public figure shouldn’t loose their rights." Rights which include anonymity.

"Different papers, different choices," said Cruickshank. But which, if either, was the right choice? What would you do? Would you include the name? E-mail us at Thunderbird_ubc@hotmail.com. - put "Name Game" in the subjectline.