KFSM Links Prostitution, Wal-Mart Firings (Outtakes Opinion)

After The Benton County Daily Record broke the story on Dec. 15 that several executives at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. had been fired, the rumors began to fly. The most outrageous and salacious among them was that some of these men had allegedly been involved with prostitutes while on a hunting trip in south Texas. Whether the alleged trip was sponsored by Wal-Mart isn’t clear.

Several media outlets heard the rumor, but by late December it had only been mentioned in print or on television once. During the 10 p.m. newscast on Dec. 15, a reporter for KFSM, Channel 5, in Fayetteville tossed the word “prostitution” out at the end of her report.

It’s not the kind of word media outlets can afford to use loosely, especially if it’s connected to a person’s name. That is, unless you are absolutely sure that you’re correct.

Apparently, KFSM was that confident in its anonymous source.

We may never know the whole story behind the firing of the three execs and four other managers. When Wal-Mart says “integrity issues,” that normally means a violation of the distance Wal-Mart tries to maintain between its buyers and vendors from supplier companies.

We hope more light is shed on this in the near future. It has left us wondering what has happened to the ethics-based culture Sam Walton tried to foster at Wal-Mart. The firings may be an effort to maintain that culture.