Story captured nation's attention

When police arrested a wealthy Maine couple and charged them with kidnapping their 19-year-old daughter for a forced abortion, the media paid attention.

When police said the alleged victim told them her parents were enraged because the unborn child's jailed father was black, it became a story everyone wanted a piece of. Soon Nicholas and Lola Kampf's struggles with their daughter Katelyn were hashed out on talk radio in Atlanta, in newspapers from Topeka, Kan. to London, England, and on 24-hour TV.

People representing Fox News, Geraldo Rivera, and Dr. Phil flooded police, prosecutors and family members with interview requests. A blog called Parents Behaving Badly featured a lively discussion.

The story led local newscasts for a week and appeared on the front page of the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram five times in eight days. But by the time the Kampfs categorically denied their daughter's version of events, the national interest had waned.

How the Kampf story climbed from a family crisis to national prominence speaks to the way news is put together and consumed in an era of change in the media. Media experts say that stories that generate platforms for opinions are highly prized. And technological advances and economic forces mean no story is really local anymore.

"This had the Holy Trinity of media frenzy: sex, race and politics," said Matthew Felling, media director of the Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington D.C. "Taken in isolation, the story would probably stay local, but together it had the elements to run wild."

Abortion, Felling said, remains one of the most polarizing issues in American life. Stories that touch on it are bound to draw attention. That was certainly the case with the Kampf story, based on the discussions found on the Internet.

Nationally syndicated newspaper columnist Ellen Goodman called it "a bizarre and sorry family narrative" that puts the term "pro-choice" in perspective. Goodman wrote that Katelyn Kampf's purported desire to have her baby is protected by the Supreme Court.

The issue of race was discussed on blackprof.com, which is dedicated to the discussion of race, politics and culture.

The story drew 28 posts, including one from a person who called for restraint in criticizing the people involved.

The crush of out-of-town media also changes the way a story is covered locally, said George Matz, news director of News 8 WMTW. When the producers for national shows like Geraldo and Dr. Phil call, the sources are less likely to talk to local reporters, if they talk at all, which none did in this case. "I firmly believe that the local outlets do a better of covering the story," Matz said. "We stay with it longer, we're connected to it more. The (national media) are just looking for the 'get interview' and then they're gone."

The prominence of stories like the Kampfs' may also be a function of the way news is disseminated. As the number of news outlets increases, the audience for each one shrinks, creating financial constraints on what have been the most productive and reliable news gatherers, big city newspapers, television and radio.

A study earlier this year by The Project for Excellence in Journalism identified the paradox. While there are more places then ever to get the news, there are fewer stories. News outlets that depend on new stories every day to generate discussion of opinions are on the lookout for ones like the Kampfs'.

"Stories can mushroom in ways that certainly wouldn't have happened 10 years ago, not even five years ago," said Bob Steele, an expert on journalistic ethics with the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla. The world of non-stop discussion needs stories with key elements that can offer a platform for already-formed opinions.

A story like the Kampfs', which offers more than one such topic, is ripe for being blown out of proportion. That may not have happened in this case, however. Steele who monitors all the major newspapers, networks and Internet sites, had never heard of the Kampfs before being asked for a comment Tuesday. In fact, less than two weeks after the couple's arrest, the story had receded back to the local level, as it goes through what could be a lengthy legal process.

The Kampfs' denial of their daughter's story this week, and Cumberland County District Attorney Stephanie Anderson's assertion that she does not believe they were motivated by race, drew little interest outside the local media market. Taking its place on the national forums are a new string of crime stories from around the nation, following a trend that is troubling for media watchdogs like Felling, who fears they take attention away from more important stories. "It's the state of the media today," Felling said. "Is there a place for stories like the Kampfs? Yes, and there always has been. But do they need to suck all the air out of the room?"

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