I'm not exactly sure when "Scarborough" became something of a bad word in this newspaper, a word now banned from use in reports of crime that occur in the easternmost geographic area of the city once officially known as the municipality of Scarborough.
The Star's style guide, the arbiter of language and usage here, decrees that writers peg crime locations to the nearest intersection, rather than to a large area such as Scarborough, which was officially dissolved as a municipality in January 1998 with the merger of Toronto, North York, East York, York, Etobicoke and Scarborough into the "one big city" of Toronto.
"We don't write that `a Scarborough man was shot in North York,'" but rather that a Toronto man was shot on Wilmington Ave. in the Bathurst St-Finch Ave. W. area" the style guide states.
"The idea is to avoid stigmatizing any of the former municipalities with constant references to crime, a matter of particular sensitivity in Scarborough."
This policy is well-intentioned. But the reality is that the Star's newsroom has been inconsistent in applying the policy, leading to charges of unfairness from some Scarborough readers. Other readers are confused by the various ways in which Star writers try to locate crime in Toronto without referring to those historic geographic areas that, while officially dissolved, live on in the hearts and minds of many readers, and indeed, in institutional names like the "Scarborough Hospital."
The style committee, which advises on style matters, is set to review this policy next week. As a member of that committee, vexed by the many questions here, I welcome your comments on this issue. But first, some factors to consider.
On Thursday, a Page 1 headline and the opening paragraph of a report about the discovery of four bodies in a home on Welwyn Ave., located near Scarborough Golf Club Rd., referred to "the Scarborough home"– a clear violation of current Star policy.
That sparked about a half -dozen emails from residents of the geographic area formerly known as Scarborough. "Please remember that Scarborough is now Toronto. Would you please refer to us as east Toronto?" wrote Marguerite Hebert of "Toronto East."
Steven Melo expressed concern about inconsistency in the Star's locating of crime: "When violent crime happens in east Toronto, Scarborough gets headlines perpetuating the idea that Scarborough is this evil, scary place while other news stories in Toronto are identified geographically by their major intersection. Need I remind you that we are one city."
Does the Star link Scarborough's name to crime stories more frequently than it does the names of other Toronto areas such as North York and Etobicoke? In a 2005 column, my predecessor in this office concluded that was so. I expect that's correct, though I think a more sophisticated content analysis and detailed look at where crime actually does occur in Toronto is called for here.
It's not surprising, though, that Scarborough readers believe this is the case. On the same day the Star reported on the tragedy in the "Scarborough home," two stories about crimes in other areas of Toronto located them by referring to "west Toronto" and the specific intersections where they occurred.
Clearly, in describing the places where crimes occur, consistency matters most of all. It's not fair to identify Scarborough in crime stories if we don't similarly locate the crime stories that take place in North York, Etobicoke, and other former municipalities. To do so could indeed create an unfair negative image of the Scarborough area.
But does any ban on using those historic Toronto place names serve readers? If Toronto is indeed a city of neighbourhoods, should we aim to cite those more exact locations? Is Scarborough indeed "east Toronto?" Is Etobicoke "the west end?" While a map of Toronto indicates that, many long-time residents define east Toronto as the eastern reaches of the old City of Toronto. In their minds, east of that is indeed Scarborough.
"The names of the old municipalities – especially Scarborough, Etobicoke and North York – remain in common parlance and sometimes we need to use them," said Kathy Vey, head of the style committee, this week "Above all, we need to be clear and correct."
I agree, but even more important than being clear and correct here is fairness. And being fair, means being consistent in the way Star policy is carried out. Any new policy must put that goal first.
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