Reporters are supposed to be curious

Complaints about the way the news media have shirked their journalistic responsibilities are no longer limited to their coverage of political issues. Now we're getting half-assed reporting on serious public-health issues.

KCTV5 - Officials to Update Mumps Outbreak

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) -- Health officials from the University of Kansas and Douglas County plan an update this afternoon (2:30) on the mumps outbreak in Lawrence.

My wife, a nurse, after seeing various reports on this, points out that they're leaving a couple of important questions unasked and unanswered.

1. Were any of the confirmed mumps patients vaccinated against it? This should not be hard to find out, and if nobody wants to say, that ought to be part of the story.

2. Are people who have been vaccinated protected? And if not, why not? This will be a lot easier to find out if we can get an answer to number one.

I can't imagine being a parent and not wanting answers to these questions. But the local crop of broadcast journalists hasn't shown any curiosity, and we're left in the dark while the situation worsens.