Editorial: Our job to tell the news like it is

Every day is different in the newsroom at Hawke's Bay Today. Reporters are in and out, the phones ring constantly.

There is never a dull moment.

We have planning meetings throughout the day and much discussion goes into what should go on the front page.

Sometimes when we run a story about a nasty character or a tragedy we get a call, email or text asking why we don't have good news on the front page.

What a wonderful world it would be if we could do this. Make no mistake, when we have something to cheer about, we shout it from the rooftops.

However, it is our job to inform and, sometimes, even warn our readers.

It is in the public interest for communities to know, for instance, that there is an armed and dangerous man on the loose. What if you could have done something to prevent someone being hurt if you had known? Maybe you would have decided not to go out or simply been a bit more cautious.

And what if we didn't warn parents there was someone driving around trying to entice children into their cars?

As Te Mata Primary School principal Michael Bain said in yesterday's paper, what he didn't want was kids and parents to panic and stop walking, biking and scooting to school.

He was simply getting his message across to the community the best way he knew how.

Through Hawke's Bay Today, he warned parents and children to be cautious, not to walk about alone.

That is our job ... to let our readers know what is going on. We, like you, love good news stories but have to portray life as it is in our community.